Thirty-three chicks

I finally have a GOOD hatch!  On January 11th, I set 41 gold-laced Wyandotte eggs, from Solo and the spring pullets I collectively named "the Young Ones."  Solo is named such because he is the only surviving chick hatched here last spring, and not so much for the Star Wars character.  When I candled the hatch on day 11 or 12, I only saw four obvious clears.  Two more were questionable, but I figured I'd let them go anyway.  So, I set 37 eggs Tuesday evening, and about a handful of those eggs cheeped at me as I moved them (a good sign!).  The first "early bird" chick hatched Wednesday morning, then Thursday they were popping out like popcorn.  I know at least one hatched Friday morning, as I saw a very wet chick when I looked in with the Mini-Mag.  I remarked to hubby there was no counting them until we pulled them out of the incubator because they were bouncing all around in it.

Yesterday afternoon, we set up the nursery, and while I added electrolytes and probiotics to their first water, and fixed up the first chick starter (I wet it with liquid from the fermented scratch), hubby pulled the chicks out one at time to count.  I came back with food to distract the adult birds out running around, and heard, "Thirty ... thirty-one ..."  Sure enough, once all the chicks were in the nursery, there were only four eggs unhatched.

That's an 80% hatch rate ...I think it's also a new record for here.

Oh, hubby got me a second incubator as my birthday present, so there are 42 more gold-laced Wyandotte eggs from Solo and the Young Ones.  The older hens aren't laying well enough just yet, so after I clean out incubator #1, I'll be loading it up with a third hatch from Solo and the Young Ones.  I intend to hatch a LOT of chicks this year.  Most will be sold or eaten, but I want to get another hen like Beauty was ... okay, I actually want a dozen like she was.  The best way to make progress in chicken breeding is to hatch as much as you can, and it is time to "move the chains" on this idea.