Washingtonians

[4cats3kids1hubby2many]

Jbear: DD is very excited to get the chickens. We just watched the movie 7 brides for 7 brothers, so the Roo's name is Adam, one of the hens' name will be Milly and she is deciding on what the second hen will be named. But a girl from the movie. I thought that was sweet.

 

[pettec63]

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It's so nice, and flat, the sun is shining, and no mud in sight! I think I'm going to faint!

LOL!! that's too funny! we have had our share of rain which I can tell you is unusual!! there are some flats spots but, there are lots of hills and TONS of ROCKS too!

 

[pettec63]

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oh they are gorgeous!!

 

[4cats3kids1hubby2many]

Okay, FOR YOU CHICKEN PROS:

I just got through doing a necropsy on the 7 unhatched eggs. One was obviously alive up until just not long ago, He was fully formed. It was a big chick too. Two were rather smaller, maybe day 13 or 14. Two never developed and were just a dark spot in a mess of liquid. So they died in the very beginning. And then two that were somewhere between days 13/14 and a bit more maturity, but smaller than the one that was so large...maybe closer to day 16 of 17. Of course I am using the web site that (I think) it was Rainwolf posted showing the developmental stages of the embryos. Great site by the way.

Okay, everything looked normal - especially with the full term one. What can go wrong? Did I open it too much? I didn't. I opened on day 8 to candle, every 3 days to keep the water up. I was concerned about the humidity, it stayed between 40 and 50, but closer to 40-45 through the incubation period. Day 18, humidity up. 65-70%. massive hatching alot. DH opened up the incubator to pull out some shells, very careful and just lifted the corner a bit. I know this makes the humidity dive...but it goes back up real fast. I did remove chicks when their numbers reached 8 (it was just too crowded in there). Removed the second batch of chicks 12 hours (or more) later. A few times, when I had added water, it may have been too warm and the humidity really shot up (over 70), I cracked the lid just a bit to lower humidity until it stabled. I made sure the vent was all the way open so every one could breath - especially since there were so many. At the end I did add a rag soaked in warm water to keep the humidity up. Again, for a bit it was into the 80's. I lifted the lid a crack to try to level the humidity down into the 70s.

Funny thing also, they were on my kitchen counter. Why did the eggs in back all hatch first - the ones up against the wall? Our house is not that cold. There was no draft?

Alrigh then class, questions:
1. Did multile openings do something to the hatch? How does it disrupt them if the incubator seems to level off very quickly?
2. Was the humidity too high at times and drown the remaining chicks?
3. We turned the incubator (very slowly and carefully) to view the back. Did this somehow get their direction off?
4. Did the multiple other chicks in the incubator Knocking the other eggs around do some damage?

I am okay, I am not upset. In fact it was very interesting dissecting them. it is sad of course, but I know I did everything I could .... I just want to learn more and improve.

All advice, critisism, comments are welcome. Thank you.

 

[pettec63]

Well got the vet coming out to take care of my Equus clan tomorrow so I better hit the hay!! lol That's funny right there!!

ok NOT!!! see yas tomorrow and thanks for the comments and the laughs!! preciate it!!

 

[hallerlake]

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You're welcome to come over here any time. I've been sick for several days, and it's all I can do to get Mr H to feed the animals.

 

[hallerlake]

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I think it is suppose to rain all week here. Big warnings of floods here. Yes, we are hoping that by selling a few birds we can help to supplement our "chicken addiction". And, yes, you are right....we enjoy every second of it. I even find my two older DSs watching, inspecting, interested, and playing with babies. But DD and I are both enjoying all of it.

Not too long ago, Mr H came up to me and said he had an idea he wanted me to really think about. How about selling some of my eggs? I said next year, when I have more chickens, I expect to do just that. I expect i can sell hatching eggs on Craigslist, as well as eating eggs next year. It won't be enough to cover coops, etc. but it should help with feed and bedding.

 

[hallerlake]

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Remember that any chicken that you raise and eat will have had the best life possible for a chicken and a death which is fast, painless, and free of panic and trauma. All small farmed meat tastes better for the sanity of the animals as much as anything, but also for your clear conscience that what you eat has not been deprived of life while it was living.

If it helps not to name them, do it, but what would help me is knowing that they're not Cornish Xs who've been kept in tiny boxes with nothing to do except eat and not even the room to stand up and flap their wings and stretch. I may not know them personally, but I know the ones you raise will be happier, for whatever chickens feel as happieness.

We did not name the 3 boys I brought away, and the kids know our birds live a good life, it is mostly that it is such a short life, and I did not think that chickens would recognize me enough to run out of the new flock they were with to follow me around the pen. They may not end up as food, but even pulling them away from everything they know has me feeling bad.

I bought a 1/2 pig when I was there too - He asked me to follow him into the barn and pick out the one I wanted. I couldn't pick one out, most of the hogs were big, ugly noisy, disgusting pink animals, but one pen had 3 calmer, younger pigs. Two were black and white with long eyelashes. Those were the ones I had to choose from. I told him it did not matter which one. The farm we buy the quarter beef from sends out holiday cards when we are already enjoying our steaks with the cows on them. At least now they are doing a cow group shot. I'm just a wimp. I went to Germany the summer I turned 16. My aunt and uncle took me to a fancy restauraunt on a lake with stockponds containing all the fish. I love fish, but I can't look at my animal food when it is still alive. You walk stroll through beautiful gardens with the chef and net boy and look at all the fish swimming in the ponds as the chef describes what delicacy he will make with each type of fish. You tell the chef which one you want on your dinner plate. Then he instructs net boy to scoop the fish out of the pond. I couldn't do it. I ordered the only non-fish item on the menu; a hamburger! (at least we were very near Hamburg). Instead of the waiter, the chef came out with my meal and made a huge scene in the fancy dining room. "This is for the American!" and he slammed down a plate in front of me, the burger was covered with about 20 little kiddie toys of the type you might find in a happy meal! I don't know who was more embarrassed - me or my relatives! Some people scoffed, some laughed, a couple clapped. The chef stormed out of the dining room, and after all that, I had a hard time enjoying my meal!

I loved the seafood restaurants in Pusan where I could pick out our fish from the tank. We'd eat the fillets raw while they made soup out of the rest. That's fresh.

 

[Ogress]

Quote:
We did not name the 3 boys I brought away, and the kids know our birds live a good life, it is mostly that it is such a short life, and I did not think that chickens would recognize me enough to run out of the new flock they were with to follow me around the pen. They may not end up as food, but even pulling them away from everything they know has me feeling bad.

I bought a 1/2 pig when I was there too - He asked me to follow him into the barn and pick out the one I wanted. I couldn't pick one out, most of the hogs were big, ugly noisy, disgusting pink animals, but one pen had 3 calmer, younger pigs. Two were black and white with long eyelashes. Those were the ones I had to choose from. I told him it did not matter which one. The farm we buy the quarter beef from sends out holiday cards when we are already enjoying our steaks with the cows on them. At least now they are doing a cow group shot. I'm just a wimp. I went to Germany the summer I turned 16. My aunt and uncle took me to a fancy restauraunt on a lake with stockponds containing all the fish. I love fish, but I can't look at my animal food when it is still alive. You walk stroll through beautiful gardens with the chef and net boy and look at all the fish swimming in the ponds as the chef describes what delicacy he will make with each type of fish. You tell the chef which one you want on your dinner plate. Then he instructs net boy to scoop the fish out of the pond. I couldn't do it. I ordered the only non-fish item on the menu; a hamburger! (at least we were very near Hamburg). Instead of the waiter, the chef came out with my meal and made a huge scene in the fancy dining room. "This is for the American!" and he slammed down a plate in front of me, the burger was covered with about 20 little kiddie toys of the type you might find in a happy meal! I don't know who was more embarrassed - me or my relatives! Some people scoffed, some laughed, a couple clapped. The chef stormed out of the dining room, and after all that, I had a hard time enjoying my meal!

OMG can we say "sensitive"!! really why does it matter what you order as long as it's on the menu!!??? Jeez, well hang in there, you do the best you can, and you give them a great place to live, that's what important, what you do after that.... is your business right?? I can't say at this point I could cull my laying hens, I should.... but, I would rather give them to someone who may use them, then put them in the freezer, that's where I am right now, when I have chickens hanging off my earlobes, then.... culling probably won't be the problem.

I used to do pharmaceutical research and did the entire pre-med program at UC Davis - I have no problem dissecting things once dead, and I had no problem killing pest animals. It's seeing how the animal acts when it is relaxed and trusts you, and then killing it that gets to me. I did work however moving tests from animal based to cloned cell line - still had to use fetal bovine serum and fetal horse serum. It bothered me how it is raised and collected, but one sacrificial animal goes a long way. I thankfully never had to do animal testing on anything other than tomato horn worms, but everyone I know who worked in test labs, especially those who ran the labs for medical research is a vegetarian and overrun with rescue pets. It benefits the pharmaceutical companies as well to hire animal lovers; they need to be sure that any adverse affects seen in test animals is due to the product being tested and not from stressed and poorly treated animals. One gal I knew lost her pet dog, so she went to PAWS to look for him with her 6 year old son. When the PAWS volunteer was taking them through the facilities, the boy saw the pictures of the scientists in lab coats doing research on animals, and he pointed to the picture and said "Look mom, that's just what you do!"

 

[ReiMiraa]

so today after having 2 more fevers and only tylenol to help yet the pain and swelling was not going down. I called the dental office today for help. he wasn't in working today. but after telling them what was wrong she called him, he called me. And i met him at his office in 20 minutes.

I have dry sockets..

he filled them with the packing stuff and in an hour i started feeling better..... Why can''t they just put the packing stuff in, in the first place to fill in the tooth hole, stitck it close and have the body naturally heal??? of well i under stand the workings of chickens better than my mouth

I have hatched 26/30 with 2 remaining being duds i think.

2 are turkens! one is blue and the other chipmunky.
Otherwise you think $2 per mutt chick straight run is good? most feeds stores in my area quit selling eggs now.

Tomorrow i begin my internship.