ATTENTION newby hatchers

[hatching-eggs]

my advice, if you anyone is looking for a broody hen is to choose pekins,they make great little mums and mine seem to be constantly broody,I have six and it seems almost constantly that at least one out of the six is broody!

[cmsxtlt]

Great help Mojo, just waiting for my 6 mixed Bantam eggs, always helps to get info from experienced keepers.
Incubator is R-COM 20 Pro. Just finishing off my run with coop and raring to go.
Going to build a wood brooder and keep indoors with the hatchlings

[Captain Carrot]

Great help Mojo, just waiting for my 6 mixed Bantam eggs, always helps to get info from experienced keepers.
Incubator is R-COM 20 Pro. Just finishing off my run with coop and raring to go.
Going to build a wood brooder and keep indoors with the hatchlings

I had my 7 silkies in the kitchen for 6 weeks because it was slightly chilly outdoors this Winter (-20°C). just be aware that chicks create a lot of dust

[Chris Kurzfeld]

Yep!!! Mine are 2 weeks old, in the living room in their brooder - dust everywhere - another week and they will go into the chook caravan with the bigger electric hen and oil fired heater.

[mojo]

run the vacuam cleaner near chicks box to remove excess dust

[mrchips]

I've just hatched my first in an incubator. Can I mix speciesn in one setting? i.e. Can I incubate chicken eggs and Quails eggs together can anyone tell me? And if so what are the problems I'm going to have.

[drfish]

If they take the same length of time and rely on roughly the same temps and humidity, then yes.

Quite a few people have successfully done ducks and chickens together, starting the ducks a week earlier as they take 28 days.

[mrchips]

Thanks for that. Am I likely to have problems when I move the hatched ones (if any) to a brooder do you think?

[drfish]

I wouldn't like to say to be honest, but I would think the general idea would be to separate them within a few weeks as the quail will be considerably outsized by the chickens.

[mrchips]

Yes, that's my best guess too but Ui thought it worth asking the question incase anyone had had the experence.

[NCOTB]

I've got 3 quail chicks that hatched out with nearly 30 chicks Thye are 3 weeks old now & are still living happily with the chicks. Ive also found they are much more chilled & are actually very laid back! The naughty pekins are the ones that try & jump out the brooder!Previous hatches have been the same.

[mrchips]

Thanks for that NCOTB - I'll give it a try. My current concern is that I've only hatched one egg out of 6, the others weren't fertile so I now have a lonesome orphan who probably thinks she's a 'me' and may not socialise with other chickens when introduced! Should I go and buy a couple of day old chicks so she grows up with her own kind do you think? My next hatching won't be for another 23 or 4 days.