100% broody - signs your hen is broody

100% broody and 110% grumpy.  That is how I would describe Treacle the speckledy hen at the moment.
I had a close encounter earlier this summer but managed to avoid it. This time around Treacle will not be moved.  She is determined and will not be broken despite being locked out of her nest box daily for the last week.
I have had to move her to the broody coop as her antics were upsetting the other hens and my boys, as the egg supply was becoming erratic.  Combine the broody Treacle with a spot of egg eating and supplies in our household have dropped significantly.

Just in time the bantams on the plot have come to the rescue and have started laying, and they are laying well.  We are still waiting for the crested legbars to start laying, but at 21 weeks old it will not be long.  I think inspection of the nest box for blue eggs is the main reason for the boys insisting on coming with me to the plot on a daily basis.  It's nice they are that interested though.

Back to Treacle, and she has form.  Going broody this time last year, I gave in and purchased some goldlace wyandotte eggs.  Two hatched and they are now thankfully providing us with some lovely little eggs.  So do I give in again, and let her sit on eggs?  

I never thought I would say this, but I did have to think very hard.  I was not sure I wanted her hatching any more, this year anyway.  
I have a pen full (and more) on the plot, but it is hard if not impossible to resist the lure of hatching under a broody.
I have heard that chickens make great surrogate mothers for ducks, and I am keen to see how it works in practice.  
So there you have it, after a little searching I have 6 Welsh Harlequin duck eggs on the way from a breeder in Ammanford, Wales.

A few things to look out for to establish if your hen is broody.

1. Sitting in the nest box refusing to move.
2. Looking as though they are in a trance, staring at the wall.
3. Loss of condition, comb going pale, not looking after themselves.
4. Being aggressive and trying to peck you if you try and move her or retrieve the eggs.
5. Plucking out feathers on the chest area to line the nest and enable skin contact with the eggs.  

Thanks for reading.

More hatching eggs!!!

Croad Langsham chick

As if I would be able to put the incubator away for any length of time.  As it happens it was only 5 days or so and yes I have more hatching eggs.  This time the eggs were kindly donated by Hillside Pigs in the Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales.  Most unexpected but when I knew they were Vorwerk and Crested Legbars I could not really say no!


I tried to hatch a Legbar recently but the egg was not fertile, so this is a great chance to try again and the Vorwerk's are, I think, stunning looking birds and they lay light cream colored eggs.  Contrast with the blue of the Legbar and the dark eggs from my speckeldy it will make a lovely box of 6 eggs.

Candling egg

This is something I am actually keen on trying to grow and develop.  I know the free range home reared eggs taste much the same whatever the colour, but to be able to offer free range local multi coloured eggs would be a little different and a little unique.  Add to that the offer of quail eggs and duck eggs, I'm starting to build a picture in my head of something I would like to get involved with!

Enough day dreaming, this hatch will only be 4 eggs, 2 Vorwerk and 2 Crested Legbars.  

I have decided not to add to the 4 at the moment as I am still in the process of building my run enclosure down the allotment, plus I think my wife may just kick me out!
When I returned with the eggs I was met with a "I though we were getting rid of the incubator for a while"!
Ooooops!  Could be worse I suppose especially if I have turned up with a baby Lamb or something similar! :-)
The allotment is key really, whilst I made great progress a few weeks ago, other commitments have stopped me from getting down there to finish the job however I still think I will be ok to complete by end of March!

Vorwork - Photo from www.brbpoultry.co.uk

I have fancied Vorwerks for a while, they are lovely looking birds.  There were suposedly developed in 1900 by a German poultry breeder Oskar Vowerk and was standardised in 1913.  There is a bantam version which was developed later in America in 1966.
They seem a little scarce to me, which is a shame as they are lovely looking birds.
Hers hoping I am successful with my hatch.

Thanks for reading.

Naughty naughty

So, I have done something I shouldn't.  

I candled the remaining 2 eggs last night.  Most suggest this is a bad idea.  I have never candled so late before so why now?

Well I have had concerns for a while that the 2 eggs are not progressing well.  The air sacks seem too big for my liking.  However I will let them continue until at least 23 days just to make sure.
I guess I just could not resist checking.  This is my first time using an incubator, all previous hatches have been under a broody hen, and no sane person is going to try and remove a broody from their nest in the last 2-3 days.  

They sit tight and defend their nest with that prehistoric beak!  Its a little like the final scene in Zulu!  
Plus it hurts and I have been given enough wounds in the past so would do everything to avoid this.
However in the incubator there is not a crazy hen trying to peck your finger off your hand, you can just lift and check.  Naughty naughty.

I will have to sit tight now and wait.  Its day 20 out of 21, so not long.

More updates to follow tomorrow - official hatching day! :-)

Candling Eggs on day 11

Excitement, enthusiasm, anticipation!  Words that I would used to define how I felt when I received my hatching eggs through the post back on the 10th January.

There is something special and addictive about hatching chicks.  Sadly my hatch rates have never really been high.  My first attempt under Treacle my Speckledy hen resulted in just one chick hatching out of 3 eggs.

The second attempt in October 2012 resulted in two chicks hatching out of 6 eggs, again under Treacle!

My third hatch is in my new incubator. A Corti AF25 - the automatic turning model.
I set the eggs back on 9th January and candled as recommended on the 7th day.  Being relatively inexperienced at candling, I was happy to leave the eggs for a further few days before discarding any that are unlikely to hatch.

I candled the eggs again tonight the 20th January at 11 days and took photographs of each egg.  I think this may be a useful guide for anyone candling their own eggs.  Apparently you should not candle to often and for too long! So here goes with the photos!

One of my own chickens eggs - Not Fertile

First incubator egg - not looking too promising - I would say this is NOT fertile.

Second Egg - something defiantly going on in this one - good to leave   in the incubator.

Third egg - Not Fertile! :-(







I cant go on really, sad that only one other egg below seems to have something going on. 
2 out of 6 again!!

Hopefully the other fertile egg!








Lets hope the two do hatch and there are no complications.

Thanks for reading! 

Wyandotte chicks get more space

I have been quiet for too long so here is a new entry! ;-)



Picture from Wikipedia

I have been trying to make Mother hen, Treacle and her chicks Pinky and Perky comfortable.

We had another huge amount of rain recently.  My back garden looks a little like a rugby pitch.  Hens feet and like mini potato mashers on boggy ground and you end up with mashed grass very quickly.

With Pinky still thinking that Treacle is a donkey on the beach, she is looking muddier than a very happy Tamworth pig!

So I have spent the last couple of days devising a way of giving them access to my main run.  Blocking off the far end and creating a safe tunnel for them to walk from the broody coop to the run.

Well, proud as punch, I have managed it, here are the photo's.

The chicks are doing well, and seem to enjoy jumping on and off the ramp in and out of the main run.  Treacle is happy scratching around in the sand and wood chip.  So all in all, a success.  Now that does not happen often.

I used the wire shelving from a mini greenhouse that I had stored in the garage.  No damage done to the shelving, managed to squeeze it in the run opening and then taped together with some duck tape.  The tape is really strong and clear, useful for all sorts of thinks like repairing rips in polysheet covering for pollytunnels, or saving a broken pane of glass in a window or greenhouse!  I bought it from B&Q.  Best thing I ever bought like that.

 

I have been trying to find some breeders of Gold lace Bantam Wyandotte's without much success recently.  A few I have spoken to seem to suggest they are popular but take a long time to mature.  I'm not sure why, I will have to research.

Thanks for reading

Me with my old timer Custard - 4 years old

Broody Speckledy Day 23!

My day has not started brilliantly.  4.30am wake up call by little Rhys!

My Mr Grumpy face was well and truly firing on all 4 cylinders this morning. 
I visited Treacle at 8.30ish to top up food and water.

8:31am = Mr Happy!


Yes!!!!!!!
Treacle's first egg has hatched, and the sound of chirping can be heard from the nest box.

I lifted treacle slightly risking a good old fashioned peck, and caught a glimpse of a dark black little chick!  Just one, but who knows if any of the other five Wyandottes will hatch.

More of an update later.
Thanks for reading

Broody Speckledy Day 22!

Well day 22 and still no action in the broody run! :-(

Treacle seems to be preparing for the Wyandotte chicks arrival but sadly they are not hatching.
I am slowly coming round to the idea that the eggs are not going to hatch.
Perhaps it's the time of year, maybe the eggs were not fertile or could it have been the roller coaster ride provided by Royal Mail?
It's a shame because I was really hoping to end up with a trio (male and two hens) to either keep or sell on as a breeding trio.  It's difficult to get hold of this breed in South Wales, so I will be having a go at hatching some more in the spring, but will again have to rely on royal mail to obtain the eggs.

There is a Poultry Show at Stoneleigh park Warwickshire on 17th and 18th November.  National Poultry Show .  Depending on commitments I may try and visit on either of the days.  It would be the first time I have attended a show!

Who knows what will happen.

Thanks for reading.
I will update the blog in a few days.

Broody Speckledy Final 24 Hours

It is the eve of hatching in the Homer household.  For me its almost as exciting as Christmas! ;-) 24 hours and counting!



Photo from incubatorwarehouse.com

There are no signs of piping yet.  (This is where the chick has broken through the sack inside the egg to reach the air sack and started breaking the outer shell of the egg). Treacle has however become very defensive over her eggs.



Two days ago she happily allowed me to pick her off the nest and place her next to the food and water.  Now it's like playing chicken on the Silverstone race track with a Ferrari F1 racing car.  She pecks at anything that moves especially my hands and fingers.  She is so quick it is impossible to dodge.
I may have to start wearing gloves.  :-(

I have read that hens can hear the chicks chirping inside the eggs the day before hatching.  To encourage the chicks to hatch they call back to them.  I think I heard Treacle doing this today as I filled the food and water containers.  Fingers crossed these little Wyandotte chicks will hatch soon.

I will post another update tomorrow, hopefully with good news!
Thanks for reading.

Broody Speckledy Hen Update Day 19

Rhode Island Red chick

Its 2 days and counting until we hope to hear the sound of chirping from the broody coop. 
It could of course be sooner.  The Rhode Island Red (left) that Treacle hatched 3 to 4 months ago arrived a day early.  Fortunately I had already bought a small pack of chick crumbs just in case.

The chicks apparently survive on the last of the undigested yolk in the stomach for 24 to 48 hours so in theory you could buy the food after the chicks have hatched, but I am concerned that the chick will try and eat the layers pellets in the run that Treacle has been eating.  The high calcium content in the layers can apparently kill the chick.  So I will be off to the local shop in the next day or two and will start feeding Treacle on the chick crumbs.  It will help her get back into condition quicker as it is higher in protein.

Treacle with quite a pale comb

I have also noticed that she is getting a little smelly.  I know chickens honk at the best of times, but she seems to have really let herself go this time in order to look after the eggs.

Broody hens can look quite ill and anaemic, so anything I can do to help her get back in to shape I will start as soon as I can.  I expect I will be buying poultry spice and poultry tonic as well as the chick crumbs.

No, before you say anything poultry spice is not the chicken version of old spice!  Its a mixture of spices like ginger that is in powder form that you add to the food.  Gives them a bit of a helping hand if feeling low and is worth giving in the winter time.

day 19 - photo from backgardenchickens.com

I tried candling the eggs the other day, but as the eggs are quite pale I could not see a lot.  That said I think at least one of the eggs seems to be progressing well.

Fingers crossed in the next 3 days I will be reporting hatchings with photos if possible.

Good luck Treacle!

Thanks for reading.

8 days to hatch

Treacle

It's Tuesday and the 13 day that treacle has been sat on the 6 Wynedotte eggs.
There is not a great deal happening apart for a daily stretch of legs, "movement" and food and drink.

So really there is not a great deal to talk about.  I have not candled the eggs yet to see if they are all developing.  I should have done this at day 7 really. 

Candeling is just shining a bright light, like a torch on the egg to check if the chick is developing. 

This is something I will do in the next few days.

In my view 21 days is not really a long time for new life to enter the world, and I started thinking what else can you do in 21 days?

Well one activity I enjoy is brewing beer, and using one of the beer kits you can buy relatively cheaply these days, you can turn the wort into drinkable beer in 21 days! :-)  You can't complain about that can you!

Anyway back to the eggs, I bought the eggs in the spur of the moment from eBay, something I said I would never do.  I can't see how the eggs can be that happy being tossed around by Royal Mail however well packed they are.

I got a very good deal in the end, even including postage I think I paid less that I would have done visiting my local poultry breeder for 6 standard hen eggs.

I suppose that is why I took the chance.  I could not source the Black Lace Wynedotte Bantam locally.  So it was either via post or no eggs.  It seems such a waste to not pop a few eggs under a broody, especially when she had already been sat for 2-3 weeks and was not getting the hint I was giver her by picking her out the nest box twice a day!

If these hatch, and some are hens rather than cockerels, maybe I can breed from them and supply locally, because they are such nice looking birds.

Thanks for reading and Cheers.........

Broody Speckledy Hen

As I type my Speckledy Hen has been sat on her eggs in her new Broody Coop for the last 7 days.  Only 14 days to go - fingers crossed!!!

My first broody coop

I bought my first broody coop recently on the basis that I would put my broody hen in there to stop her from upsetting the other 2 hens.  The egg laying was all over the place including in the run.
I should really introduce my hens.

Treacle - Speckledy Hybrid
Pudding - Bluebelle Hybrid
Custard - Light White Sussex Hybrid (one of my originals) AKA "Big Bird"

Treacle is broody and has been for 2/3 weeks now.

Here she is with Rhode Island Red chick that she hatched earlier in the year.

The farm I bought the eggs from agreed that if they were cockerels they would have them back.  Guess what?........Yes it was a cockerel.  Beautiful looking bird and when it started cock-a-doodle-doing I knew it was time for him to go.  My neighbours would not thank me, mind you neither would my wife and 3 boys.

After moving Treacle into here new home, I found myself searching eBay for fertile hen eggs for sale.  This was not the intention, but I could not help myself.

I saw a lovely looking bantam hen in the October 2012 issue of the Country Smallholding Poultry Magazine.    It was a Bantam Gold Laced Wynedotte.
As luck would have it there were 6 eggs on eBay.  I bid for them and WON!!!


So, lucky Treacle has now been sat on the 6 eggs for the last 7 days doing a great job.  She does need reminding to get of the nest and have a drink and food every now and then, but a small hand full of corn tends to encourage her out.  Saves me being pecked as I try and pick her up.

I'm hoping they will hatch, not the best time of year I know, but I would love to be able to breed from them as they are very pretty birds.


I will keep the site updated with progress, and if by some miracle the all hatch, I will need to be finding homes for some!!

Thanks again for reading.