It's that time of year again: time to start the incubator. My Mom always laughs at me for having all those chicks in my basement in January, but in the middle of a cold Wisconsin winter it becomes my sanity some days. The timer has been set for a trek out in the cold to check for fresh, still warm chicken eggs every 45 minutes or so throughout the late morning/early afternoon in the hopes of getting enough to fill the trays in the next few days. This year we have all Light Brahma's; other years we have had a little bit of various breeds of chickens. The Brahma's have been my favorite with their brown eggs, beautiful plumage and feathery feet, so they won out when we were scouring the chick adds nearly a year ago.
The other babies that we are looking forward to soon are the goat babies. I knew this would be a tough winter to get through anyway, so I purposely planned for January babies as a diversion. But January didn't seem so cold in August. Five of our older does are due mid-month, and are looking appropriately plump. They are enjoying back rubs and petting, which is a pretty good indication that the dates are correct. The younger does will be due in March and April, and will be our first kids sired by Jacob from
Brenda's farm.
Brenda's does are all due starting in just a week, so be sure to check back on her often. If you are anxious for new kids now, check out
Tonia's new little ones. Her buck is a brother to our Jacob, so I will be excited to see if we get some of those spots, too.
I love your Light Brahma chickens. I have a few of them ... along with some mixed up ones. The Light Brahmas are my favorites too. Maybe I should get some chicks started now too so I'll have plenty of eggs this summer to use in my cheesecakes made with my goat's milk yogurt cheese. Yumm!
ReplyDeleteI'm excitedly (and a little panicked) getting ready for this season's kidding. It's getting here so soon ... sooner than I'm ready! Yes, it's colder now than it was back in July when I started breeding season. I'm not looking forward to long nights of deliveries out in the cold! But, the babies and healthy momma's are worth the time spent attending the deliveries. -- Blessings!
Boy, both you and Brenda have brought back fond memories of birthin' those babies. I remember blow drying goat babies in the barn. At least their little wet hooves. And my brand new Carhartt coat sizzled one night when I bent over, not realizing I backed up to a heat lamp and seared a crater in my back side. (Russ ended the lowered heat lamps after that...I was too much of a risk for fire, or so he thought. :) Anyway, enjoy those kids. (Caprine and human.) And I want to hear more about the chickens in the basement. Eggs only? Or actual chickens? (No, I don't think you're nuts...I have a similar idea...:)
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to watch from here as your deliveries start Brenda!
ReplyDeleteHAHA Sherry! Chicks, actually, in the basement. Usually they end up being there for several weeks until they get feathered out and we keep adding more as the batches keep hatching.
I have got 2 more due! One around Christmas and one after that sometime. I lov ethe Brahmas also. My rooster is going on 7 years old this spring and I have 2 of the orignal hens left too. I was hoping to get some eggs to hatch but I dont know if they are laying anymore. The rooster is like a big baby. The girls have carried him around like a baby. He is a great rooster watching out for his hens. He is tolerant of the banty roos too. If one is aggressive he teaches it a lesson and chases him away. Cant wait to see your babies!!
ReplyDeletelove it love it! A couple of my girls are due around the same time as yours and one of my ewes is due any day. Here we go!
ReplyDeleteSherry, I could picture you backing up against the heat lamp. There's been so many times I've almost burned myself on them. How funny! ... well sort of. :D
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