The Heritage Rhode Island Red Site

[cmom]

Some folks have already messaged me about a hatcher. They say they have an incubator, but need a hatcher but don't want to spend a lot of money.

Cmom has built most of hers. I have built a dozen incubators and hatchers or more and hatched hundreds of chicks out them..

I don't wish to have this thread on Reds get side tracked into a hatcher incubator thread. Goodness knows, there's enough of those here on BYC already, so I suggest you search up those many, many threads. Caution. Lots of threads on building them are quite amateurish and they won't work. These eggs are too valuable.

My suggestion is to get up cmom privately, via pm. She can show you many, many photos of her home made equipment. This does NOT have to cost an arm and a leg. All mine are simple Omaha Steak shipping boxes they mail out frozen meat in. Nothing special and they work like a charm.

Get up @cmom for further guidance.

I know you don't want this to be an incubating thread but that is all part of preserving the breed. Some of my hatcher/brooders are Omaha Steak shipping boxes and many many years ago before I bought my cabinet incubators, I used the styrofoam incubators. I still marked the eggs.

One modification I made to mine was to put a milk bottle cap on the adjustment knob which gives better control as the knob is so sensitive when it's turned.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Infra-structure and Breeding the Reds


To breed the Reds means to help preserve the breed. To preserve the breed means breeding them to the Standard. Selective breeding is how the Rhode Island Red was made in the first place, how it was improved through those early years and how it is preserved still today. The birds we make should be excellent examples of the breed. To accomplish this task, there is so much to learn and to achieve top results requires study and is a life long challenge. We're always learning, always trying to problem solve.

Infrastructure and equipment is necessary. A backyarder with a few birds for eggs thinks in their mind of a coop and run for a a handful of birds, space to roost and a place to lay eggs. That's about it. Oh, the backyarder may have a "rooster" in the mix and collect fertile eggs and hatch them, but this isn't really breeding, just propagating. Breeding, very selective, purposeful breeding, not just flock breeding, requires far more equipment and it's better to comprehend this going in. It is part of "counting the cost".

You can limp along with a singe incubator, but it is far, far better to have at least an incubator for "cooking the eggs for 18 days and then transferring the eggs into another incubator used as a dedicated hatcher for the final 3-4 days of hatching. Meanwhile, the incubator stays clean and another row of eggs can be set on the turners. Hatching is messy and a hatcher keeps all that contained. Clean the hatcher and sterilize it and take on another batch. This allows the hatcher to hatch chicks every weekend, right on through the season. More incubating and hatching options compresses your hatching season.

But there's so much more unique infrastructure that is required. My simple suggestion is to have Multi Purpose, small containment pens. These can used for a variety of purposes. Multiple small pens allow for careful, very selective breeding. Thus, it can be a breeding pen in season. But those same small pens can also be bachelor pads for the cockbirds, isolation pens for individual or small groups of cockerels to keep them separated from the pullets during that awkward 12 week to finish grow out period. They might be used to put up birds for potential showing.

Having a host of small pens is going to enter into the breeders equation and the need for them all becomes clear when pursuing this hobby.

Chicken wire is useful for keeping a chicken out of a garden, but should never be used for keeping a chicken in. It is far too rough on their feathers and tearing results. Hardware cloth or steel welded fencing provide more security from predators and easier on the feathers.

You will need a way to brood all these chicks for 5-6 weeks. Then, you need the capacity to grow out these juveniles in a healthy and predator safe way. More infrastructure. It is far less a matter of land space as it a matter of having the right kinds of spaces or pens for the birds to do all these things.

When you first start, keep it simple and do not over hatch what you are prepared to care for properly. Hatching can be addictive, but the strain can come very quickly and those hot days of summer chores is lurking. Maintain self control only do what you can and what remains enjoyable and affordable. Scaling your goals to meet your energy level, property space, infrastructure and budget is a MUST.

Lastly, you are going to cull, cull, cull. As keeping only 10% of what you hatch is very typical. You will need to devise a plan of disposing of those culls. They will need to be sold or eaten. Starting small and slow allows you to judge your ability to do these things. Small and slow. See how it goes. KISS


.

 

[Ur-ur-ur-urrr]

Good reads, Fred. While many of these points be common knowledge to seasoned breeders, there are a lot of details that a newcomer may not have taken into consideration, or simply overlooked. Thank you for taking time to point out the intricacies involved.

 

[cmom]

Infra-structure and Breeding the Reds


To breed the Reds means to help preserve the breed. To preserve the breed means breeding them to the Standard. Selective breeding is how the Rhode Island Red was made in the first place, how it was improved through those early years and how it is preserved still today. The birds we make should be excellent examples of the breed. To accomplish this task, there is so much to learn and to achieve top results requires study and is a life long challenge. We're always learning, always trying to problem solve.

Infrastructure and equipment is necessary. A backyarder with a few birds for eggs thinks in their mind of a coop and run for a a handful of birds, space to roost and a place to lay eggs. That's about it. Oh, the backyarder may have a "rooster" in the mix and collect fertile eggs and hatch them, but this isn't really breeding, just propagating. Breeding, very selective, purposeful breeding, not just flock breeding, requires far more equipment and it's better to comprehend this going in. It is part of "counting the cost".

You can limp along with a singe incubator, but it is far, far better to have at least an incubator for "cooking the eggs for 18 days and then transferring the eggs into another incubator used as a dedicated hatcher for the final 3-4 days of hatching. Meanwhile, the incubator stays clean and another row of eggs can be set on the turners. Hatching is messy and a hatcher keeps all that contained. Clean the hatcher and sterilize it and take on another batch. This allows the hatcher to hatch chicks every weekend, right on through the season. More incubating and hatching options compresses your hatching season.

But there's so much more unique infrastructure that is required. My simple suggestion is to have Multi Purpose, small containment pens. These can used for a variety of purposes. Multiple small pens allow for careful, very selective breeding. Thus, it can be a breeding pen in season. But those same small pens can also be bachelor pads for the cockbirds, isolation pens for individual or small groups of cockerels to keep them separated from the pullets during that awkward 12 week to finish grow out period. They might be used to put up birds for potential showing.

Having a host of small pens is going to enter into the breeders equation and the need for them all becomes clear when pursuing this hobby.

Chicken wire is useful for keeping a chicken out of a garden, but should never be used for keeping a chicken in. It is far too rough on their feathers and tearing results. Hardware cloth or steel welded fencing provide more security from predators and easier on the feathers.

You will need a way to brood all these chicks for 5-6 weeks. Then, you need the capacity to grow out these juveniles in a healthy and predator safe way. More infrastructure. It is far less a matter of land space as it a matter of having the right kinds of spaces or pens for the birds to do all these things.

When you first start, keep it simple and do not over hatch what you are prepared to care for properly. Hatching can be addictive, but the strain can come very quickly and those hot days of summer chores is lurking. Maintain self control only do what you can and what remains enjoyable and affordable. Scaling your goals to meet your energy level, property space, infrastructure and budget is a MUST.

Lastly, you are going to cull, cull, cull. As keeping only 10% of what you hatch is very typical. You will need to devise a plan of disposing of those culls. They will need to be sold or eaten. Starting small and slow allows you to judge your ability to do these things. Small and slow. See how it goes. KISS


.

I totally agree. The more you have the more maintenance. For me it is a labor of love. I enjoy all of my birds and I must cull. Some are rather apparent quite early and others not so much so they grow out more. I take the better birds to the shows and most of the culls to local farm swaps. It's a day out once in awhile and some socialization and chicken chatter too. I think next week is going to have a processing day too.

 

[Ur-ur-ur-urrr]

These are the two cockerels I've been keeping my eyes on since they were just a few weeks old. They feathered faster and grew quicker than the other three cockerels. They're still slender and their keels feel like a "V", but they're still young... 21 1/2 weeks old to be exact. Should see some big changes in them later this fall/winter. I'm hoping those will be good changes...

 

[cmom]

They look like they may fill out a bit more. My boys are still growing not nearly as developed as your birds. I am anxious to grow out my latest males chicks (Skipper). The chicks are 3 months old and growing. This was the first hatch from him and the girls I put with him. There are some fine looking youngsters possible for showing. I hope to have a nice male for the spring showing. They won't be ready yet for the fall show. Last year I did sell a champion, I'm sure he would have been, and which I have since wished I had kept. I haven't had another like him yet. I have some that are very close. I'll try to remember to take some pictures.

 

[Ur-ur-ur-urrr]

They look like they may fill out a bit more. My boys are still growing not nearly as developed as your birds. I am anxious to grow out my latest males chicks (Skipper). The chicks are 3 months old and growing. This was the first hatch from him and the girls I put with him. There are some fine looking youngsters possible for showing. I hope to have a nice male for the spring showing. They won't be ready yet for the fall show. Last year I did sell a champion, I'm sure he would have been, and which I have since wished I had kept. I haven't had another like him yet. I have some that are very close. I'll try to remember to take some pictures.

They'll fill out. They're skin and bones right now. This heat has really slowed down their feed consumption. I expect that'll change when it starts getting cooler and they need a little extra padding to keep warm.

You'll should post some pics of Skipper's chicks.

I don't want to make that mistake, so I'll be growing out all of my (decent) chicks to avoid parting with a prize bird. That has to sting just a little...

 

[cmom]

These are some of Skippers chicks. There are a couple of mutts and Brown Leghorns in this grow-out coop and pen. There are some RC RIR chicks of Juniors in here too. These chicks about 3 months old.

Here are some of Wallace's chicks and again a couple of mutts in this grow-out.

I was told I may have Partridge Leghorns.

 

[Ur-ur-ur-urrr]

I was told I may have Partridge Leghorns.

You may have Partridge Wyandottes...

 

[cmom]

Quote: But Wyandotes have Rose Combs and mine are Single Comb.