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@brucifer The silkie is fine. She's fully recovered.

That incubator is something else! No way would Stephen let me get one. He was hesitant about the little styrophoam one I got. Whenever I get hatching eggs again, I will be happy to send you some to experiment on.
 
brucifer said:
Well, Lisa did it! She took the plunge! Pulled the trigger! Went off the deep end! She bought a GQF Sportsman 1502 cabinet incubator today! Looks like we have a lot of hatching in our future. Our GQF has three racks, and each rack holds two trays, and each tray holds 60 hatching eggs. That's a capacity of 360 hatching eggs! :th

We have to go to New Orleans in mid-August, but when we return, we plan to hatch like crazy to become hatching experts with this machine. Each week we plan to set up to 120 hatching eggs (2 trays), and rotate them to a new rack each week.

Since we are learning, we will set and incubate BYC members eggs for free if you want us to provide you that service. No guarantees on hatch results, but if you want someone else to do the incubating, we're here for you.

I can't believe Lisa did this, but what's done is done. :rolleyes:

Here's a photo of our new GQF already set up in the brooder room:

View attachment 1094858
Click to expand...
The problem with cabinet incubators is you keep looking for reasons to fill them up. Then you got to build more pens and buy more feed.
But if you get some quail trays, you could be eating fine cuisine every week.
 
Mylied said:
@brucifer The silkie is fine. She's fully recovered.

That incubator is something else! No way would Stephen let me get one. He was hesitant about the little styrophoam one I got. Whenever I get hatching eggs again, I will be happy to send you some to experiment on.
Click to expand...
That's amazing that you were able to pull off that surgery. She sure did heal fast.

With Lisa and I, I was the one who decided to get into raising chickens as a hobby. Lisa agreed and just watched at first, but as I got into it, she wanted to join in, and she started with Silkies. Our deal was that I would have the LF and she would have the Silkies. That arrangement didn't last long. She started getting into the LF as well by making deals for hatching eggs, selecting breeds, and bringing home chicks from the feed stores.

I was glad that we found a mutual hobby, but she really liked hatching, especially the day of hatching. I call it the grab-bag effect. She eagerly awaits as hatching time approaches and just loves to see what pops out of those shells, and she loves day-old chicks in particular. First we got one styro bator, then another, then another, and then she tells me she wants a cabinet. I wasn't quite sure she would follow through on that idea, but low and behold, she did! The important thing to me though is that she's enjoying herself and having fun with this hobby, and I like that it's a mutual interest.

I can fully understand Stephen's reluctance in getting too much into hatching. It can become a time-consuming part of our hobby. However, you have a lot of pens and different poultry, so you both are doing a lot of poultry farming. Personally, I also like the farming end more than the hatching end, but for Lisa, hatching is tops.

Tabasco Jack said:
The problem with cabinet incubators is you keep looking for reasons to fill them up. Then you got to build more pens and buy more feed.
But if you get some quail trays, you could be eating fine cuisine every week.
Click to expand...

@Tabasco Jack , I know what you mean by fine cuisine. My son was so taken with the taste of quail that I think it is the new favorite on his list. He raved and raved over it.

I looked at the six trays that came with our cabinet, and they are pheasant trays. We'll have to get larger trays for jumbo, duck, and turkey eggs. However, we also will need special trays for quail eggs. The thing about quail-egg trays is that they are stackable in this unit, so this incubator can hold a whopping 1368 quail eggs at one time, not counting the hatcher at the bottom of the unit!

I still plan to build a quail pen, but I have some projects to complete including some unexpected ones that were added to the list. However, I don't ever think I could find enough quail eggs at one time to fill the GQF unit to capacity. That number just seems insane.

One feature that I don't like about the cabinet is the hatcher. It's at the bottom of the unit, and it's impossible to view the progress of the hatching eggs without opening the cabinet door. Even with the optional glass door, you still cannot see the progress very well. What we've decided to do is use our styrofoam incubators as hatchers. That seems like a good use for them.
 
ugh! After the auction tonight we stopped with our friend to get pizza in Dahlonega. It took them 45 minutes and the bottom of the pizza was burned! They compt the meal and added free desert. The problem was that we didn't get home until after 10 pm and when I went to lock up the chickens, I discovered that I had left the outside door closed when I was trying to catch the chickens I was taking to auction! Almost all my poor chickens were piled up next to the door wanting in! Some were roosting in trees, some on the coop roof! Took me forever, in the dark, to get them all inside! Then, I had to go feed the poor goats and get them all settled! Then, got inside and my poor old dog had peed and pooped on the floor, so it was mop the floor time! What a fiasco! Time for bed! Renters leaving in the morning, so have all the clean up to do in the house tomorrow!
 
brucifer said:
That's amazing that you were able to pull off that surgery. She sure did heal fast.

With Lisa and I, I was the one who decided to get into raising chickens as a hobby. Lisa agreed and just watched at first, but as I got into it, she wanted to join in, and she started with Silkies. Our deal was that I would have the LF and she would have the Silkies. That arrangement didn't last long. She started getting into the LF as well by making deals for hatching eggs, selecting breeds, and bringing home chicks from the feed stores.

I was glad that we found a mutual hobby, but she really liked hatching, especially the day of hatching. I call it the grab-bag effect. She eagerly awaits as hatching time approaches and just loves to see what pops out of those shells, and she loves day-old chicks in particular. First we got one styro bator, then another, then another, and then she tells me she wants a cabinet. I wasn't quite sure she would follow through on that idea, but low and behold, she did! The important thing to me though is that she's enjoying herself and having fun with this hobby, and I like that it's a mutual interest.

I can fully understand Stephen's reluctance in getting too much into hatching. It can become a time-consuming part of our hobby. However, you have a lot of pens and different poultry, so you both are doing a lot of poultry farming. Personally, I also like the farming end more than the hatching end, but for Lisa, hatching is tops.
Click to expand...

It's been almost 2 weeks since I did it and I only made a small cut, so she didn't have much to heal from. She seems back to normal to me. Just not laying. But she was in the middle of a molt, so that's probably not helping with the laying.

Yeah, we got birds everywhere. Lol. I like hatching, but I don't like keeping a lot of them. If I could sell them easier, I might do more. Just seems to take months to sell anything, even the girls. Or people just want to give you a couple bucks when you put more than that in feed into them. It's probably just where I live. I can't sell roosters almost at all. I either have to give them away or process them. I sold roosters one time and that was it and it was only for $5.
 
Flowerbh said:
ugh! After the auction tonight we stopped with our friend to get pizza in Dahlonega. It took them 45 minutes and the bottom of the pizza was burned! They compt the meal and added free desert. The problem was that we didn't get home until after 10 pm and when I went to lock up the chickens, I discovered that I had left the outside door closed when I was trying to catch the chickens I was taking to auction! Almost all my poor chickens were piled up next to the door wanting in! Some were roosting in trees, some on the coop roof! Took me forever, in the dark, to get them all inside! Then, I had to go feed the poor goats and get them all settled! Then, got inside and my poor old dog had peed and pooped on the floor, so it was mop the floor time! What a fiasco! Time for bed! Renters leaving in the morning, so have all the clean up to do in the house tomorrow!
Click to expand...
Wow! We were in Clermont yesterday afternoon and could have met you and Randy in Dahlonega at the pizza place for dinner! We did at least pick up some sourwood honey even though the new crop hasn't come in just yet.

It sounds like you were hit with the perfect storm. Being exhausted and having work to do that you cannot put off is no fun at all, and I know how you feel about coming home late and having birds to put up. It happened to us one cold, rainy evening in late February, and the birds that were free-ranging that day were stuck outside and were freaked. They were all huddled together and didn't know what to think. We were super worried about night predators since we have plenty in the area. Fortunately all birds were accounted for, but we felt terrible about what we put them through. The funny thing though is that the alpha rooster was the most frightened of all and was hiding under the hens. :lol:

Mylied said:
It's been almost 2 weeks since I did it and I only made a small cut, so she didn't have much to heal from. She seems back to normal to me. Just not laying. But she was in the middle of a molt, so that's probably not helping with the laying.

Yeah, we got birds everywhere. Lol. I like hatching, but I don't like keeping a lot of them. If I could sell them easier, I might do more. Just seems to take months to sell anything, even the girls. Or people just want to give you a couple bucks when you put more than that in feed into them. It's probably just where I live. I can't sell roosters almost at all. I either have to give them away or process them. I sold roosters one time and that was it and it was only for $5.
Click to expand...

I know what you mean. I tried to give away an extra FBCM cockerel earlier this year and had no takers. I decided to keep him, and I'm so glad we did. His color is fabulous, and he has a great personality.

We've decided that in the future if we do grow out cockerels that don't fit our breeding programs or that are too aggressive that we will just process them at 16 - 20 weeks or so.

That being said, I have no problem paying for a rooster that I really need. For example, I need a couple of quality Black English Orpington roosters right now, and I'll gladly pay for each one as much as I would pay for a pullet. I also don't mind taking a long drive for a cockerel/rooster that I want. Just ask @Flowerbh . :D
 
Do you ha
brucifer said:
Well, Lisa did it! She took the plunge! Pulled the trigger! Went off the deep end! She bought a GQF Sportsman 1502 cabinet incubator today! Looks like we have a lot of hatching in our future. Our GQF has three racks, and each rack holds two trays, and each tray holds 60 hatching eggs. That's a capacity of 360 hatching eggs! :th

We have to go to New Orleans in mid-August, but when we return, we plan to hatch like crazy to become hatching experts with this machine. Each week we plan to set up to 120 hatching eggs (2 trays), and rotate them to a new rack each week.

Since we are learning, we will set and incubate BYC members eggs for free if you want us to provide you that service. No guarantees on hatch results, but if you want someone else to do the incubating, we're here for you.

I can't believe Lisa did this, but what's done is done. :rolleyes:

Here's a photo of our new GQF already set up in the brooder room:

View attachment 1094858
Click to expand...
Do you have a generator. Setting that many eggs is a big project. Come September GA starts getting some severe weather. I would hate to see a.post saying your power went out and loose all those eggs. You probably have one (just a thought)
 
Hello again everyone! Things went crazy here. I homeschool and all the new curriculum arrived and my kids were so excited that I spent two weeks straight going through it all and making lesson plans. Then we started school up two weeks ago. Was a good distraction from us checking the calendar every day waiting on the first eggs.

We have now completed construction on our run - thanks to amazon the hardware cloth was about half what our local HD or TSC charge. It evolved into a 30' x 16' run that is 5'-6' tall (depending on the roll of the ground as we didn't level it).

Next project is replacing the crap coop we had bought which is already
warping and only about 3 months old. Lesson learned to not buy a prefab coop and to just build ourselves.

It has finally happened this morning!! I have no idea which lady, but we have our very first egg ever!!! It is about 1-1/2" long and my girls came running in screaming the whole way carrying the egg from letting the chickens out and feeding them this morning.

IMG_1338.JPG


Wow my camera is not so good - that is a bright white Kleenex

I can't say thank you enough to the group here for helping me through all my crazy as I started this whole process.
 

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