Trader Joes & Other Grocery Store Egg Hatching Club - Are you a Member

[gabrielle1976]

My eggs are hatching after all! They started yesterday afternoon (day 23!) and are still at it this evening! Momma is still sitting on them. Hopefully I will get a better look tomorrow.

 

[cluck-cluck]

Hi ya'all! I'm getting eggcited as my two oldest TJ pullets are growing longer combs and their faces have been a bit red for a while! I even found a golf ball yesterday to put in my makeshift nest (a bucket) I calculate they'll be 19 weeks old on January 1st so I hope they start laying soon!

......

On a positive note: behold my new incubator!!



Inside are 11 more Whole Foods eggs!! I set them on Tues. with the New Years Day Hatchalong. Due on New Years!

I'm totally green with envy! Oh wow, NICE!

Tuesday I went to Trader Joe's in Hillcrest (San Diego) when they opened because someone told me that this was one of the stores which carried the fertile eggs..but they didn't have anything close and when I inquired they really looked at me as if I were nuts and said they didn't think they carried them. I went to Sprouts (Henry's) Farmer's Market and also went to Whole Foods...I struck out at all three...Perhaps the person who recommended I go to trader joes just assumed they had the fertile eggs here...Im not sure..Does anyone have an idea about San Diego or a way of finding out for certain whether or not whole foods or Sprouts might have them? I was so disappointed after the 3rd store..I guess I was a little over confidant they would have them here.

I'm so surprised they didn't have them! I'm not surprised that the workers wouldn't know about them, but if you looked in the egg section and didn't see the fertile eggs, I'm surprised!

My eggs are hatching after all! They started yesterday afternoon (day 23!) and are still at it this evening! Momma is still sitting on them. Hopefully I will get a better look tomorrow.

Yaaaay, congratulations!!

 

[chickenfu]

I set 10 eggs, tossed one that was not developing and the rest turned into peepers! Pretty good success rate, Skittles is a good mamma.

 

[cluck-cluck]

Did you enjoy by December 14th or did you let them get old a day? LOL

 

[Peep_Show]

Congrats! Not bad.... 9 chicks for a couple bucks and no extra electric bill for an incubator! Cannot tell what kind of hen Skittles is.... an Australorp?

Enjoy! And do post more pictures when you have a chance.

 

[chickenfu]

Yes, Skittles is an Australorp

These little guys are just the cutest

 

[cluck-cluck]

I seriously find my leghorns to be so hug-able! My oldest girls are like 15-16 weeks old now, and I just love to pick them up and hug them! Sweet girls! (don't get me wrong, they wouldn't jump into my arms, they don't really want to be picked up, but when they come close enough, I just take them, LOL. Then it's huggie kissie time 'till I've had enough and let them go again, LOL.

 

[Pele]

Ok, so I just had a really hilarious thing happen to me while I was scouting a local organic grocery store for fertile eggs. When I found the store's egg-display, there was a lady look reaaaaaally closely at a particular plain-carton brand. I stood nearby and waited for her to move away since I figured those cartons were most likely to be local ones. After a minute, a man came up behind the lady and asked "Are they still here?". She responds "Yes, they haven't all sold yet."

This is where I butt into the conversation:

Me: "Um... excuse me, are these your eggs?"
Lady: "yes."
Me: "Ok, this is a really strange question, but do you free-range roosters with your hens?"
Lady: "......yes?"
Me: " That's great! You see I hatch grocery store eggs as a kind of hobby, and I came here today looking for fertile ones."
Lady: "........"
Me: (nervous I look crazy now) "So.... what kinds of hens do you have?"
Lady: "Gold Comets mostly"
Me: "Me too! I love them. Thank you for the information, it was really cool meeting you."
Lady: "Yeah.... have a good day."


So... awesome to randomly meet the owner, not awesome to come off as a crazyperson in public. Oh well, I'll call it a draw.

 

[GardeNerd]

That's so cool that you met the flock owner!

I wonder why they were checking on the eggs out at the store? Did she say?

 

[Pele]

That's so cool that you met the flock owner!

I wonder why they were checking on the eggs out at the store? Did she say?

No, I didn't want to impose on her anymore than I already had, or worsen my crazylady image. I can only assume they were just checking out the inventory and seeing how fast their eggs were selling. I don't visit the store very often (expensive!), so I don't know if they were a new distributor.

I love the cartons though, they have printed envelope lables on them that states the farm name, address, and the packaging date! woohoo, they are only a week old!