My girls are finally starting to lay at a decent pace again. They are averaging a half dozen a day with some days getting as many as 11! This passed Tuesday, September 25th, I put my first batch of hatching eggs for the fall season in the incubator.
These eggs came from the juvenile/lockdown pen which is currently occupied by one big Black Copper Marans rooster; 2 Black Copper Marans, 2 Golden Cuckoo Marans, 1 White Cochin, 1 Buff Cochin, 1 Light Brahma, 1 Silver Lakenvelder, and 2 Easter Egger Hens. It’s hard to tell but the top row in the Brinsea tray are all EE eggs, the pic washes the color out a bit but they are definitely all green tinted. In the second row the middle two are definitely BCM eggs, I believe the far right is a GCM and the remaining three are anybody’s guess.
These six eggs were collected over the last 4 days and were added to the incubator today.
I’m pretty sure this batch has two BCM’s (3rd & 6th) and four GCM’s. I’m really looking forward to seeing the outcome of the GCM x BCM eggs. Heather on her blog, Scratchcradle, had a very interesting series on chicken genetics and in response to a question I asked on this post Heather speculated that I should get sex-linked chicks. The cockerels should come out with a white white spot on their heads!
If all goes according to plan I will be putting the first batch in to lockdown October 12th and should have babies by the 16th. Batch 2 will be locking down October 17th and should hatch the 21st. Those dates should work out just right to open up room in the incubator for a batch of Basque hatching eggs I’ve been promised will arrive in mid October!
The Fruity Chicken 
My calendar is updated ANSI am anxiously awaiting photos of baby chicks!!
Oh how cool! Good for you, this is exciting. Keep us posted please!!
And what are you going to do when you have dozens of chicks underfoot? I admire your stamina. I find my 3 chooks keep me busy enough – babies? No way!
Hatching chicks is addictive. As to what I’m going to do with them all, I keep saying I’m going to butcher the extra roosters but so far that hasn’t happened. I end up giving them away, selling them to the feed store, or to a Santaria priest that is a customer of my wife’s. I have yet to have to many hens, in fact I’m hoping for success with my BCM’s because I still owe a friend a couple.
oops – I replied to the wrong comment (how confused are you now 🙂 Here’s the reply where it belongs….
I suppose it’s like with “surplus” eggs. Everyone asked me what I was going to do with 21 eggs each and every week, all year round, yet somehow they’re always all gone. Last night I found myself wanting an extra egg for dinner but none were due before 5am
Hatching from your own flock is always so much fun! You have a great mix of birds. I noticed that you have a GCM cockerel, too, so I just wanted to add that all of his offspring will be barred – with the white dot on their heads – if he happened to father any of the chicks. Not sure if he’s had any access to the hens. I’m looking forward to the updates!
My GCM roo is in the run with the general population, the girls have been in solitary with one of the BCM Roos for about three weeks so I think we’re good to go!
I suppose it’s like with “surplus” eggs. Everyone asked me what I was going to do with 21 eggs each and every week, all year round, yet somehow they’re always all gone. Last night I found myself wanting an extra egg for dinner but none were due before 5am 🙂
Absolutely! It sounds great, Max! It may be a ways off, but it will be neat to see the egg colors they lay being under that BCM. 🙂
You are so brave! I received day old chicks when I raised mine and that was terrifying. Cannot imagine trying to incubate and raise them. Let us know what happens, please?
Good luck. That is very exciting. I am new to chickens and I am waiting for my bantam to go broody. I have some contacts for fertilised eggs so hopefully it all goes to plan.