Marking eggs to track hatchling.

[ManOverBoard]

Hi everyone,
We've got a lot of eggs in the incubator right now, some of which are Lavender Ameracaunas (LA's) we ordered through the mail. We're hoping to breed for blue eggs as our current ameracaunas eggs are more green than blue. Some of the LA eggs are more blue than others, one even having an extra blue ring around it. It looks like a rooster egg, and we want to try to track that chick to use it for breeding in the future assuming it hatches healthy and strong.
My question is how to mark that chick and any others we want assuming we see the chick that leaves that egg.
With adults we give them bracelets, but chicks?

 

[GodLovesU]

You can buy tiny bracelets for chicks. They just have to be changed when they outgrow them.

 

[wrathsfarm]

Use a divider or hatching bag to separate any eggs at lockdown. Leg band when you pull it out after dry.

I use lingerie bags and small zip ties.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

looks like a rooster egg,

What makes you think this egg contains a male chick?

 

[Slothinc]

I recently just posted this on another post asking about marking chicks. By far this as been my favorite method that I have ever used! Super easy to remove, stay on, bright colors, cheap, non toxic, etc.

“With my last batch of chicks I had several that looked identical, and tried several different things. I hate using zip ties because I always have a hard time cutting them off and being scared I will cut the chick on accident. But this time I found the best solution. Braces rubber bands! I bought these ones, and I got the medium weight 3/8” size. https://a.co/d/6L9lWTq

They were only $3 and have held up amazingly well. The only thing I didn’t love is that there are only 4 colors. Purple, green, orange and red. But if you don’t need more colors than that, it has worked super well for me.”

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I recently just posted this on another post asking about marking chicks. By far this as been my favorite method that I have ever used! Super easy to remove, stay on, bright colors, cheap, non toxic, etc.

“With my last batch of chicks I had several that looked identical, and tried several different things. I hate using zip ties because I always have a hard time cutting them off and being scared I will cut the chick on accident. But this time I found the best solution. Braces rubber bands! I bought these ones, and I got the medium weight 3/8” size. https://a.co/d/6L9lWTq

They were only $3 and have held up amazingly well. The only thing I didn’t love is that there are only 4 colors. Purple, green, orange and red. But if you don’t need more colors than that, it has worked super well for me.”

If you need more than just those 4 colors, double up on them. Two purples, or a purple and a red, a red and a green. Use two on one leg or one on each leg. There must be hundreds or thousands of possible combinations.

 

[Slothinc]

If you need more than just those 4 colors, double up on them. Two purples, or a purple and a red, a red and a green. Use two on one leg or one on each leg. There must be hundreds or thousands of possible combinations.

That is so true!

 

[NatJ]

If you need more than just those 4 colors, double up on them. Two purples, or a purple and a red, a red and a green. Use two on one leg or one on each leg. There must be hundreds or thousands of possible combinations.

How many combinations:
4 colors = 4 chicks
4 colors, 2 legs = 16 chicks
4 colors, 2 per leg, 2 legs is either 64 or 256 chicks depending on whether you keep track of which band is above/below the other on each leg (is yellow/pink different than pink/yellow?)

If you use three or more bands per leg, you can do more, but that gets to be a lot to keep track of.

If you have multiple colors of chicks, you can use chick color as well as band color and placement: black chick with a green legband, white chick with a green legband, brown chick with a green left legband, brown chick with a green right legband...

If there is just one chick that matters, and it is the same color as the other chicks, you can assign a color and put bands on both of its legs. Then if one band falls off, you recognize the chick by the other band, and replace the missing band. Or mark the special chick with one color, and all other same-color chicks with a different color of band. That also lets you recognize the chick if one band goes missing (its own or one of the others), so you can re-band whoever lost one.

 

[ManOverBoard]

Use a divider or hatching bag to separate any eggs at lockdown. Leg band when you pull it out after dry.

I use lingerie bags and small zip ties.View attachment 4064813

Great ideas! Oh my goodness what a cutie!!!

 

[ManOverBoard]

I recently just posted this on another post asking about marking chicks. By far this as been my favorite method that I have ever used! Super easy to remove, stay on, bright colors, cheap, non toxic, etc.

“With my last batch of chicks I had several that looked identical, and tried several different things. I hate using zip ties because I always have a hard time cutting them off and being scared I will cut the chick on accident. But this time I found the best solution. Braces rubber bands! I bought these ones, and I got the medium weight 3/8” size. https://a.co/d/6L9lWTq

They were only $3 and have held up amazingly well. The only thing I didn’t love is that there are only 4 colors. Purple, green, orange and red. But if you don’t need more colors than that, it has worked super well for me.”

Love this idea too!