Anyone for a live chick hatching thread?

[UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername]

We've had a Silkie hen sitting on 6 eggs for the last 3 weeks. Two have hatched so far today. Two more eggs are making cheeping sounds, there's tapping coming from the 5th and the 6th is quiet at the moment; maybe having a nap?

[WalkersAreNotTheOnlyCrisps]

Aww lovely ❤️

[UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername]

Turns out a bra isn't hot enough for a chick! Cloud ended up on a hot water bottle yesterday evening and all night, and is in better form this morning. We put it in with the others for a few minutes and it was able to run around with the others a bit. It's back on the hot water bottle now. It hasn't learned to eat yet, so hopefully it'll get the hang of that today.

Princess stopped sitting on the other egg and it went cold, so it's been discarded.

[Aprilshowersandhail]

Maybe shove that last egg in the other cup op?!

[UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername]

He's not getting much chance at napping under Princess, for some reason; she keeps moving. It's almost like she's rejecting him. So he's asleep in my bra at the moment.

[Awwlookatmybabyspider]

his baby beak on his first picture. 😍😍😍😍😍😍.

[Awwlookatmybabyspider]

Oh hi baby cloud. Couldnt you just put him on a butty and eat him all up.

[UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername]

We had another one hatch yesterday. It's called Cloud. They take a few hours to dry out and look properly cute!

There's one egg left but we haven't heard cheeping or tapping from it so I think it might be a dud. If it hasn't done anything by tomorrow night (day 25), we'll dispose of it. We are keeping a close ear on it, obviously.

[amusedbush]

This is exactly the type of live birth thread I needed to see

[Awwlookatmybabyspider]

Has their been any more babies born today

[stayingaliveisawayoflife]

We had chickens when I was a child and bantams who were tiny as chicks! My mum was in charge of hatching and she had the eggs in a big ice cream tub with a light bulb attached to the top for heat. They also had a cross on so my mum could record the turning of the eggs.

I also remember using golf balls if the hens were broody because otherwise they would go for us when we were collecting the eggs.

Because of this I have always been in charge of the egg hatching at school and raised chicks and ducklings. We once had only two chicks hatch and they had curled up feet so I had to make them chick flip flops to help their feet flatten out.(I followed advice on this) I really enjoyed helping them when they were born and watching them fluff out but it was sad when they had to go. I will never forget siting in the back of my colleagues car trying to look after the ducklings as they went for a weekend sleep over at her flat before they went back to the farm!

I am probably going to have to delete my folder of pictures entitled chick pics! Possibly not the most appropriate for a primary teacher!

[permanentlyexhaustedpigeon]

Ooh, can I join? Chickens are wonderful!

[UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername]

Ah, Prosecco, what a cutie!

FiteDaeinYeMadRage, I love the thought of a magical woodland filled with Silkies : )

[FitYeDaeinYeMadRadge]

Prosecco such a lovely wee chick, one day I will have Silkies, they are so beautiful.

My friend’s neighbour has some, they share woodland and my favourite thing to do is go Silkie spotting when I visit.

[ProseccoandPizza]

This is our good Friday silkie chick. We only have white silkies. Unfortunately our Minnie decided one egg wasn’t viable at 19 days. Out of the 4 she sat on this was our only chick. The other two we think she lost to a sudden drop in temp overnight.

[FitYeDaeinYeMadRadge]

This has absolutely taken away the stress of a very hard week. utterly thank you, it’s absolutely filled my stony awd heart with happy.

Beautiful pictures 😍 I can just imagine the little cheeping noises - so happy for you!

[YaWeeGobshite]

New life. Just beautiful and amazing. Please keep sharing the joy op!

[UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername]

@captainpantbeard

This is pure joy. More pics please if you’re not too busy looking after 6 newborns.

There's no looking after to be done! All they need is to be kept warm and shown where the food and water are, and Princess is doing that. The hardest thing we have to do is take photos, and occasionally lift her up to do a headcount in case another one has popped out.

[UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername]

She does mind them being picked up, because they cheep, but once they're comfy in your hand and go quiet, she seems to forget about them. She pecks them when we put them back in (she seems to get annoyed with them whenever they're not under her), so we put them in behind her and they burrow in under her bum. And we don't take them out for long, because they'll get cold - it's insanely hot and humid in her little armpits, which is where she keeps them. She tore out all her breast feathers when she got broody, so her skin is exposed for maximum egg-and-chick heating capabilities, and her body temperature is raised to keep them extra warm. She's much hotter than human hands.

[captainpantbeard]

This is pure joy. More pics please if you’re not too busy looking after 6 newborns.

[SuperintendentHastings]

Oooo look at this! This is the BEST thread! 😍

[Silkiescats]

Aww how lovely. We have two girl silkies, both go through periods of sitting on eggs trying to make babies and they put their wing round each other.

[aintnocoffeebigenough]

Lovely

[Dizzywizz]

Ahh how sweet! Does she mind you picking them up?

[NiceTwin]

I never knew chickens were such characters.
We only have 3 now, they are such funny creatures.
We had the police down yesterday, discussing rural crime. As they got out of the car, the chickens ran over to them, the police were
They were less when the dog jumped in their car and sat on the front seat

[Crayfishforyou]

This is one of my favourite threads ever
Bless those little chicks!