Guinea Update....We have babies!!!

I am happy to report that 10 out of the 15 eggs hatched! One did die, so we have 9 keets. They are a week old now and growing like weeds! Our other hen is sitting on a nest of 30 eggs! We just got home from a weekend of camping, so I think I might move them to the incubator. I hate to take the eggs away from the momma...she is doing so well with them....but I think they will have a better shot if we take them.

Anyway, super busy here! Bet it is at your place too. Whatcha up to?? :)

Guinea Egg Incubating Update....

Thanks you so much to all of you who chimed in with advice!! :)

I candled tonight and I am happy to report that all 15 babies are developing, alive, and wiggling around in there! All air sacks are present and accounted for, blood vessels look good and healthy! WOO HOO!! :)

I still am not sure on their hatch date. They have been in the incubator for 17 days now. One of them I labeled in crayon with a number 1...he looked bigger or further along than the others. The rest all looked about the same.

I am sad to report that we are missing 5 ducks! Gone without a trace. The creek had gone up due to rain and flooding, so I am hoping they got swept down stream and are living happily ever after. Maybe they'll come back! I am not getting my hopes up, but it still doesn't hurt to hope!

School is just about over for the summer, my middle child will be a teenager as of next weekend, we are car shopping for my oldest, my new carpet gets here next Thursday, and yes, the Guineas will be hatching! The garden is in, save for the melons, squash, and green beans. Kittens are 3 weeks old tomorrow and are beginning to act like toddlers, starting to walk around the house already! Life is good. :) How's it going in your neck of the woods?

Guinea Fiasco: Part Deaux....

Well, we never did catch that mama Guinea. Not even with the help of a net duct taped to the end of a long pole tree pruner! That was Hubby's idea. I kid you not, we are the King and Queen of "Good in Theory". :) So, we are now the proud owners of this....


An incubator. Just a basic no frills incubator.

Last night made the 6th day they had been in there. I made a candler using a round oatmeal box and a lamp. I candled and 15 looked good, 2 were iffy, and 4 looked clear and infertile. So I returned the 15 to the incubator and went about cracking open the infertile and the two iffy ones. The two iffy ones were in fact viable embryos! Whoops. :( I have since read (and now know first hand) that if you are iffy about any eggs, to leave them be and check again in a week or so. 3 out of the 4 infertile were in fact infertile. The fourth had an embryo, but it did not look like the two iffy ones...so it was either at an earlier stage or it was what is known as a "quitter" - one that started development and then stopped. Sorry I didn't get pictures. It was a super busy weekend and I did this last night right before bed and I was beat!

So, the only issue I am having at this point is trying to figure out when their hatch date is. This is important to know because you have to turn the eggs several times per day UNTIL the last three days when you do not turn them because, well, it can kill them. Since they are Guineas, they take 28 days to hatch. Chickens take 21 days. So even though I checked this site that contains embryo pictures and our babies (the iffy ones I opened) look like a 6 day chicken embryo, I have yet to figure out what that means in Guinea terms! Do I start the day that we put them in the incubator? Do we count the days that Mama sat on them? And even then, we don't know for sure how long that was so that won't be accurate either. Pardon the pun, but it looks like we'll be winging it. IF YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE, PLEASE GIVE IT!! I have been researching and know some signs to look and listen for when the time gets closer, but I can use all the help I can get. If we go by the date we put them in the incubator, they are due May 24th. I have been hanging out on the Backyard Chickens message boards trying to glean all the info I can!

We do have some happy delivery news...Kitty meow had her babies! Three little cuties...here they are 9 days old. Photos courtesy of my 6 year old...

They have just started opening their eyes! :) And the momma has become a whole new cat...she's nice and lovey now! And has no problem at all with us messing with her littles. And believe me...my youngest wallers and hugs and kisses and loves on them constantly! :)

So that is that for now. I'll keep you updated on the Guinea eggs and please, if you have advice, let me know!! :)