Too Early for Feb Hatch-A-Long Thread??

[CluckNDoodle]

Even if the blue egg gene is coming from an Ameraucana with a pea comb? I know the genes aren’t 100% tied together but I thought it was highly likely to be linked.

I think that egg color gene's can run separate from the comb gene's?

I'm thinking the same, thought I'm not 100%. I have encountered too many colored egg layers with different combs due to their mixes but I'm certainly not a geneticist, I'm just a hatching addict that reads a lot. lol

 

[livhatcher]

I really like the fact they do well in the heat. I was concerned about some of mine last summer.

me, too! middle ga is no joke when it comes to heat. i started freezing all kinds of fruit and veggie scraps in water to make giant chicken popsicles so they could cool their wattles!

 

[CluckNDoodle]

me, too! middle ga is no joke when it comes to heat. i started freezing all kinds of fruit and veggie scraps in water to make giant chicken popsicles so they could cool their wattles!

Same! It's an adventure every year trying all sorts of things to keep the flock cooler. So far trees and large bushes make the biggest difference to keeping them cooler. I also do the frozen treat blocks, that I now call "Bock Blocks" lol. We've even had a baby pool with a cinder block in it that some chickens would hop right into the water and others would stand on the wet block to cool off, I had to do away with that because of all of the hens I have going broody. I didn't want a chick to hop into the pool.

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

I think that egg color gene's can run separate from the comb gene's?

Ok well that is awesome haha. I’m sure with my luck it’ll end up being a rooster though.

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

Still no more pips. Worried about the remaining babies.

 

[livhatcher]

Still no more pips. Worried about the remaining babies.

hate that. i had kind of a lousy hatch from shipped eggs last week--had a stinker of an egg in there and don't know if that affected the others. i've hatched hundreds of chicks and never had a rotten one before... hoping all will work out!

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Still no more pips. Worried about the remaining babies.

Are you wanting to step in? My first step is always to candle and listen to the remaining eggs. I prefer to allow as many as possible to hatch on their own without assisting but I'm not at all against it. It's not for everyone and that's ok too!
Once I'm left with a few stragglers I will sometimes put something as simple as a small safety hole in the air cell so that I feel comfortable waiting longer before actually stepping in. This way I know they're getting oxygen if they're internally pipped and struggling to externally pip.
When I'm left with eggs with no activity after all of the other chicks have hatched, I am one to go in and investigate but it's a very hands on process once you decide to assist and many people would rather just allow nature to take it's course.

 

[livhatcher]

Are you wanting to step in? My first step is always to candle and listen to the remaining eggs. I prefer to allow as many as possible to hatch on their own without assisting but I'm not at all against it. It's not for everyone and that's ok too!
Once I'm left with a few stragglers I will sometimes put something as simple as a small safety hole in the air cell so that I feel comfortable waiting longer before actually stepping in. This way I know they're getting oxygen if they're internally pipped and struggling to externally pip.
When I'm left with eggs with no activity after all of the other chicks have hatched, I am one to go in and investigate but it's a very hands on process once you decide to assist and many people would rather just allow nature to take it's course.

I am less prone to intervene than I used to be, but have had some malpositioned bc of shipping and I feel bad for them when they struggle a long time and can't get out. This thread has saved me a bunch.
http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/step-by-step-guide-to-assisted-hatching

 

[LynnaePB]

This is another really great article on assisting. I've had to assist quite a bit, mostly with shipped eggs. https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-assisted-hatching-for-all-poultry.72886/

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

hate that. i had kind of a lousy hatch from shipped eggs last week--had a stinker of an egg in there and don't know if that affected the others. i've hatched hundreds of chicks and never had a rotten one before... hoping all will work out!

I’m sorry you had that happen! Shipped eggs are definitely a gamble. I don’t even want to calculate my hatch rate.