The inevitable humidity question, day before lockdown, help please!

[WVduckchick]

@WVduckchick, just for interest sake, how many eggs do you harvest a day, average?

Actually, not very many for the number of birds I have. Between broodies and selling off most of my laying age birds, I only get maybe a dozen a day. I think I got 8 today. Spring/early summer, I was getting a couple dozen.

 

[KikiLeigh02]

What humidity do you all shoot for on LD with blue or Marans eggs? 50%? I keep finding mixed recommendations?

 

[aart]

Actually, not very many for the number of birds I have. Between broodies and selling off most of my laying age birds, I only get maybe a dozen a day. I think I got 8 today. Spring/early summer, I was getting a couple dozen.

Which really should be included with number of eggs collected

 

[aart]

What humidity do you all shoot for on LD with blue or Marans eggs? 50%? I keep finding mixed recommendations?

LD....LockDown?
Same as any other eggs.

 

[oregonkat]

What humidity do you all shoot for on LD with blue or Marans eggs? 50%? I keep finding mixed recommendations?

Yes, you are going to run into multiple opinions about this on BYC. As aart said, pretty much like any other egg. I dont up the humidity with these eggs or any others until I have an external pip and then I head for the 60's. Seems to work. Then of course, the humidity goes up with each hatchling so I almost never have to add moisture after the first hatchling arrives.

 

[aart]

What humidity do you all shoot for on LD with blue or Marans eggs? 50%? I keep finding mixed recommendations?

LD....LockDown?
Same as any other eggs.

Tho one thing about Marans eggs and humidity is that they do often have a thicker coating and so may lose humidity slower during incubation...thus some may use a lower humidity during the first 18 days, going lower during LD is not going to fix a too small air cell. But it can be hard to tell as with the marans eggs that I've hatched it can be almost impossible to even track the air cell growth, let alone embryo development.

Some blue/green eggs can be impossible to see embryo development, but air cell is easily visible....most I've hatched, air cell grows in size 'normally'.

 

[WVduckchick]

Which really should be included with number of eggs collected

I’ve lost track of how many layers i have now too. I probably won’t be selling too many more for winter, so I should do a new count. I did count total birds a while back and was at about 115, but have sold a few since, and I think another broody hatched 3 since then. Plus the Marans that started laying. Roller coaster.

 

[aart]

I’ve lost track of how many layers i have now too.

I should have known that!

 

[oregonkat]

was at about 115,

OK, OK hold the phone here...... I have 27 laying hens now (including the new pullets) I am averaging about 11 eggs a day (Oh, and I am also counting my slightly aged hens who do not lay but maybe a couple of times a week, 3 of them) so in trying to think about how many hens are going to reliably give me at least 16 eggs a day, your telling me that ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTEEN is not going to do it for me????????

 

[WVduckchick]

OK, OK hold the phone here...... I have 27 laying hens now (including the new pullets) I am averaging about 11 eggs a day (Oh, and I am also counting my slightly aged hens who do not lay but maybe a couple of times a week, 3 of them) so in trying to think about how many hens are going to reliably give me at least 16 eggs a day, your telling me that ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTEEN is not going to do it for me????????

I'm sorry! I really did sell a bunch of layers, and so many were broody this summer! So I have lots of chicks, and way too many cockerels too. My pullet/hen numbers are down tremendously. I'll do a count this evening, just to put your mind at ease.

But this does tell you that you will have to factor in broodiness!


Quick guess by memory, since I'm not at home.
Cream Legbars - 5 pullets, 1 cockerel - 0 layers
BCM's - 8 pullets, 1 cockerel - 1or2 layers?
bantam cochin pen C1 - 1 rooster, 1 young cockerel to stay, 6-8 young cockerels to be moved, 10 pullets/hens - 5 laying
bantam cochin pen C2 - 1 rooster, 4 young cockerels (3 to move), 7? females - 4 laying
bantam cochin pen C3 - (reject pen) 3 cockerels, 2 hens - both laying
Yard birds - 3 cockerels
Serama pen 1 - 1 cock, 1 cockerel to keep, 4-5 cockerels to be moved, 15 pullets/hens - 5ish laying
Serama pen 2 - 6 pullets/hens laying age (some still brooding chicks), 1 cockerel will stay, 2 cockerels will be moved, 3 pullets not yet laying, 5 chicks (4+1 I think)
OEGB - 1 cock, 4 hens laying age, 3 young pullets, 2 chicks (1+1)
OEGB in grow out pen to be sold - 9
Ducks - 9 calls, none laying now (4 hens/5 drakes, 2 drakes leaving today) + 1 black Swedish drake.

That's 114 I think, pretty close to accurate.

Oops, forgot chicks hatched last week - 4 in serama pen 1, and 3 in bantam cochin pen C2.