As another Lame Cherry exclusive in matter anti matter.
Being poor, my chickens being chickens kill each other as I do not always have the room, and sometimes they slip out the door as this Wyandotte hen, silver laced that is, decided to do.
She disappeared for weeks and I thought something ate her, and all of a sudden she reappeared and a few more chickens slipped out and I finally put outside this large combed Wyandotte rooster who now attacks me from behind.....in short, I got some chickens laying eggs outside with the goats, when Thanksgiving the turkey is not stealing their eggs all the time now.
I also have this homemade incubator out of an old microwave. It is quite prideful in I have the original fan, put in a small light bulb for heat, and a thermostat which sets from 95 degrees to cooking temperature, and I will not repeat, but I am now looking for a junked small fridge to make an incubator out of as a project, as our day yesterday was hatching some baby chickens.
We have six.....had to help one out of the shell, and another one dried out (humidity is vital) and got stuck in the shell, so TL is now holding a baby Wyandotte watching Pepin cook something with his grandchild.
My plan is to get some regular heavies like Brahmas when we get the big donation and our place, as those hybrids die like trust in politicians. That is why I am thinking about the incubator again, as the one I have will do I think something like almost 40 eggs, but I am looking for a bit better.....it does though feel good to build something that brings life.
The neat part is, the baby chicks can sit in the bottom of the incubator by the light and that fan blow dries them off in 15 minutes and they are good to go. It is amazing how robust these chickens are in not having to be transported or shipped in being stressed out.
This group is mostly just "free chickens" as it is not like we can eat a flock of chicken's eggs, so this is more just replacement in keeping what we have going, and free eggs work the kinks out better than expensive ones.
This really helps in dealing with the disappoints in all we are going through in this world. Something innocent and peeping is a great joy.
Oh in birthing these, you always have to be careful in previously those chicks bled in the inner membrane if forced, but these two were just fine.
What I do is simply use my fingernail to start flicking little pieces.....quarter inch at most off the shell in a circle capping the egg. That is what chickens to in picking around an egg, and then they pop themselves out.
There is though that inner membrane or leather, and then a lighter living tissue around them, and that is what was bleeding before in the other chicks years ago.
Their little heads are always tucked under their left wing and once they get that free, they get active and shed the shell.
These last two would have died in the shell, the way the 3 turkey chicks did. That is normal and how vigor is kept in a flock, but the few I have, I do not deal with those issues, and save them all.
They honestly hatch quite fast. This last one I had moved the egg this morning and there was not a peck in it, and when I checked a few hours later it almost had the egg capped. When the big donation comes in, and when I get the fridge shell, I will probably do a post on how to build an incubator as it is quite simple.
I am though thinking in splurging for a heat cable on the next one as I think in a bigger area it might be more efficient.......then again one or two hundred watt bulbs will work as this little 25 watt hatches eggs in this one.
Anyway sat a few green eggs and gold star eggs too, and nothing in them yet. It is the good earth in what I would rather be doing........that and the release of killing burdocks by chopping them off at the roots. Killed the king of all burdocks recently.....was like 9 feet tall, attacked me, but I went at it and now it is deader than hope and joy in America.
On a good note, Jesus is coming back.
agtG
