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So egg-cited! Incubation project


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Our son's girlfriend (isn't she sweet?) brought us four fertilized eggs, and I just happened to have a $5.00 incubator bought at a yard sale. I hesitated posting until now, because I was afraid I did something wrong.

 

Well, at least one of the chickens is a success so far! We can hear it chirping in its shell, and a little bit is torn off the shell! We are so excited! Hatching soon. :)

 

I'll post photos!

 

(Yes, I know there are some serious chicken people here, so I realize I am being silly). :001_smile:

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Edited by nestof3
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We did that a couple years ago - 18 eggs, and only a couple didn't hatch.

 

It was so exciting to watch them get out of their shells, get to their feet and walk around.

 

But, they got stinky really fast and once their feathers starting coming in they lost pretty much all their cuteness!

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How fun!

 

I would love to do this with my dc! The price of an incubator is away too much though.

 

Anyone know how I can do this on the cheap? :bigear:

We live in an are where very few people have chickens.

 

I have heard of folks who will rent incubators for just your situation--someone who wants to hatch once and can't justify the investment of the incubator. Not exactly sure how you would go about searching someone out, though. Maybe try the Backyard Chickens forums and see if you can find someone in your area? Or, if you are looking for more than just the hatching experience and would like to keep a few chickens, you could always look into getting a couple hens known for their broodiness (such as silkies) and do it the old-fashioned way. Downside to a broody hen is you can't see the hatching process like you can in an incubator with a window!

 

Another option, if you have someone handy in the house, is to DIY and build your own. There's lots of instructions on the Internet. Probably wouldn't be cheaper than a low-end model styrofoam incubator if you had to buy all the materials, but if you happen to have a lot of the makings lying around--or can scrounge them up cheaply from friends, yard sales, etc.--than it can be very cheap (and another project/learning experience in itself)!

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