Hatching Chickens

[bowhunter1023]

Anyone here mess around and hatch their own chickens? Any advice if you have? Anyone sitting on an incubator you want to offload?

I think this would be fun to do with my girls and since we have a rooster, I've got a supply of eggs "ripe" for this little activity. I need something else to do like I need a hole in the head, but what the hay!?!

 

[Jackalope]

Anyone here mess around and hatch their own chickens? Any advice if you have? Anyone sitting on an incubator you want to offload?

I think this would be fun to do with my girls and since we have a rooster, I've got a supply of eggs "ripe" for this little activity. I need something else to do like I need a hole in the head, but what the hay!?!

I'll be following along. I'm building a coop for the boys when I finish this AC work. No plans for them really except as pets so I don't have to get them a dog. . I'll be buying a dozen or so and any roosters will get culled. I ain't listening to that shit.

 

[ThatBuckeyeGuy]

I'll be following along. I'm building a coop for the boys when I finish this AC work. No plans for them really except as pets so I don't have to get them a dog. . I'll be buying a dozen or so and any roosters will get culled. I ain't listening to that shit.

We always kept around 15 hens and a few turkeys at a time for several years before we moved to the new place. I've never hatched my own out just replaced what was needed in the spring with new chicks. Just wanted to chime in and say if possible always keep a good rooster around. They're worth their weight for protection . My last one went toe to toe with a redhawk twice . Saved all the girls both times although he never walked right after the second fight , I doubt he would've survived a third. I gave them all to a neighboring farm when we moved. Hoping to get another coop built this year if I catch up on my other projects that I said would be done last year

 

[Jackalope]

We always kept around 15 hens and a few turkeys at a time for several years before we moved to the new place. I've never hatched my own out just replaced what was needed in the spring with new chicks. Just wanted to chime in and say if possible always keep a good rooster around. They're worth their weight for protection . My last one went toe to toe with a redhawk twice . Saved all the girls both times although he never walked right after the second fight , I doubt he would've survived a third. I gave them all to a neighboring farm when we moved. Hoping to get another coop built this year if I catch up on my other projects that I said would be done last year

Makes sense. I'll replace the whole flock every spring before I listen to some asshole crow all the time though. .

 

[giles]

I'll be following along. I'm building a coop for the boys when I finish this AC work. No plans for them really except as pets so I don't have to get them a dog. . I'll be buying a dozen or so and any roosters will get culled. I ain't listening to that shit.

Total dick move. A chicken is no replacement for a dog. You and I both know you are just going to end up with chickens and dog.

 

[5Cent]

And beyond a rooster, a good dog will protect the flock, even from birds of prey.

Jesse, where ya keeping them, garage or basement? They need 90* for the first few weeks, then can back it down towards 70* as they grew.

 

[giles]

8 Dog Breeds That Kill Snakes - DogCrunch🐾

We have about 339 recognized breeds of dogs in the world, each one of them has been selectively bred with certain abilities in the mind, and it can be clearly s

dogcrunch.com

Jess will appreciate a dog that kills snakes. And it will protect your eggs

 

[Clay Showalter]

We marked 6 eggs and just let the hen sit on them and waited until they hatched. We had 3 hatch, the other 3 never did. It was really fun for my boys, those 3 chickens did just fine.

 

[giles]

I put in a call on a good used unit. She used to raise ducks. Told her to see what all she has to make a package deal. Good kid that takes care of her stuff and won't try and rape you on the stuff.

 

[Nighthawk]

We do several each year. I have a hen that lays blue eggs so I just took a few of those and put in the incubator over the weekend. Not sure if they will hatch or not because I'm not sure how many hours they were there before I picked them.

 

[Sgt Fury]

I know several people who raise chickens, pheasants etc. often tell me of how they use silkie chickens to incubate eggs. Apparently they are very good at sitting on eggs…even if they aren’t their own.

Silkie - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[bowhunter1023]

And beyond a rooster, a good dog will protect the flock, even from birds of prey.

Jesse, where ya keeping them, garage or basement? They need 90* for the first few weeks, then can back it down towards 70* as they grew.

I've raised all our chicks in the garage in a 200 gallon stock tank. Would probably hatch them in the basement, then move them to the garage in the same setup I've used before.

 

[Jackalope]

Total dick move. A chicken is no replacement for a dog. You and I both know you are just going to end up with chickens and dog.

You're right. Dogs are a much bigger pain in the ass. If I get tired of chickens I'll just leave the coop door open and the problem will sort itself out. We like to take too many weekend adventure trips with the boys to be tied down at home with a dog.

8 Dog Breeds That Kill Snakes - DogCrunch🐾

We have about 339 recognized breeds of dogs in the world, each one of them has been selectively bred with certain abilities in the mind, and it can be clearly s

dogcrunch.com

Jess will appreciate a dog that kills snakes. And it will protect your eggs

Feeding a couple of outdoor stray cats works much better for snakes and reducing their food sources such a lizards, mice and chipmunks. Unlike a beloved family dog, if they get bit in the face oh well, people give them away like cats on marketplace.

 

[P8riot]

The price of eggs getting to you guys too? My wife is starting to talk about it, which scares me. Another project and another responsibility around here for me.

 

[bowhunter1023]

We had chickens before having chickens was the cool thing to do, so cheap eggs are just a part of life for us. Hell, now I'm actually money ahead This is just another opportunity to do something fun and memorable with our girls.

 

[P8riot]

Fun and memorable with your girls equates to fight and disaster with my wife.

I think my dogs would most likely be the ones killing them as well. They are Malinois and have extreme prey drive. If they hear chickens on tv, they go ape shit. My male ran head first into my paneled enclosure when a couple deer came busting out of the brush. His muzzle was swollen for a while. Would be interesting to see what they would do with chickens.

 

["J"]

Fun and memorable with your girls equates to fight and disaster with my wife.

I think my dogs would most likely be the ones killing them as well. They are Malinois and have extreme prey drive. If they hear chickens on tv, they go ape shit. My male ran head first into my paneled enclosure when a couple deer came busting out of the brush. His muzzle was swollen for a while. Would be interesting to see what they would do with chickens.

They’re smart, they’ll learn quick that it hurts too fugg with them

 

[bowhunter1023]

They’re smart, they’ll learn quick that it hurts too fugg with them

This. I have bird dogs that each have kills under their collars. But when that dead chicken comes alive and flogs them, they remember that. I use my dogs to herd chickens back into the pen and even though they want to attack, they know better. Bailey will even pick them up and bring them to me if given the right command

 

[Bigcountry40]

Like Jesse we had chickens before it was cool, my wife used to hatch chickens in her classroom before she became a PE teacher and we always brought them home, we have toyed with hatching our own but just don't want to mess it but are also considering hatching out own. So I will be following this thread closely

 

[giles]

When everyone went to having chickens, it wasn't worth it to have them for us. It has become worth it again though.

Dogs are pretty easy to break from killing chickens. Some times it takes a few lessons, but they always understand and learn.