The 6th Annual BYC Easter Hatch-a-long!

[Olives eggs]

I set 41 eggs........

 

[Junibutt]

I know I am counting my chicks too early but wondering what you guys do to tag the newly hatched chicks. I have done a good job of marking the eggs and at lock down will put them in tomato baskets or gauze bags to keep breeds and even sometimes eggs from specific hens separate. However, I don't intend to have 10 separate brooders running. I will probably have a single or at the most 2 brooders depending on the number of chicks hatching.

Last time I had 21 chicks and it was nightmare. I used small colored rubber bands of 4 different colors and then each chick will get 1. 2 or 3 different color bands to differentiate but as the bands got dirty, it was harder to differentiate between red and purple. Same thing between blue and green. Anyways, what is best practice?

 

[Ravynscroft]

I know I am counting my chicks too early but wondering what you guys do to tag the newly hatched chicks. I have done a good job of marking the eggs and at lock down will put them in tomato baskets or gauze bags to keep breeds and even sometimes eggs from specific hens separate. However, I don't intend to have 10 separate brooders running. I will probably have a single or at the most 2 brooders depending on the number of chicks hatching.

Last time I had 21 chicks and it was nightmare. I used small colored rubber bands of 4 different colors and then each chick will get 1. 2 or 3 different color bands to differentiate but as the bands got dirty, it was harder to differentiate between red and purple. Same thing between blue and green. Anyways, what is best practice?

I use the loom bands, the ones to make bracelets out of... there are neons, primary and pastel colors and I never had a prob with them fading too quickly... but I usually switch them off at a couple of weeks or so to colored zip ties...

 

[KsKingBee]

What did you set? I was hoping for a Pea egg or 2 but no such luck. Just chickens laying here for now!

No peas yet, thought I might find a pea egg tonight but, no.

We set BCM, BOM (Buff Orp Marans), and Easter Eggers.

We also hatched some out this weekend.

Around four dozen.

 

[Razadia]

@Razadia
Good looking eggs. Check out the dixie chicks thread. @Amberjem has a video up of some of my shipped eggs hatching a few mins ago. So cool to watch my grandchicks

Thanks, I'll have to go look!

I have a question for everyone. On what day do you candle your eggs?

Is that a trick question?

F
Quote: Sounds about right. I get a teeny bit carried away sometimes...

Okay, question for those of you who candle your eggs frequently:

How soon can you tell if your eggs are developing? I just candled five of mine at random, and of those five, I could see one starting to "sprout" veins

I set these two days ago. I hope it's not an omen of the hatch. I think I will refrain from candling for the rest of the hatch. I can't stand finding a bunch of clears like that, or quitters later on.

It really depends on the egg color. You aren't going to see much of anything until day 7 in mid range brown eggs. Cream eggs are in the 4-6 day range depending on how light they are. Anything lighter than that should start showing on day 4. Possibly sooner if the light is just right.

 

[RedIII]

Thanks, I'll have to go look!

Is that a trick question? 

Sounds about right. I get a teeny bit carried away sometimes...

It really depends on the egg color. You aren't going to see much of anything until day 7 in mid range brown eggs. Cream eggs are in the 4-6 day range depending on how light they are. Anything lighter than that should start showing on day 4. Possibly sooner if the light is just right.

Thank you! I guess I'll have to wait and see what happens. These eggs are white or very light tan, but I figured 2 days was too short a time, anyway.

 

[Razadia]

Thanks, I'll have to go look!

Is that a trick question? 

Sounds about right. I get a teeny bit carried away sometimes...

It really depends on the egg color. You aren't going to see much of anything until day 7 in mid range brown eggs. Cream eggs are in the 4-6 day range depending on how light they are. Anything lighter than that should start showing on day 4. Possibly sooner if the light is just right.

Thank you! I guess I'll have to wait and see what happens. These eggs are white or very light tan, but I figured 2 days was too short a time, anyway.

It is, but you know. Hatching fever.

 

[ozexpat]

T

140 chicken eggs set on Pi day at 12MD Philippines Standard Time

 

[Sueg4332]

I have a question for everyone. On what day do you candle your eggs?

I do day 10 if at all I usually forget. Or cannot see though them. Have some legbars that need to be candled a lot of them were older than I like.

 

[karenerwin]

At 1:53 pm on March 14th (my birthday), I set 29 eggs.(Nope, not my age! My husband would not have been pleased if I set THAT many!)
12 Black Penedesecas ( Thank you Chicken Canoe)
3 Olive egger with EE roo
5 blue egg EE hen with EE roo
9 tan (most from RIR roo with either RIR hen or black sex link hen) a few are probably EE roo over RIR hen (but I didn't note which were from which coop).