An Announcement of General Interest....

If you follow me on Facebook you already know that the past 24 hours have been exciting, busy, and somewhat sleepless.  Wheee!

We have been trying for the third time to hatch some Buff Orpington chicks in our Santa Claus Incubator.  The first time the power went out for close to 24 hours about half-way through incubation.  The second time nothing hatched.  Something about Mrs. Rule-Follower not following the rules of temperature, humidity, vent plugs, etc., etc.  Sigh.

BUT

Tuesday evening we were sitting in the living room and started hearing an odd noise.  Chirping!  From the incubator!!  I went and peeked in and oddly enough, nothing had hatched.  There was one egg with a very small pip in it and the little chick was talking up a storm inside there.  Then another egg that didn't even have a pip started talking back (I'm hoping this means they are female) (but then again it may not).  Within just a few hours we had a chick hatched out completely and yelling at the top of its voice. 

We suddenly realized the problem of hatching chicks in the living room. 

We have three indoor cats.  Three indoor CURIOUS cats.  Who really, really, really wanted to know what was going on.  And were really, really interested in figuring it out.  They tried to convince us that allowing them to just take a small taste would be a good idea.  We found them on the top of the built in bookshelf looking down at the incubator.  On top of the piano tip-toeing over to peek in.  On the back of the chair leaning over to see if they could figure things out.  They are still trying to convince us that its just out of love and concern for us, and a desire to protect us from the whatever-it-is.  The cats spent the night on the back porch (it was that or we stay up all night with the can of compressed air in one hand and the button to the doorbell in the other) (our anti-social cats hate the doorbell)  (so does our sleeping son).  They are still in a snit over that.  They would be happy to forgive us if we were to furnish some kind of peace offering.  Chicken, perhaps?

She would be SUCH a good Nanny!

At five o'clock Wednesday morning, the second chick hatched. 

 

At eight o'clock I was on the phone with my Mama telling her all about it and watching the chicks while we talked.  While I was watching, chick #3 kicked its way out of the shell, quickly followed by chicks #4 and #5. 




 At this point I'm not sure that the other seven eggs are going to hatch.  There are not even any pips in any of them.  I would love to have one more so that I could have a 50% hatch rate, but I will take what I have and be thankful.