MAY 2016 "Land of the Free Because of the brave!" Hatch-a-Long Hosted by, Mike & Sally

[mlm Mike]

I've got another pip!!! First pip of this second part of my staggered hatch. I hope the ducks hatch.

Sort of a glutton for punishment I guess. Had just over a week off from an incubator with eggs and then set 21 of these on Sunday evening.( Narragansett Turkeys ) Will put 3 chicken eggs in as "teachers" this weekend.

Good Luck!

 

[jnr005]

Day 11 on my Dorking eggs. This has been the easiest (I hope successful) hatch ever. Set the eggs in the 1588 with egg turner, have checked them every so often to add a bit of water, and mostly forgotten them. Candled tonight and 17/24 look viable. 5 were clears and 2 had blood rings. The 2 silkies I tossed in are looking viable and coming along to. Hardest thing is going to be figuring out what to do when the turner is done...do I leave them and turn them off? Usually I had turn and they are on their side...but with this the air cell is evenly on the top...so how do I leave them at day 18?

 

[sasafras4u2]

...

Warning photo and cuteness overload.

What color are these? Are they blue, light blue, or splash? Very cute! Well i have no idea. I bought silkie sizzle eggs from ebay. When they arrived their were 16 in the box 6 were smashed. 8 made it to lock down and 4 hatched. After the incubator incident i guess i better be glad of what i got.

 

[sasafras4u2]

So started with 44 eggs after clears and quitters 30 went into lockdown. 20 hatched. 3 looked like DIS first day in lockdown. But the others.... stuck to the membrane could not turn to zip. Some did pip others died before pipping. Lost 1 after hatching so i had a 45 % hatch rate if you count what I started with. 66% if you count just what went to lockdown. I think it would have gone better if my daughter had not been opening the bator to get out the empty shells and rearrange the pipped eggs so they could see them better. THEN replaced too much water and got everything in there soaked. Oh well lesson learned i bet she never touches my incubatir again. She feels so bad. She said im so sorry i killed 11 chicks.

 

[mlm Mike]

Day 11 on my Dorking eggs. This has been the easiest (I hope successful) hatch ever. Set the eggs in the 1588 with egg turner, have checked them every so often to add a bit of water, and mostly forgotten them. Candled tonight and 17/24 look viable. 5 were clears and 2 had blood rings. The 2 silkies I tossed in are looking viable and coming along to. Hardest thing is going to be figuring out what to do when the turner is done...do I leave them and turn them off? Usually I had turn and they are on their side...but with this the air cell is evenly on the top...so how do I leave them at day 18?

Things sound good so far. You remove the turner, it will reduce risk of chick injuring itself, and save you some scrubbing. If all the air cells are good you can either lay to hatch or hatch upright in trimmed down egg carton. If some of the air cells are saddled or loose hatch those upright. Good luck!

 

[Jessimom]

@Jessimom
I have 1 EE due 5/23, 1 EE due 5/24 3 turkey eggs due 5/26 and 1 EE due 5/27. 

Do your eggs usually hatch early, on time or late? As long as they don't usually hatch early, I'd just lock down everything on 5/22. All 4 of the eggs I didn't lock down until LATE on day 20 hatched. The 5th had hatched in the turner, 30% humidity. So they are forgiving. Good luck.

 

[Farmer Viola]

Congrats on all the new chicks!

I have a question on a predicament tonight in the big coop. I have a turkey hen who went broody, first time mom. Her turkey eggs were infertile, so I gave her baby chicks. They are now about 4 weeks old, but not very feathered at all. Partial wing feathers, but not much. They are a slow feathering breed.

Anyway, tonight when I closed up the coop, she was on the roost and the 4 chicks were on the ground. They weren't cheeping. I picked her up and put her back on the nest. She jumped back onto the roost.

I'm trying to decide if I leave them on the ground alone all night, or I can put them in with the other chicks of the same age (4wks) through 8 weeks, with a heat lamp. What would you do?!

 

[firedragon1982]

I had a hen go broody and got some fertile eggs for shiggles well they are due to hatch this upcoming weekend. She did indeed sit the whole cycle. Now I'm worried on what to do and have a silly question. Should I be concerned she will be so busy sitting that if they try to pip she will suffocate them? I'm sorry to waste your time but if you could answer with some tips on day 21 with a broody I will feel better.

I traded eggs with my broody, her eggs everyone laid for her for 2 in my incubator. They did just fine, 2 fluffy chicks this morning from 2 pips last night, babies doing good, stuck 2 more hatched babies with her tonight after sleep time lol. She's taking to her role like a fish to water.

 

[junebuggena]

Congrats on all the new chicks!

I have a question on a predicament tonight in the big coop. I have a turkey hen who went broody, first time mom. Her turkey eggs were infertile, so I gave her baby chicks. They are now about 4 weeks old, but not very feathered at all. Partial wing feathers, but not much. They are a slow feathering breed.

Anyway, tonight when I closed up the coop, she was on the roost and the 4 chicks were on the ground. They weren't cheeping. I picked her up and put her back on the nest. She jumped back onto the roost.

I'm trying to decide if I leave them on the ground alone all night, or I can put them in with the other chicks of the same age (4wks) through 8 weeks, with a heat lamp. What would you do?!

I'd leave them alone. If you have a cardboard box around, you can make them a 'huddle' box. Basically, you just cut out an opening so they can get in and out, and it helps them feel more secure, plus retain a bit more body heat while they feather in. Removing them from the flock would just mean reintegration stress later on. At 4 weeks they do generate quite a lot of body heat, and huddling together they way they are is likely keeping them all plenty warm. Chicks are much more hardy than many think.

 

[sasafras4u2]

Well day 9 of my croads langshans and the scrambled MPC order. 8 MPC batch no good. 14 croads....1 clear. 9 quitters all had big blood rings didnt look like the got past day 3. I have 4 eggs left in there. All lonely and stuff. 2 air cells are really wobbly. 2 look good.

These are no good