[Womble]

Hi [member=27063]Marches Farmer[/member] , I'd be interested in some Wyandotte and Dorking eggs when you have them available.

I'd also like to hear from anybody in Central Scotland who keeps these breeds, and also utility strains of Rhodies and Welsummers. Cheers! 

[Marches Farmer]

I'll let you know how the first hatch goes, Womble.  I have two breeding groups of each, so I'm hopeful.  I'd recommend choosing the RIR strain with care.  We had some a few years ago but the hens were very aggressive towards our other breeds.

[Womble]

Yes, I know they can be a handful MF, but they're also real characters. I have a thing for feisty ginger birds - just ask Mrs Womble! 

[greengumbo]

Well we have had really good hatching success so far this year. Only our own chickens are not fertile as I suspect the cockerel is firing blanks.

9 out of 12 Lavender Aracaunas hatched and are doing well after 3 weeks and we have had 3/3 khaki ducks and 4/4 mixed bantams.

Just put in 4 Sevastapol Goose eggs - never kept geese before.....any tips !

Still looking for guineafowl eggs to hatch.

[Marches Farmer]

May be a bit early for guinea fowl.   I found that, like our turkeys, laying doesn't begin until the longer daylight hours and warmer weather in April.

[greengumbo]

I've noticed this week on ebay there are a few sellers of GF eggs. Will wait a while longer though.

[vfr400boy]

Got my first Minorca eggs due Monday, 11 out of the 12 was fertile so am pleased, i have some spare birds available if anyone is interested 

[greengumbo]

Candled our 4 Sevastopol X Emden goose eggs and 3 fertile. Excited about this batch.

[greengumbo]

Since my last post we have hatched 13 Scots Dumpys and two of the geese hatched. The geese are fantastic, totally friendly and follow us about the smallholding munching grass as they go and ignoring the veggies / fruit.

They are starting to get feathers now so looking forward to finding out how much Sevastopol is in the mix !

We have 12 guineafowl due to hatch in the next few days (i hear hatching times are quite variable?) and 4 turkey eggs with a week to go.

Then I think thats us for the year. We had 4 duck eggs under a broody bantam but it went a bit wrong. A second hen went broody in the same nest and they kept stealing the eggs from each other. 1 duckling started to hatch but was later found out the nest cold and deceased Lesson learned so I will separate the broody hens next time.

[Jukes Mum]

Silver Grey Dorkings. Had our first hatch rather later than usual this year. 100% fertile but lost 1 just before hatching. Good timing as we lost two hens this week. One didn't go to bed and got got by the fox and one got squashed on the lane by the house 

[Dans]

Have a broody toulouse goose sitting on 2 toulousexembden eggs and at least 1 toulouse egg (Depends if she has laid any more).

Have a broody chicken sitting on some hybrid eggs from our flock, a mixture of Cream Legbar, Cuckoo Maran, Barnveldar and something else.

I've not cracked a single unfertile egg this year for eating so fingers crossed we have a good fertility rate.

Dans

[greengumbo]

and we are done for the year !

Guinea fowl doing well and 2 lovely bourbon red turkeys hatched.

One of our Wyandottes has disappeared for about a month but comes back every few days for a feed. I suspect she is sitting on eggs somewhere. Not found the nest yet.....is she likely to come back with a load of chicks ?

[Dave C]

I have some Indian Game, Blue Laced Wyndotte bantams and Sasso x Marans, all due to hatch in 2 days.

That might be it for me....... or maybe one more 

[Dave C]

Not due until Thursday, got one pipped already, probably not a good sign.