Let's have a gosling hatchalong!

[Iain Utah]

Here we go again, we're hatching more goslings!

I set my 1st eggs of 2013 a few days ago and am so excited to candle them to see if fertile.

They are from my white & brown African group and am hoping to get an interesting variety of colors. I also have 2 pairs of buff dewlaps that I think will start laying any day now, 2 pairs of buff gander/grey goose dewlaps, 2 pairs of grey dewlaps, and a cute pair of production toulouse. I doubt many of the dewlap pairings will be fertile as most are yearlings, but I do have at least one 2yo buff gander that seems to be getting the job done. I can't wait to start setting more eggs and am looking forward to having babies again (even though I have to sell most of them).

Anyone else getting excited to hatch goslings?? What breeds (or crosses, because they are wonderful too) is everyone hatching or planning to hatch??

 

[RURU]

I brought in 7 eggs from my Sebastopols I took some from each nest.... Brought them in it will be two weeks ago this Wed. already candled and have 5 fertile and 2 non fertile.

Also brought in 13 more eggs before the blizzard conditions. Good thing I did the other eggs in the nest got all knocked out because the door we have between pens got opened and the boys went at it while they were staying due to the storm. Lost about 7 eggs them rolled them out of the nest and stomped all ove them and were muddy as heck.....

I have turned on our 2nd incubator and will run it dry until they need moisture. We shall see what happens??? I will run it two days before I put the eggs in it. I have some room in the other incubator so will put a coupl in there too.

 

[alexalet]

We have five embden geese on our farm (3 ganders, 2 gals), who just hatched their first four goslings. Unfortunately, 3 of them froze to death

because they hatched the night before a HUGE ice storm, and the mommas couldn't keep all four underneath them, what with around 15 eggs a piece. Hoping some of the other eggs hatch out too, I was hoping for more than 1.

 

[Iain Utah]

Ruru, congrats on the fertile eggs!! I set mine on Wednesday night and plan to candle tomorrow morning. Hopefully, all will go well and we will be hatching babies at the same time!! How many geese do you have total? Sounds like you are getting a bunch of eggs! Are you following Pete's guide? I had very good success last year using his guide. Hope to have even better luck since I'm not using shipped eggs.

alexa, How tragic!! So sorry!!

Have you candled the remaining eggs to see if they are developing?

 

[pinkchick]

I'm in!

As of today my goose will have given me 7 eggs and they are going to go into the incubator as soon as I have that 7th egg in my hot little hands.

This will be my second attempt ever at hatching goose eggs.......the 1st time wasn't so good.

Hoping that I have a better go of it this time round. I plan on letting my goose sit on some as she nears the end of her laying cycle.


Which brings a question to mind.......how long does an African goose typically lay?

 

[psue]

hope to be joining soon... but so far no fertile eggs.

Barb.. batton down the hatches.. they said we are gonna get another storm like the last one

 

[Iain Utah]

Welcome, pinkchick and congrats on getting eggs. What type of bator are you using? How did you incubate your 1st set of eggs? From what I understand, Africans can lay 30-50 eggs, depending on whether hatchery or show quality. They typically lay every other day, so a season can run 2-4 months.

Paulla.

If you don't get fertile eggs from your guys soon, I bet someone here can send you eggs. I have Africans, if you'd like.... but my dewlaps have not started laying yet.

 

[RURU]

J I have 16 sebastopols total with mainly curlies and four smooth breasted. I am using an R-com incubator and yes I am going by Petes method of incubation.
I am running the incubator mostly dry and am now misting the eggs when out for cool down.

Have another incubator I am going to try in again but going to run it dry and just do the misting. Since sebastopol eggs like to be dryer than other geese eggs.
All I can say as we shall see. I do not have more incubators even if I would like more husband says were have to stay on budget this year due to all costs rising and not or retiement....

The other day one of the pen doors got knocked open and we had a gander brawl in there and they knocked all the eggs out of the nest and stomped on them and they were all full of mud. So I just pulled the eggs out and disposed of them. So they will have to start over again.

 

[RURU]

I looked at the weather coming up this week we will have a few days of warmer temps but then it is going to start going down in temp. I did not find anything about another storm. So I guess we better batten down the hatches again.
I am having a hard time walking through this snow we have now with my bad knees.....
Thank you for the warning peasue....

 

[RURU]

Sorry for your lose alexa. Have you thought when it gets that nasty out to bring the goslings in to keep them warm?