Let the kids set some eggs..

We have 18 laying hens that we raised last spring that are really producing good and I wasn't planning on getting any until next year and rotating the older birds out but the kids were wanting some more chicks and I figured they would enjoy hatching some. We have a 400 egg incubator that's been in the family for years but I didn't want to set that many so I bought them a Nurture 360 that holds 22 eggs and is clear so they can watch them hatch. We put 17 chocolate eggs in from my black copper marans and 5 from my amerecaunas which have been with a copper maran rooster so we will get some olive eggers. Hopefully we get plenty of hens I tried to pick the more rounded eggs. I'll let you guys know how it does. Has anyone used this incubator, it seems well built

We have had a good hatch rate with that incubator that we bought for the same purpose.

On the darker marans eggs, you will get a better hatch rate if you take sandpaper or a dry scouring pad and scratch off some of the color. The dark color is put on as the eggs pass through the ovipositer of the hen and can seal off enough of the air holes that the chicks suffocate later during development, before hatching. I had some very dark eggs, from Birches Marans, from the president of the National club, that would not hatch unless sanded.

Keith

Kieth would it hurt to scratch them up now after putting them in. I could do it when candling in a week or so if it doesn't hurt

It won't hurt as long as you don't shake them.

Keith

I may give it a try because some of them are extremely dark even though they don't look it in the picture

Well we ended up with 15 of the 22 eggs being fertile and tomorrow is day 21 and we have 7 that have pipped today so should have some chicks tomorrow. The kids are excited

Talk about watching them hatch. I saw a video were two students with there teacher crack open a egg and put it in a clear container sealed it and watched it develop into a live chick. Its amazing what they can do these days.

RM: Such a simple thing as hatching eggs, great lesson in life for your kids. Far better than a years worth of virtual learning. It's great what you are teaching them, if they live to be 100 they will always remember this.

Yes Eric all 4 of my kids have been glued to the incubator all day since coming home from school watching and listening. It's a shame but my 6yr old probably knows more about raising her own food than most adults these days. As soon as these hatch we are gonna load it back up with peacock eggs. Crazy what peacock are bringing now

Can't get pics to load but I've had 6 to hatch so far. Should have several more when I get back from work

Peafowl around me is selling over a hundred a bird - bad looking turkeys over 40 to 100 a bird. saw laying hens averaging around 12 and up to 23 a bird
unreal what some prices currently are - course now feed is costing me 80 to 100 for 500lbs ground up and mixed/bagged

Feeding out a bunch of barred rock pullets, black copper maran pullets, splash laced red wyandottes, and kelso, hatch, roundhead gamefowl chicks currently with some black and partridge wyandotte bantams and turkeys in incubator now. This is in addition to the 50 plus laying hens and 50 plus ducks we got running around this crazy place.

I have not used that incubator, however my hovabator 1602N with the automatic turner has been great for us. We hatched a little over 300 eggs last year. So far this year, we have only set about 30 eggs. We typically have hatch rates of about 90% which is pretty good for most home use incubators. I upgraded to a better humidity/thermometer, as that plays a huge part in hatch rate.

Bought a brinsea incubator this spring. It has done a pretty good job so far. Had a hatch/grey game hen go to setting on 14 eggs and hatched 14 chicks so I though that was a pretty good

Treedablackdog you sound like my uncle who's also my neighbor, he's got over 400 birds between chicken, turkey and a little other stuff. Takes a lot to feed them. I would recommend this little incubator if someone wanted a small one that the kids can watch everything happen. We have a 400 egg incubator that's really good but it's a cabinet style and the kids can't watch. This one is the Nurture 360 and it seems to be a good one

i have same incubator. wife and kids love it. have hatched about 60 chicks since purchasing start of the year.
have quail eggs in it now.

Well we ended up with 13 out of 15 hatching so I'm pleased, still have two more that looked good when I candled them but haven't seen any sign of life out of them so I probably missed something when candling

Thats a pretty good hatch.

I have some going now. My own buff cross and some Goldens crossed with one of my roosters.

I hope to have a pretty good hatch too. As you can see mine is powered by Pratt & Whitney

Good luck Jeff I hope they do well. I already loaded mine guinea and peacock eggs. If I don't make the kids stop we'll have birds hatching year around. Lol

Thanks, I am loading Quail eggs after these hatch in a few days.