The 7th Annual BYC Easter Hatch-A-Long!

[nate1the1great1]

So I am not ordering any showgirl eggs, but I will be getting some. I am getting a white frizzle Cochin, and some showgirls from my close friend, probably Friday. I am going to breed them and have eggs hopefully by the time to set for the Hal, on the other hand. My Aussies are starting to lay, NN cross polish are laying and I am thinking my soft feather silkie laid an egg.

 

[TJordan]

All these new coops and pins

I just built my barn/coop at 8'x8'x6' tall with a door for me to walk in. We just set up a 5'x15'x6' tall run that my adult birds will hang out in and my roosters that are heading to processing (yes I do it myself) are in a 5'x10'x6' tall pin with a broken down (will be replaced this weekend) coop that was bought less than a year ago. Thank God I didn't waste money on that thing. My mother n law did. If a coop lasts less than a year and costs $250 than that was

.
We will put 1 rooster and 4 hens in there until the new hatches feather out. That should give me eggs for another hatch for Easter. I'll cull the last rooster after that and buy 2 non-related rooster chicks for good bloodline maintainer.
After that we will put up our privacy fence and section off an area just for the birds and I'll use the pins for chicks and adolescents.

see. No problems here.

 

[chicken pickin]

Who is going to hatch Muscovies? Anyone?

Only a few days until set day for these!!

I had some in 2011 but gave them up since I didn't want to keep separate areas and they made quite the mess in my chicken coop. If I moved to somewhere that had the right kind of set-up, I'd get them again. They are cool to look at and quiet. Great mommas, too!!

I absolutely LOVE Muscovies. If I ever were to get back into ducks, it would be with them!

 

[ronott1]

Who is going to hatch Muscovies? Anyone?

Only a few days until set day for these!!

I had some in 2011 but gave them up since I didn't want to keep separate areas and they made quite the mess in my chicken coop. If I moved to somewhere that had the right kind of set-up, I'd get them again. They are cool to look at and quiet. Great mommas, too!!

They look so good!

I absolutely LOVE Muscovies. If I ever were to get back into ducks, it would be with them!

X2!

 

[Penny Hen]

Well my Cabinetbator is warming up. I have the STC-1000 thermostat installed with the heating running to the two 120V lightbulbs and the cooling running a microwave fan. I moved it back into the framed out part of the basement for more stable room temperature. It was keeping the temp stable in the front part of the garage but it had to keep turning on the lights to do it every 45 seconds (it was 40˚F). It is eight degrees higher in the inner basement and I added a little more exterior insulation. I have ordered one of the fog fountain mist gadgets and it should get here Wed or Thurs. Last hatch I did in this bator I couldn't get the humidity higher than 45% and then in 10 minutes it would drop to 16%. I had to help some of the little quail get out and some I am sure I lost because I couldn't get the humidity up. I have a new hygrometer coming too. The old one was dead and a new battery didn't revive it. I got two of the aquarium thermometers like Nate the Great suggested.

I got 15 silver quail eggs Monday and they have been sitting for over 24hrs. I have started to turn them along with the 4 eggs I have from my Olive Eggers and my Sapphire.

For those of you who hatch quail what is the best humidity for them during lockdown and before?

 

[chickendreams24]

The silkie egg comes from my hen Princess, she is a partridge. I recently got rid of my two silkie roosters though, so I have no idea who the father is. However, the last two chicks I got from her were a black and a partridge (with blue and barring on him).
I sure hope they hatch soon! I can't wait! I'll certainly post pictures.


They are so cute!

@chicken pickin

This is my Lovey vwhi I think looks kinda grey in this light but usually seems quite silver. Idk what she is but I think she's just gorgeous. We also have two white pullets (still second guess one of the sometimes) a white cockeral, a buff pullet, and a partridge cockeral-who has a lot of red in him

 

[generaldsherman]

I like that-space problem
Solved mine- the ag teacher at the school is not using their huge coop and run and will let me keep some chickens in there-provided I help the kids hatch some chicks out next fall. Win-win!!

Got my new incubator today. Woohoo

 

[LadyCluck77]

Okay, I'm going to torture you all with the hardest decision you all will ever make...

What is your favorite chicken breed?
I think mine is either Cochins or Milles..

Hmmm... I can see the appeal in Cochins certainly. As weird as it sounds, leghorns are my all time favorite breed. They aren't rare or fancy at all, but they can be the bravest and most loyal companions, sleek and beautiful, and sometimes entirely skip molt and some will give you an egg every day until they die.

 

[Cynthia12]

If you are very careful, you should be able to add the new ones. 17 weeks is usually a good age because they should be 3\4 the size of the big ones.

Also, some breeds are better at handling new members to the flock.

Found this out with my cockerel when I tried putting him in with the big girls. He's been in with the Blue Copper Marans. I would have left him in there if him was a her. Any way, he was the one to start the fighting. He was doing well letting the ladies know...I'm here, didn't hurt them or follow them if they left. The RIR pullet and he had it out the longest..I was watching to make sure they weren't killing each other. The big boss hen was laying. Waited to see how she did. When she got off of the nest, and I know, she always announces loudly..I went into the run to watch. Boom! He fluffed his hackle feathers up at her, and they met together. It wasn't long before he backed down from her! She probably weighs twice as much as him. He will be 3 months on the 1st. Anyway, she wouldn't leave him alone, even though he was trying to get away. Had to put him back into the separate run. Will wait until I either sell her, or, he gets a bit heavier.

 

[Cynthia12]

I take my wet chicks out of the 'bator as soon as they are completely out of the egg. They mess up the un-hatched eggs... I do put the wet chicks in a "drying brooder", but only if the dry chicks are being meanies.

I do the same. I know most leave them. I just put them in on one side of the brooder that I have separated from the others, if there are others in there. When they are a day or two old..I let them get together.