Sorry your first chick died. Usually when they hatch there should not be any egg sac left, just a dry little umbilical cord? dare I say. If they hatch with egg sac still visible it usually means they hatched early and will mostly die. The hen only feeds new chicks with a crop milk for a couple of days or so then Dad feeds Mum , Mum feeds chicks. I don't think there is any need to handle new chicks for a couple of days, if at all, unless it's to clean nest box etc I just lift lid to check box to see if there are any problems and leave the parents to "do their thing" .

Hi robyn. Have resisted handling chicks box 3. second chick is doing great well fed and growing fast, 3rd chick hatched over night and also looks healthy and fed. this hen doesn't like the wood shavings and is still clearing the nest box, will probably put some seed in at abt 2 weeks. Box 2 has 7 eggs that will start to hatch shortly, am thinking of fostering 1 egg to box 3 to help spread the load. Any thoughts?

They look great Paulie They are a much healthier colour. Handling the chick wouldn't have killed it, just if you are going to pick them up I always make sure my hands are clean.

 

I put bedding in the box when all the eggs have hatched. I'd wait until the eggs in box 2 start to hatch and foster a chick if you need to.

I agree with Nadene, your chicks look great, my hens usually throw bedding out before they lay, I have added it after a few eggs and they generally leave it at that stage. I add extra after chicks have hatched more for warmth and trying to stop hen sitting on chicks too tightly causing splayed chicks.

As to fostering eggs I have had nests of 8-9 chicks with no problem, if I think Dad is going to have a big load feeding them I sometimes swap chicks that hatch at the same time into smaller clutch's so it eases the load. New chicks are okay but they won't accept older chicks that have feathered as they see that as an intruder

 

Adding the seed when chicks are around the 2 week mark seems to help them heaps to be already cracking seed when they leave nest box.

 

Time has now come for a new pairing. Thinking I might get some violet from these 2.

Keeping in mind that this is a test pairing with the main incentive being to find out if Brutus is shooting blanks or not before his intended becomes of age, to a test run to establish what else is or possibly is in his make up and to test my ability to predict what offspring will come from this pairing.

 

Brutus

 

Bell

 

From what is visual id like if some people would like to offer a perspective of possible out come

Can't help much with outcome from these Paulie, If your Olive is carrying violet you could possibly throw a violet, depends if your sky is split also.

I'm hoping that the olive is carrying violet.

My main reason is to insure that he is fertile and to get a better idea of what surprises he may be hiding, you never know quite what might happen and this current pairing could work well. I have another hen in mind to pair with him but isn't old enough just yet. So an idea of what mixes come from this paring will possibly have some bearing on current & future breeding plans.

4th hatching box3

 

1st hatching box 2

Looking good Paulie. Makes you wonder how something so tiny and fragile can also be so tough.

robyn, they are really fragile and helpless at this stage.

 

Found oldest chick, box 3 abandoned and cold this morning and thought it was dead. when I removed it I could feel the slightest movement so kept it in my hands to warm it up a bit. It regained enough strength to weakly beg for food. gave it some dilute baby rice cereal and it gained a bit more strength and body heat from my hand. It has now been fostered to box 2 and seems to have recovered from its ordeal. had I have been half an hour later It would certainly be dead.

 

Think I have got my breeding cage design after several variations.

Removeable nest box with slide out floor for ease access.

 

 

700mm wide X 440mm deep 600mm high

Edited August 13, 201311 yr by paulie

If you are keeping these out in the open I suggest the nestbox has a slide door instead of hatch,

 

You could also router 2 channels each side. first one you could have perspex window second channel you can have wood.

 

so slide wood up you can check eggs. slide perspex up you can check young ones.

 

other than that I like the cabinet. it looks like all mine except its just a individual.

L_J these cabinets, another 9 to build, are all in bird room in house. After visiting a lot of breeders and checking out the various designs of their breeding cages and over all setup. I am attempting to incorporate the best features from all I have seen, I was previously using slide type door on nest box.I have opted to take on the drop down doors for 3 reasons; cost, simplicity of construction ease of maintenance of nest box. note the slide out shelf with nest cutout has a front rail to prevent chicks falling out when opened. The front frame (Except for the top rail is Jarrah) is cut from 1 piece of 12mm chip board, the main access door is the corresponding cut out so fits perfectly,the nest box is primarily made from the other waste cutouts. There is a jarrah rail at the top back of the interior box, Top and back are 3mm ply, bottom and sides are 12mm chipboard, slide out shelf is 3mm ply edged with 12mm chipboard.

 

These boxes are abt half the weight of previous versions

 

 

and abt 75% in relative cost

 

These boxes are designed to be used for breeding the show type birds that I have been acquiring in recent times.

 

Glad you found your little chick Paulie. Should be no problem if Mum has chicks of her own same age, except when you want to know which chick belongs to whom. l.o.l.

Will you be able to tell as they feather up?

I am amazed at the growth rate of these chicks

 

the abandoned chick is doing great guns with foster mum

Oh my, how did she manage that?

Box 2

Box 3

6th egg in box 3 is infertile, might return fostered chick to its original nest.

 

Returned fostered chick to original nest, will keep a close eye to make sure it is not rejected again.

They are looking great Paulie. You must be soooo happy

Chick pics

Box2

box 3

Some eyes are opening and some downy feathers growing.

Box1 now has 6 eggs after a 4 day laying break. first three candle as viable. Might have to build a bigger nappy cage.

 

Last 2 eggs in box 2 are ready to hatch 1 tapping on shell and chirping and the other is chirping. Expect these to hatch in the next 2 days.

Oh my, how did she manage that?

 

Is this one of your's Paulie?? If so could be double yolker/twins if fertile. Not a good success rate but possible. You can candle after 5-6 days to see if it's 1 or 2 yolks.

 

Your chicks look great Paulie. It's exciting to watch them feather up to see what mutations you get.

Oh my, how did she manage that?

 

Is this one of your's Paulie?? If so could be double yolker/twins if fertile. Not a good success rate but possible. You can candle after 5-6 days to see if it's 1 or 2 yolks.

 

Ha Ha robyn . Have quite a menagerie here, budgies, pigeons, chickens, and even the 13yr old goose is laying. That's a budgie V goose egg.

 

budgie chicks are going great. Looking forward to seeing the results.

lol nice one paulie that was one good joke.

Box 1. 7 eggs nice tidy brooding by this pair, both birds are sitting, taking turns and at times together

 

Box 2, 6 chicks, youngest at the bottom of stack. Last egg should hatch today or tomorrow.

 

Box 3, 4 chicks of 6 eggs, first chick died within 24 hours and last egg was infertile. Starting to show downy feathers.

Edited August 21, 201311 yr by paulie

Today's chick pics

Box 1, 8 eggs woaa

 

Box 2 All 7 hatched and look to be doing well

 

Box 3 getting bigger

Edited August 22, 201311 yr by paulie

They are looking fantastic!!! You must be soooo happy

 

I would put some bedding in the boxes now. It will help you when you need to clean the boxes and it will help stopping them getting splayed legs.

tried to put bedding in but hen just doesn't like it still

 

had another go at bedding in nest boxes using rolled oats rather than wood shavings.The hens seem to have accepted it this time, prob got their beaks to busy to bother.