The Evolution of Atlas: A Breeding (and Chat) Thread

[uphilljill]

Congrats on the pip! BTW: Both my hatches this year started a few hours before day 21.

 

[1muttsfan]

Yes, I know that truck thing too :/

Yay!!!! A pip!

My eggs are Arkansas Blues from Metalla, NY state, one of the (few) other AB breeders. Looks like I'll have 4, not bad for roughly handled shipped eggs. Some of them had to be washed as yolk smeared several of them in the package.

 

[speckledhen]

Congrats on the pip! BTW: Both my hatches this year started a few hours before day 21.

Thank you for the info. So far, unless I'm not seeing something, I still have the one pipped. I hear cheeping, but not sure if it's coming from that egg or another one.

Yes, I know that truck thing too

Yay!!!! A pip!

My eggs are Arkansas Blues from Metalla, NY state, one of the (few) other AB breeders. Looks like I'll have 4, not bad for roughly handled shipped eggs. Some of them had to be washed as yolk smeared several of them in the package.

Wishing that more hatch than you think will! There was yolk from the two broken ones, but it only got on the outside of the other wrapped eggs, nothing that had to be washed off at all. I expect I'll have at least half of these hatch, which will be plenty if half of those are pullets.

I'm about to sell off Tessa if she doesn't quit being a heathen witch hen! That girl is mean, mean, mean to Athena and the younger pair. She is downright vicious. I had to put the three youngsters in the #6 pen so they didn't have to be beat up by her. She's bottom in pecking order in her group so, naturally, she wants to keep them lower than she is, but it's hard to watch her be so evil when she's really a sweet hen. Lizzie is almost as bad to Tessa, but Tess can hold her own. Chicks really can't defend themselves, though on range, they have plenty of room to escape unless cornered.

 

[speckledhen]

I took photos of the 9 week old pair and some with Athena for comparison. She's only 2 weeks older, but massively larger than her sister. Maybe I'm wrong and maybe it's normal disparity but Athena is most definitely wider than her younger sister, not only larger, but broader across. The #4 boy's newer feathers are looking sharper, too.

So far, the first pip has gotten larger, but I can't see other pips yet. UPDATE AT BOTTOM. They were all dancing around normally a few days ago so I do expect a few more to show up to the party, even if fashionably late.



















ETA: I candled the Brahma eggs. Only two are questionable-one has no air cell, no sign of development, but it's super dark shelled. The other has an air cell formed but I can't really see the shadow of a chick in it, maybe just hiding from me. Out of 21 eggs, there are 19 definites going, one that may be okay and one that probably just didn't develop. #11, a Partridge, is the one with no sign of air cell formed or development. #20 is a Dark, and may be okay, but I was not 100% sure. There is NOT ONE scalloped air cell! They are all normally shaped, which is crazy for shipped eggs!


ETA, again: TWO more BR eggs pipped, #5 and #6, positioned next to each other. So far, just the three pipped.

 

[Peanutsmomma]

I'm about to sell off Tessa if she doesn't quit being a heathen witch hen! That girl is mean, mean, mean to Athena and the younger pair. She is downright vicious. I had to put the three youngsters in the #6 pen so they didn't have to be beat up by her. She's bottom in pecking order in her group so, naturally, she wants to keep them lower than she is, but it's hard to watch her be so evil when she's really a sweet hen. Lizzie is almost as bad to Tessa, but Tess can hold her own. Chicks really can't defend themselves, though on range, they have plenty of room to escape unless cornered.

Maybe Tessa has been picking up pointers from Tiny???

So excited about the pip. Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings!! Hope you and Tom are feeling better.

 

[speckledhen]

Maybe Tessa has been picking up pointers from Tiny???

So excited about the pip. Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings!! Hope you and Tom are feeling better.

Actually, Tiny is afraid of other chickens. She pretty much only attacks hubby, LOL. She will attack the cat and any chickens she doesn't know, but otherwise, because of her bad eyesight, she's at the bottom of the pecking order and gets pounded regularly.


Tom's back is still in full "out" mode. He's wearing a stretchy brace and having a hard time. I just feel like I've been hit by a truck, very very tired. But, chicks are going to be hatching so I'll lose sleep, I'm sure. At least, it's for a good cause!

DH has to get out of this slump he's in because we have to get ready for long term company. Sigh. Not a good time for the back to go out.


ETA: 4th pip!

 

[speckledhen]

Two more just pipped, bringing the total so far to six, almost half of them. Popping like pipcorn, pipping like popcorn, whatever!

 

[Pyxis]

Two more just pipped, bringing the total so far to six, almost half of them.  Popping like pipcorn, pipping like popcorn, whatever!

Go chickies go

 

[eleaserek]

Two more just pipped, bringing the total so far to six, almost half of them.  Popping like pipcorn, pipping like popcorn, whatever!

So exciting!! e

 

[speckledhen]

Morning report: So far, 7 hatched, 4 more pipped (that I can see) another cheeping, one no sign of life. There was one that pipped and this gooey, glue-like stuff had leaked out. Knowing how that usually ends, I quickly pulled it but the pip was sealed shut and the chick was gone. The chick completely filled the egg, not one little space left. So lost that one.

Seems like I'll get maybe a dozen out of this bunch, but we shall see.



ETA: Started with 18, 2 broken, so 16 went into the bator. First day one was seeping, removed. Left with 15. At candling, one had no development, floating air cell, removed that after a re-test a few days later, left with the 14 that went into the hatcher. I think if I get 11-12 out of that, it was a VERY successful hatch of shipped eggs! Of course, a pipped egg may not hatch, we all know that, but it's likely they will. They're all hatching clean, no open navels.

Kudos to uphilljill on fertility and health of her birds as well as her packing, which all combine to make this a successful hatch. And of course, one never forgets how to be a "bator jockey", after doing it a hundred times, right? I do prefer the preset Genesis over the old fashioned wafer one, but it wasn't that hard, not with the Spot Check incubator thermometer and the little analog hygrometer that seems to be very accurate.