So why am I not writing much these days? I don't know, not much to say I guess. I really busted my butt drawing this weekend and got quite a bit done. I put almost 100 more eggs in the incubator today. I will still collect eggs from the Black Rosecombs for a while longer, but probably not too much longer. The chicks are really a lot of work--twice a day feed and water, change light bulbs twice a day (white lights during the day, red lights at night... and then when it's really hot they get fluorescent light during the day and no light at night). Oh goodness, now I have to explain this, I can't resist. They need daytime and nighttime. Without a day/night cycle, they get extremely aggressive (they need sleep!). For the first week they get white light full-time, as aggression is not an issue at that age, they sleep a lot anyway, and they need to eat a lot. But after that I want them awake during the day and asleep at night. It's too chilly at night to turn the lights off, so I use red lights (but then when they are older, or when it's warmer, I will just shut the lights off entirely). They are somewhat active (versus how they would be with the lights off) but for the most part they will just sleep with the red lights on. In the daytime I switch to white lights, so they are up and eating. If it's too warm for regular lights, I use fluorescent so they don't get too hot. I have to use some light during the day because the brooders are dark enough that they will just stay asleep!
Anyway, that was long-winded and rambly, but there's today's lesson in light bulbs. :-)
I am still putting eggs in the incubator every saturday, but then I only get two or three eggs a week from the Sebrights. One of the hens produced and egg that looks more like a quail egg than a chicken egg...
ReplyDeleteI probably shouldnt do it but I am going to put it in the incubator this week! :-)
Hi!
ReplyDeleteI think I learn something from you each time I read your posts :-). I need to go buy a red light!
We set some more eggs (about 32, so not too many, but alot for us)this past weekend; mostly Dutch and Moderns. We also have one pair of Polish starting to lay better now, so with luck, we will have some hatch out of those. It's very exciting! Now I have to think about where to put them all......hehe.
-- CS
P.S.
ReplyDeleteI like the new pick; no white-yarn-hair ;-)
--CS
"Pic"! I meant pic.....ugggg
ReplyDelete:-)
--CS
D- If I was getting 2-3 eggs per week I would hatch for as long as the birds are laying!!! I will keep hatching the Blacks for a while... gotta make sure I have enough birds to beat this hot shot new Sebright guy from up north.. ;-)
ReplyDeleteCS- I had trouble finding red light bulbs locally, I had to order on line, email me if you want the URL of the place I got them. I got an assortment of different watt bulbs to use and it's worked well, no more chickies pecking the spikes off each others' combs! Ack! Yes, where to put them is always the issue... When I tell people how many chicks I have, they look around and say "where do you keep them all??" The answer: "EVERYWHERE!"