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

[ellandeeranch]

My TJ girls are all officially laying!

Yesterday, I got 4 eggs! A week ago, Lilac laid her first egg, and it was small, but now it's about the same size as the older two girls who have been laying since early January! Blue just laid her first egg, and it's smaller, but I guess it won't be long before hers get up to size as well! I'm really happy, the eggs are finally rolling in!

What did you do with the roosters? My TJ's are 8 weeks now, and since they're out of the brooder and in a tractor, they're growing more. I have them on Quik-Gro feed, because most of them are bound for the Freezer Farm. This was just an experiment to see if it would work. I'm not interested in keeping leghorns as part of the flock. I'll try to keep two of the girls for eggs, but not if they're making everyone else nuts with their skittishness (hmmm...is that a word, I wonder).

Richard in Neenach, California

 

[Jmurph]

So are all of you on the west coast? I have next week off, so I am going to go look for some fertile eggs at Whole foods and TJ's. I'll let you know what I find.

 

[what did I do]

I'm not in California but I picked my eggs up there

 

[ozexpat]

Quote:
The main reason that us left coasters have fertile eggs for sale in specialty stores is because we are silly enough to believe that its worth paying more for an egg that is refrigerated for up to a month following its producer being in an interlude with a rooster for a few seconds. That somehow the egg is better for us because it has a few cells of an embryo in it. What can I say? Well at least it gives us hatch-a-holics something to experiment on.

 

[cluck-cluck]

What did you do with the roosters? My TJ's are 8 weeks now, and since they're out of the brooder and in a tractor, they're growing more. I have them on Quik-Gro feed, because most of them are bound for the Freezer Farm. This was just an experiment to see if it would work. I'm not interested in keeping leghorns as part of the flock. I'll try to keep two of the girls for eggs, but not if they're making everyone else nuts with their skittishness (hmmm...is that a word, I wonder).

Richard in Neenach, California

The first ones we found a home for. Someone wanted to breed leghorn into his barnyard mix. The second batch, I had to put down as soon as I saw they were roos. Nobody wants them, I couldn't keep them. It was a sad waste of life. I hope some day soon, we can live where I can raise meaties so nothing goes to waste

So are all of you on the west coast? I have next week off, so I am going to go look for some fertile eggs at Whole foods and TJ's. I'll let you know what I find.

Yes

The main reason that us left coasters have fertile eggs for sale in specialty stores is because we are silly enough to believe that its worth paying more for an egg that is refrigerated for up to a month following its producer being in an interlude with a rooster for a few seconds. That somehow the egg is better for us because it has a few cells of an embryo in it. What can I say? Well at least it gives us hatch-a-holics something to experiment on.

I know, we're so silly!

 

[NicoleRook]

So excited by this, my son is gonna try as a science experiment, but I need a little direction. What brands of eggs have had any kind of success, besides trader joes. Also, I read somewhere that someone hatched from a frozen egg, can anyone confirm that. Thanks all. Incubator arriving today and then I'm off to store to find eggs.

 

[dretd]

The main reason that us left coasters have fertile eggs for sale in specialty stores is because we are silly enough to believe that its worth paying more for an egg that is refrigerated for up to a month following its producer being in an interlude with a rooster for a few seconds. That somehow the egg is better for us because it has a few cells of an embryo in it. What can I say? Well at least it gives us hatch-a-holics something to experiment on.

See now here I thought it was because the chickens got to live a more natural life, sort of like cage-free is better than living in a tiny cage. They wouldn't be able to have a roo in with hens in those little battery cages so they would have to have enough space to walk around and do their thing. At least that's the theory!

 

[dretd]

So excited by this, my son is gonna try as a science experiment, but I need a little direction. What brands of eggs have had any kind of success, besides trader joes. Also, I read somewhere that someone hatched from a frozen egg, can anyone confirm that. Thanks all. Incubator arriving today and then I'm off to store to find eggs.

I have not done the TJ thing because there are no TJ's in my area (yet). I researched Chino Valley Ranchers (Vitamin Cottage) since that's whats available in my area. See what stores you have that carry fertile eggs and get a dozen, crack them open then see if they are fertile. If so, you could do that brand. Just be sure that the egg is as fresh as can be. Talk to the store folks and find out when they get their shipments and pick them up the day they arrive.

I have never heard of an egg hatching after being frozen. All the shells of my eggs that accidentally freeze in the nest box crack.

I did hatch an egg from my own flock that I had placed in the fridge. It had been in about a week when my broody (they stop laying eggs when they go broody) set eggs from the others and I thought it was unfair for her to hatch others eggs without any skin in the game, so I pulled out 3 from the bin. Only one hatched. I suspect they were older and I didn't let them come up to room temp before tucking them under so I may have shocked the embryos.

Good luck to your son, you 'll have to keep us posted on the results!

And I almost forgot:

 

[ellandeeranch]

The first ones we found a home for. Someone wanted to breed leghorn into his barnyard mix. The second batch, I had to put down as soon as I saw they were roos. Nobody wants them, I couldn't keep them. It was a sad waste of life. I hope some day soon, we can live where I can raise meaties so nothing goes to waste
Yes
I know, we're so silly!

Bummer you had to put them down. I'm trying to get to where I eat all my cull roos now. It will take some time, but that's my goal! Even if leghorns aren't exactly the meatiest birds in town, I'm sure they'll still be tasty.

Richard up in Neenach

 

[Peep_Show]

re: culling roos

as a more useful alternative than just tossing carcasses.... Call your local herpatologist (reptile store) as often the big snakes eat chickens. Grisly, yes, but not wasteful.