okay, hatching eggs are in the incy...

[MarmadukeScarlet]

I have 12 HE in 2 incys for a class project (4 welsummers, 2 spotted sussex, 2 cream crested legbar crosses and 4 pot luck!)

So, I am presuming that some of them hatch. 24 hours in incy until all dry and fluffy.

Then what?

Into a box with an infra red lamp for how long?

I have the happiness of 14 3-4 yr olds riding on me getting thid right.

Please pray for no cocks! (and cock ups)

Sorry, no advice, but what a lovely class project!

I dashed back to see your words of wisdom! but thank you.

I have my own interests at heart as I will be adding the results to my flock - hence the desire for no noisy boys.

Have put them in now so that the DC have only one week of waiting once school restarts.

Sounds about right. Do you not have a broody hen? That would work better than under a light.

Oh and by the way you will mostly get Cocks not hens, it's normally the way it works. We always get 8 eggs hatch and only 3 will be hens each time. If you don't get the majority of cocks then you are a very lucky person and I am very jealous.

Hope the class like it. what have you got planned for them once they are a month or 2 old? You won't be able to keep all the cocks with the hens. You'll need to take them all out other wise they will fight and kill each other.

Once you seperate them they'll live seperate quite happily if you have to hen houses.

Surely the cocks will not fight until they are older? They usually do not crow until 6-8 mths or so I believe?

My friend keeps 6 cocks, all mature, with a flock of 20 hens and no deaths/major injuries so far? This is where the pot luck eggs came from. The old english game bird cock is the most agressive, but being smaller than the others he is not such a big problem.

A different friend is going to absorb my cocks for eating pleasure into her meat flock. I will not mention this to the children. I will quiz her as to the logistics/age of agressiveness of cocks, but any further information will be greatfully recieved....

Ours started fighting quite early on about 3 months or so really. They're about 4.5 months now and almost fully grown, although they are bantams so slightly small anyway.

It's good that you've got someone who'll eat take care of them for you. I wish we could get away with doing that with a few of ours. Especially when they wake us at 5am.

I'm guessing 6 cocks with 20 hens would be enough to share around so that they don't get too posessive, I think that is what you'll have to watch out for if you don't get many hens.

I think they like to have a couple of hens each and they don't mind keeping it in the family either!

I hope it all goes well for you. Is this something you're doing in school/Nursery etc. If so, I wish our Nursery could do something like this to. There is very few people in our rural Nursery who have contact with animals/livestock etc and would be fantastic chance for those who don't have space at home etc to see what happens.

I'm always surprised at how little contact kids in rural areas have with animals, when nearly all of them live within walking distance of people with animals, farms etc. I think you're doing a lovely thing here for the kids.

Oh what are you going to feed them on? We fed ours on breadcrumbs and chopped boiled egg with shell (seems cruel but they like it), chick crumbs and then built up to normal corn and scrap from the kitchen. Plenty of fresh water and ours always turned the water dish upside down within about half an hour of being given water as they all climb in.

Thank you for good advice.

I have 9 hens already, so hopefully will not be overwhelmed.

I live in a rural area, but this is a pre school/pre prep/prep in a large local town.

I am a parent and active supporter of this small nurturing school.

The class teacher is an animal lover, there are often animals visiting the pre school - I know of a puppy, a kitten, some tortoises and stick insects (class pets) have been to see the DC.

I was going to get a sack of chick crumb - have never fed shell with egg on as worried about getting an egg pecker with my older ones (although I guess these will be too young to remeber being fed shell!).

I have a couple of small plastic drinkers which will hopefull stay upright.

I do have a hen who has a tendancy to sit on the eggs, I am loath to remove her from the flock as she is the lowest ranking chicken and am worried that on her return (even with some young chickens in tow) she will be bullied/not accepted. I did consider putting her into my 'quarantine' ark and taking it to school so she can look after the chicks once they are ready to be outside - but am worried about re entry.

The Chicks would probably like a role model and you could always leave the hen in with the new hen chicks, she might not be bottom of the pack then. She'll teach them to scratch, eat and drink.

You only have to give the chicks boiled egg for a little while. Probably only 2-3 weeks, they'll probably start to grow a few feathers and won't want the egg then. It's just soft enough to start them eating.

It sounds really good.

OK I am convinced, my slightly dippy cream legbar X (named Dandelion due to puff on her head) can 'mother' the young uns.

I am getting ahead of myself a little, not due for candling for another 8 days or so!

Thanks for contuing advice