The darker blue the better. The way I understand it is that olive eggs need both the blue gene and the dark brown gene. So blue and dark brown equals olive. I don't see how one can get olive without a strongly blue egg. A light wash of blue color isn't enough for olive. Would give more of a sea green. At least that is the way I understand it. Also a light brown egg layer wouldn't give olive, again only a sea green. You should wait until all your easter eggers are grown and lay so you can pick the one that lays the deepest blue eggs.
So guess what hatching eggs I just bought now.
I only picked up 5 eggs today. I don't think my girls like the cold. I know i don't! Brrr
Rita where did you buy the F2 eggs? I'm not going to incubate eggs, but I'd sure like to find some F2 baby chicks in the spring.
I bought them off an auction on BYC. I know this person sells BCM eggs and olive egger eggs but I don't know if she ships chicks.
Well, guess I'll have to wait for a broody. So Rita, what are you planning to hatch next??
My red sex links are still in incubation. I am not totally sure about whats next but I am thinking about it. Something I do deffinately want are easter eggers but I am still looking on those. Another one I have decided are must haves for me are Speckled Sussex. Sooo so very, very pretty and I read that they are calm and gentle.
My RSLs are pretty tame. They like to eat my boot laces. I have a broody bantam.
Annie I am with you. I would love some F2 Oliver Eggers too. I so love a colorful basket of eggs
Do RIR's lay a darker egg than the RSL or BSL? I'd like some dark eggs but really want a breed that is friendly. I've heard RIR's are bossy.
Remember those store bought eggs I posted pictures of in my Store Bought Eggs thread? They were a really nice brown and really large to boot. They must have come from a production strain maybe even of RIRs. If not then red sex links.
On the other hand the hatching eggs I bought of the red sex links are not very dark at all.
You can get olive eggs from a EE and a brown egger.. I've had them before, but am not crazy about the egg color after having them.. it's just me. I was on a mission to get them and it was one of those things that after I got it.. I didn't want it.. LOL They are fun to look at, but not appetizing at all.
It's been my experience that a dark (or strong) blue egg is very rare, especially from an EE.
Eufaula your eggs are beautiful! *I'm partial to any blue egger*
I love speckled sussex for the color and how sweet they are, but they usually lay a small egg for being such a tank of a bird. :) They also seem to get picked on.. especially by a roo.. I don't know, I guess it's the color.. Roos seem to be drawn to them in a group of mixed breds.. Even my Serama thinks my Speckled Sussex is his woman. LOL The last group I had was the same way.. A Speckled Sussex, a Modern Game and a Serama were a group.. talk about a wild mix!! :)
hmmm maybe I need to rethink the Speckled Sussex. I want them because they are so pretty and supposed to lay through winter.
Well, I am not going to have any roos so don't need to be concerned that the roos might like them overly much. Truthfully, I just love, love, love the speckled color pattern and think the Speckled Sussex are gorgeous.
They ARE beautiful.. I sure didn't want to rain on anyone's parade here! The egg is small, but the hen is so beautiful and gentle, it's a toss up... for a pet? Perfect..:) If egg laying is a major issue? No A bantam can match them for egg size. LOL
Sorry to hear their eggs are so small. I guess the red sex links will just have to try harder to make up for it LOL! I will eventually buy those Speckled Sussex eggs. Not till spring, I am sure, as they are not going to be available from breeders until then. But they are on my must have list and its based on looks and the fact that I have read wonderful things about how sweet and gentle they are.
I am hoping by then that I will have some great egg layers so will not mind some not so great laying eye candy. And it's really because I just wanted chickens. Of course I expect chickens to be laying eggs.
I figgure I will be hatching out and trying lots of different types of chickens myself.
Hey there ZZ! Yep the EE eggs were so pretty. They were the trade deal , with a Welsummer Pullet, I got for a Dominique Pullet! The man reallllly wanted the Dominique bad!!
That sounds like a good deal.. :) Dominiques are good layers too. But to get a Welsummer and a EE now that's a good deal!!
The hatch is due the 18th, a week from today. Did my weekly candeling and found two definately no good eggs. So I took them out. Still leaves me with ten eggs which is what the auction was for anyway (they sent me three extras).
Im on pins and needles!! I took out the turner yesterday and laid those cute little blue green eggs on the wire!... Yes I just had to hold them up to my ear , all 6 of them, you know.... just hoping I could hear somebody! LOL!!
This morning Checked in on them and no wiggle or cracks yet! looked through window in incu .. iwas good and didnt open it... Patience is not one of my virtues!!!! COME on Tomorrow!!!!
Hi Eufaula, where they pullet eggs? Maybe that's why they are small. The EE's I hatched in Feburary laid small eggs to start. Now they are getting bigger than the eggs my Wyandotte's lay. Beautiful blue green. One from each of them almost every day. I almost wish I had kept more than the 2, but then I wouldn't have any room for more next spring. I am so jealous of all of you hatchers. I'm going to get cuckoo marans eggs next. Good luck with your hatch tomorrow. Becky
I am not much patient either. Let us know how it goes. Hoping for lots of pretty chickies for you LOL!
You never want to try to hatch pullet eggs.. trust me, I learned the hard way more than once.. :(
Im not sure how old the hens were that produced these eggs. I didnt ask the gentleman that I got them from. Actually the eggs are a very nice size. ...still no action in the incu!
Eufaula, if you stopped turning yesterday, that was day 18 right? If they are not bantams, or you didn't have the bator too warm, don't expect anything till Sunday right? There are often earlybirds.. LOL
So you can take a breath.. :) If you have to go to the store or anything go tomorrow! LOL
I hope you start a hatching thread and show us pictures!! I'm jazzed..
Yes, Please Start a thread about the hatching just like I do. We want to see lots of babies LOL!
pullet eggs??? Why not to hatch? Do they explode???
WEll I waited and watched until 11:30 this morning! Nothing so far! Had to go to work so I wont be home again until 5. Now I am getting antsy! All I can think about is the incu and baby EEs!
We want to see pictures LOL!
What did you do with them? Do I dare ask?
Who?
LOL I'm such an airhead... wrong thread.. sorry.. *face turns bright red*
Okay.....there will be no baby EEs here either. All my eggs, after waiting 22 days, were just sitting there! I pipped the big ends enough to see that every one of them were infertile! Oh well, sad, but now I wont have to worry about keeping such little ones through the winter!
Now if I can just excersize a little self control...... NO incu babies til next Spring! Having the EEs was just a whim so as to work toward the Olive Eggers. Now I will be able to regroup and think about this! I guess it just wasnt to be!
AHaaaaaaaaa! Now lets see no babies going into the brooder, means I can concentrate on the baby Seramas I'll be looking for in early Spring!!
So sorry to hear that Eufaula. Infertile. What a let down.
Oh no :-(( I can't imagine the disapointment of nothing hatching, nothing even developing. Where did you get these eggs?
I got them in trade along with a Welsummer Pullet for my Dominique Pullet. So Im bummed but I still got a good trade, the Welsummer just adds to my Brown egg layers!
Still a bummer but at least you didn't pay actual cash for shipped eggs. Usually local eggs work great from what I read. Sounds as if there was no roo doing his job.
Well , I think the problem could have been the young Pullet egg thing too! Probably the first eggs from the mans EE pullets! Oh well! It'll be Alright!!
I bet if you mention this to him he would give you some fertile eggs in the future. Might be better timing for both of you.
Meantime I just set up the hatcher to warm up and get stabelized. Tomorrow is lockdown for my sex links. I am so looking forward to this. Being able to tell the girls from the boys right away and also just to have the girls as backbone for the egg producers of the flock.
I had been having problems getting the humidity up in there during hatching. Could never get it up to the 60-65% I think is idea. So this time I bought some sponges and have one in there all wet now. Will check in afew hours to see if that does the trick.
good luck! hope all goes well!
zero hatch for me too on the White Silkie eggs boo hoo!!!!