incubating again

[SBLAKE11]

Originally Posted by tlrohr

Blake --- sounds to me like you had eggs that sat around to long --- you do not want the eggs to sit out any longer than 5 days before getting them in the incubator. The lady probably had them sitting out to long and just did not say anything.

By the way --- the lady that feeds mash only twice a week --- with her chickens in a pen --- what do they eat the rest of the week.

My chickens get laying mash (2xs a day), scratch (in the morning), cereal, fruit, vegetables, crackers, bread, meat carcass', etc. They are spoiled and get just about all left overs. It was 19 degrees when I collected my eggs --- I will tell you how it turns out --- 14 days left. Most of the eggs I can see they are fertile --- but the green and really dark brown are hard to tell. I will send you some of my eggs when it warms up if you want and they will be collected the day of shipping --- I will also throw in a few Golden Pheasant eggs.

my neighbor feeds scratch feed twice a day. and you may be right about the sitting to long. i know for sure that she put her eggs in egg cartons and turns them every day in the egg cartons. i wondered if that had something to do with it. i have also heard that eggs are good up to 14 days. but i collect mine about once a week. i have let some sit longer until the hen laid more eggs before i collected them. i would like a few of those pheasent eggs. the only chickens i deal with are rir's and dom's. i raise and sell mine. those are the two breeds that are the most popular in my neck of the woods. esp. the dom's. i can get $25 to $35 each for them. which is a lot for a chicken here. i will pay you for them. i havent tried to incubate pheasent eggs and i would like to have some. let me know when you are ready. what kind of hatch rate are you getting? i think we have discussed brooders before but not incubators. i have an old metal brower incubator and a newer styrofoam one. i have fooled around with the styrofaom one for three years and i finally have it doing good. i had to replace the heating element in my metal one and it didnt do so good last year. im going to buy some new thermometers this year. i had problems with one last year and i lost 2 dozen eggs. which luckily they were mine eggs and not someone elses. i incubate for other people to. during the spring and summer it looks crazy in my house. i will have at least 3 brooder boxes with lights on 24/7 all spring and summer long. my husband says im crazy because last year a bulb blew out in one of the boxes at 2 in the morning and it woke me up. i got up and replaced it and went back to bed. he couldnt beleive that it woke me up.

[BUDDYSGIRL]

To me it's not worth incubating when I can buy them day old anyway. As long as the eggs sales pay for the food etc...I'm happy. My chickens are free range and they eat what they want but have layers crumbles and corn during the day too.

[tlrohr]

Blake, I have never heard of 14 days being not to long --- 7 days is about all --- anything after 7 days is more than likely not to hatch. I do not even wait 7 days --- 3 is my limit before placing in the incubator. There is nothing like seeing a life come into the world --- I watched and helped my Moms Mare --- I have watched my dog and cat --- and seeing that little bitty chick grow and then hatch out of the egg --- what a blessing. I am hoping to have a broody hen this year --- guess I will see --- I think the broody chick is going to be my 2 bantie hens.

[mikarod]

Actually..14 days is the general time to put the eggs into the incubator. Several of us don't have the number of birds we need to fill up an incubator...so we wait 14 days to put in about 12 eggs or however many we have.

THIS year should be better...CAN'T WAIT to get some eggs from my Langshans and Barred Rocks! WHOOP!

[BUDDYSGIRL]

When you leave the eggs, is there ever a time when they freeze in the nest? Or do you heat the coop?

[mikarod]

Me??? I collect the eggs every day and put into a paper egg carton. NOT the styrafoam cartons.

I put the whole egg carton at a 30* angle and just switch whichever end is up every day. You're "supposedly" to keep the eggs around a 60* temperature....but that usually never happens.

[BUDDYSGIRL]

I was just curious as I've had eggs freeze. Even though I collect daily too.

[mikarod]

hahah....yeah...ours are freezing solid right now.

Here's a hint...if the membrane isn't broken...you can still eat the eggs! I'd never attempt to hatch those though...no telling what sort of issues they'd have when they hatched.

[BUDDYSGIRL]

LOL, your right I have broken some open and they are still eatable...the dogs love them. The gal who buys most of my eggs will break them and put them in ice cube trays and freeze them. It looks cool. She does alot of baking etc...she gives me alot of her baked goods, especially at Christmas this year.

[tlrohr]

I have had a few freeze --- you just have to use them with in a couple days. I am hoping to have my coop heated next year --- I will get it complete this Spring. It is done enough for them right now --- just not completely finished.

The ones I got in the incubator --- I had to check every 30 minutes to catch them warm --- otherwise the cold would have made them infertile. Once they thaw --- you can barely even tell they were frozen. I am having more and more young chicks laying now --- so it takes about 2 days for me to have 15 or more --- giving chickens only lay eggs every 24 to 25 hours that is not bad.

Well Mik --- I just order a few more chicks --- they were ones I have seen pictures of and I have 2 Jersey Giant hens --- but I really like them and they are a pretty friendly bird and I like the large size.

Okay I order:
Indian Game Birds
Cornish Cross
Jersey Giants

Now --- if these Roosters (1 JG Rooster and 1 Indian Game Rooster) breed with my hens --- will I have a larger size chicken --- meaning: will it be large like the Rooster --- or more the size of the hen?