A Jesusfreaks tales of farm life with soon to be Six kids

Jesusfreak101

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This year's hatching has sucked so far out of 16 or more duck eggs that developed only 2 hatched, out of 16 or more chicken eggs only 8 hatched, and I have 9 geese eggs left and they should start pretty soon i think the first should around the 27 and the last is closer to 4/10. After this set no more extreme mixing of eggs for me i just buy another incubator. I had them all in the same incubator and I am pretty sure my kids unplugged it a hour or so during the ducks hatching. One hatched fine that was before the unplugging and the second i had to help because it was stuck. Found three others that had beaks out but where dead. The rest nothing. The chicks all hatched about the same time with no late hatched. The geese eggs looked great at handling. So fingers crossed i am praying we get a viable hatch there. I be setting a full round of chicken eggs next, then another of duck and another of geese. Hopefully i have a second or third incubator and maybe have them all going. I need to find a safer spot clearly either way. Only problem is we live in about 1100sq ft house so think small. I probably set them up in my bedroom... mmm just where is the question i could clean out the closet and move a table in there for them... mmm Dh wants to have a shed up front for me to do this but who knows how long that will be. However if we get the barn built i can have a small room for the incubators and a stall or two for the chicks, ducklings and gosling s to grow in before they get put in a grow out pen i am planning. I think I like that best
I also want a milking room in there thats up to code to sale milk incase i ever want to do that. I have several who ask for it. A friend allowed to have some but the new custermets i have for eggs i don't know from Adam and ain't getting any. He wants to trade carpenter work for it ironically. However down side for him is my father, dh, and brothers are able and my father is a master crafts man in that area. Brothers and dh not so much but they can do the basics and a barn is just up their alley. Getting the to do it(my dad would in a heart beat if i asked) might be tricky lol. I see lots of baked goods ahead. Moohaha i use their stomachs against them. They are addicted to my cinnamon rolls, brownies cookies cakes pretty much everything in my husband's case lol.
 

farmerjan

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Besides the possibility of the incubator being unplugged, is that duck and goose eggs require different humidity and temps, to hatch than chicken eggs do. Plus, the incubator should be shut and not opened for at least 2 days before due date for hatching so that the humidity levels are consistent. You should never have both chicken and waterfowl eggs in together unless the chicken eggs are due to hatch at least a week before the waterfowl eggs so that you can up the humidity for the waterfowl eggs. And that is only as a last resort. We don't even like to put bantam and large fowl eggs in together as the big chicks will just roll the bantam eggs around too much during the hatching and the bantam chicks can get hurt or killed in the process.
 

SA Farm

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I’ve always hatched everything at the same temps and I tend to get really good hatch rates. Agreed on the humidity levels though - I tend to keep my chicks much dryer than my waterfowl...more like 34% on average compared to 54 or so for ducks and geese. Everybirdie gets high humidity at lockdown 70-80% (I don’t mind it higher, but don’t like it any lower) and I only open for emergencies (like today I had to help a chick who had a big chunk of shell stuck to its head).
 

Jesusfreak101

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When the restaurants are closed and the stores are put of noodles no problem. Home made noodles with garlic shrimp Alfredo a side salad and fresh put of the oven french bread. The kids of course order nuggets, grapes, carrot sticks and a side salad.
 

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Jesusfreak101

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So this morning's we had to baby gosling hatch hopefully more to come. But they aren't due yet. I set eggs as they came in so not all at one time kind of thing. I think the last one is due around April 10th. Anyways awesome birthday present to wake up to lol. Two more are due near the 29th and 27th we see who hatches next last i candle they all looked very healthy so yay. The human kids are hyper/cranky and are clingy and driving me crazy i put an new executive order out its called no touchie lol. They like breathing on me ahhh. Anyways they are pretty cute this morning.
 

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GardnerHomestead

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So this morning's we had to baby gosling hatch hopefully more to come. But they aren't due yet. I set eggs as they came in so not all at one time kind of thing. I think the last one is due around April 10th. Anyways awesome birthday present to wake up to lol. Two more are due near the 29th and 27th we see who hatches next last i candle they all looked very healthy so yay. The human kids are hyper/cranky and are clingy and driving me crazy i put an new executive order out its called no touchie lol. They like breathing on me ahhh. Anyways they are pretty cute this morning.
Lol they must not have received the memo about social distancing yet. JK. Ive never hatched waterfowl eggs, love it. And Happy Birthday!:weee
 
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