My second baby hatched recently. There are so few things as exciting as when your chicks hatch. It’s a beautiful baby chick from a light Brahma daddy and a black Easter Egger mama. I know this because she is the only one that lays pink eggs. I have been using the Brinsea mini incubator just to see what would happen and last month I had two beautiful ducklings hatch. One survived and its name is Hershey, because it’s a beautiful chocolate brown and growing like a weed.
At 21 days exactly, a little chick hatched. I was going to turn the eggs that day, and one was cracked and when I looked at it, there he was working his way out. Chicks seem to hatch much more quickly than ducks, probably because the eggs are far more brittle than duck eggs.
I was able to get the Brinsea mini egg incubator through Amazon.com, because I had a gift card for $50 … so I thought, “Why not?” I knew for sure that I had fertilized eggs.
I am clearly a beginner with this experiment. I chose all duck eggs to start. This little incubator was good for me because it was small and very easy to set up and use.
When it came, my kids (who are 20 and 24) were so excited about it, they set it up and put the eggs in it before I got home. On a rather crazy morning, I opened the lid to check the water and there was the first little hatchling. I was so excited I could hardly stand it. It made my whole day. By the time I got home, there was a second duckling hatching and my adult kids were so fascinated by it, they were watching with the video camera and everything. Quite some time later, the little thing finally hatched, a beautiful, chocolate-brown duck.
We named this duck Hershey, because it is a beautiful chocolate brown, like a Hershey kiss. This little ducky is growing like crazy. We have let it swim around in the bathtub and it’s amazing how ducks just know what to do. We put a couple of bantams in with it to keep it company. One of the banty’s didn’t seem to be feathering out so we thought maybe the other chicks were picking on it. The duck was afraid of the chick at first, but they grew on each other pretty quick.
Because there was a hen that matched the little rooster, we put her in with the other two. It took them a little time to get acquainted, but now they are a group. This morning, I put Hershey in the tub to take a bath (like ducks do), and the chickens made such a racket that I put them on the edge of the bathtub so they could see Hershey. They jumped in the bathtub with him and actually looked like they were trying to swim, the crazy critters. (I use “him,” because I think it’s a drake.) He’s twice the size of them and they are 3 months old.
Last weekend, while I was turning the eggs, I thought, “Oh no, one is broken.” Lo and behold, it was a new chick making its way out of the shell. I was so excited I yelled down the stairs to my son that we had a chick, yeah! This was especially delightful to me, because my daughter had just left for boot camp, and I needed a little boost to my spirits. I was totally tickled. The little chick came out quickly. Probably within a half an hour, he was out.
I was so happy to already have the Brinsea brooder that I got after the duck hatched, I had it all set up. I wasn’t sure that there would be any other chicks to hatch, that I found a young silkie hen that assumed this young chick as a companion. He took to her like the duck to water and seems to be doing great. He does come go in and out from under the brooder, which adds heat to both of them … but it is so nice to see him under her wing. It’s the most adorable thing I have ever seen.
I have been very pleased with the benefits that I have gotten from the Brinsea products. If there is a beginner out there that wants to try to incubate eggs, I would say that this is a nice little incubator for the beginner. The nice thing about it is that you participate by turning the eggs at least three times a day, and I have had success with this twice now. Once with duck eggs and also with the chicken eggs. If I can use these products and get these beautiful little poultry, then anyone can do it. Also, the brooder is easy to use and keeps the chicks warm with less electricity. These are proven products that also support this website and are a longtime sponsor!
I can’t begin to tell you how exciting it is to see an egg hatching. I’m 45 years old and it makes me feel like a little kid on a Christmas morning. Doesn’t it you? I love these products that have allowed me to experience the miracles of life through an egg and I hope someone else can have that joy too.
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2 Comments
Never was there an easier way to hatch and brood chicks, than your products.
I incubated 10 eggs this spring and we’re starting to think 9/10 are roosters! We know 7 are for sure. But we used a Brinsea eco glow and it worked great. No worries about burning the house down!