Chick Hatch - April 2019

I did post most of the details on facebook and Instagram but I'm going to blog about it too.

I also made a spreadsheet on excel so … that was super fun. 

I bought some eggs from a lady … er … I forget where she was from, but the eggs got to me via Corey and I let them set on my counter (actually in my room under the incubator because I was scared my MIL would accidentally wash and put them in the fridge.). After 24 hours I put them in my incubator, which had been running for two days to ensure temps and humidity were staying steady. I have an egg-turner which means I don't even have to turn them! I had gotten 28 eggs from her and added 4 of my own over the next day or so to fill the incubator. 32 eggs started to incubate. 

I knew I would not get 32 eggs to hatch, but I wanted to up the odds. The eggs I had purchased were breeds I don't have in my flock, except the Easter Egger but I was okay with that. The crosses are from a Dark Brahma Rooster and a Double Laced Silver Barnevelder. I was pretty excited about that, but honestly did not even look up the breeds until they started hatching and I noticed they had fluffy legs.

#whatshappening

By day 8 I had culled 5 with blood rings. I cracked them open to be sure. I know you might thing - ew what if there was a living chick in there. I needed to know. I candled them twice and saw no growth and didn't want to risk them exploding and destroying my other viable eggs. I also had two unsure ones and some too dark to really see into. 

#hellointhere?

By day 16, 7 eggs had been culled, one had quit around day 12 or so - a little dark brahma baby. Then at Lockdown one more definitely died. The blood ring was much clearer and I couldn't see veins, so away it went. The rest had noticeable movement or kinda noticeable in the dark ones. 

It was super hard to candle those dark eggs. I needed total silence. It helps me to see and with the kids around. Yeah, no. 

I planned the hatch to happen during our week off of school, but day 21 happened to be on the ONE DAY I had to work. My bad. 

Hatching started on day 19 with our first pip. I stressed about humidity and temp and I did not want to unstuck any chicks this year etc … but then later that day we had more pips, and then our first hatch. A huge chick that Nolan has since named Speedy. He was bulldozing the other eggs within an hour of being born. 

Once he had a little friend that was dry enough to go in the brooder, I moved the two of them over. Speedy was NOT happy with this arrangement and peeped until I finally put him back in the incubator. Once we had a few more hatch, we moved more to the brooder and they were so much happier - and also quieter. 

There was a nice steady rate of hatching starting the 20th day of incubation and then on their 21st day of hatching lots of them popped right out while I was at work. I came home to Corey telling me there was 9 chicks in the incubator running around.

Oh boy. 

So CUTE. There was some 'white' ones and brown ones and grey ones and ONE Barred rock baby rooster … which is fine because he can replace the Barred Rock Rooster I already have. 

ADORBS. 

There were a few stragglers and a few that died in the shell, reason unknown really. I'll have to google but I'm really not sure. They weren't shrink wrapped or sticky … hm. 18 chicks hatched happily from their eggs. One pipped and blood everywhere. I didn't count that one. Then one pipped right through the yolk and was 'helped out' but unfortunately, he didn't make it. His actual intestines would not stay in his little body. If he would have just stayed still so I could put a temporary little 'bandage' I think it would have survived. I made the very hard choice to cull the chick instead of letting it suffer. 

I still feel extremely awful about it but am definitely prepared for next time if it happens again. 

There is still one, random, olive green egg in there. We occasionally hear it peeping but if it doesn't hatch on it's own I've decided not to help. 

I've also tried to convince one of my hens to sit on eggs - not to get more chicks … but so I can shove 18 baby chicks under and she can raise them. LOL. 

Well, currently 17 because one got eaten by the cat but that's a different story. Well … maybe 18 again if the chick in the incubator hatches.