Well the Rheas are growing - very quickly!  They are probably twice the size of what they were and have learnt to run around like fools, excercising their legs.

I’m still feeding them, what appears to be all the time, lol (3 times a day) and, it’s official, Rheas love green food.  I go to chat with them and the little “meowing” noise changes to a cheeping noise and the run around as if they have been fed something a bit dodgy!  :)  I have started to sing to them also - I’m not sure if Trevor is likely to carry on this little tradition I’ve started though, lol

Now you can imagine when you feed an animal boiled egg, cabbage, broccoli, amongst other things (chick crumb etc) that they are able to produce some amazing smells!  But all the same they are thriving and that’s the important thing ( I have told myself this numerous times whilst cleaning them out, trust me). 

Remember we still have a couple of RCOM incubators left on special offer from hatching these little beauties so check the Ex-Display/Used Incubators section of the site for a bargain.

Well it’s time for another feed so off now to watch their little dance show…

As Trevor has been busy incubating different breeds, we have now got our hands full with all different types of birds!

The newest chicks are the Rheas.  They are truly fascinating little things.  I’m saying little just for now as very soon they will tower over me (I am on the short side ). Once they have grown up then I’m sure that they will assist the Llamas in deterring Mr Fox also.

I have been takinga few photographs (like a proud mother) but the rather inquisitive chicks were fascinated with the camera and as soon as they saw it they ran over to me and pecked the camera constantly, thinking I was about to give them some more food :)  In the upcoming weeks I will make sure that I download some photos to the Blog and keep you posted on their progress.

Trevor used the RCOM 20 Pro incubators and RCOM 50 Pro incubators to hatch the eggs and I would advise to keep looking on the ex-demo/ex-display section as we may have a couple of incubators on special offer very soon (I have to clear this with Trevor first mind you, lol).

Apologies for not writing about my new chicks sooner, however the incubating season is in full swing and we have been really busy (not that we are complaining )

Well the chicks are now a couple of weeks old and are growing so quickly.  They are still under a brooder hen and seem to like sitting on it and basking in the sun (it is a bonus that we have had such lovely weather the past week or so).  The brooder hens are such a brilliant idea as they just provide the warmth needed and as they don’t emit any light then the chicks get a good night sleep also (I’m starting to sound like a proud mother, I know!).  They are also so economical in comparison to the 250w light bulbs.

On day 22 of the incubation I did have one chick which had pipped however had not hatched so I took the plunge and carefully helped him or her out of their shell.  They remained curled up for a few minutes and I couldn’t help but watch to see it they would pull through.  I sat in my bedroom with the chick for quite some time (my fiance even noticed my absence so it must have been a while).  Then the chick stretched out and stood up.  I am glad to report that my little one is doing well and even though I shouldn’t have favourites… I do

Hello peeps

Over the past few days we can tell that you are all thinking about the new hatching season as our hatching eggs are taking off! Luckily our chickens are really starting to knuckle down to business if you know what I mean.  I’m no David Attenborough however I can now distinguish the noises made during such liaisons

If you are looking to put some Fertile Eggs into your incubator its an idea to get your brooders/lamps chick feeders and drinkers and chick crumb in place so when your little ones arrive you have a set up in place.  We have recently got some Brooder Rings into stock and they are proving to be a popular choice. 

Another thing people are thinking about is (the dreaded) Red Mites.  It’s nice to see that people are stocking up and I have my fingers crossed that the national Red Mite infestation of last year stays as last years news.  If you are thinking about stocking up the Red Mite Fumers have a shelf life of 3 years and the red mite powder is a great deterrent.

Trevor rightly blogged about “taking time to smell the Roses” and as the nights are starting to draw out we all have more time in the evenings to go into the garden, with a cuppa in my case, and just relax - unless you have a Whippet like mine who will just run around like a fool as if it was the first time he had ever seen daylight that is.

Well I’m off to enjoy the weekend and I hope that when you read this that is exactly what you are doing too

Take care

As the weather is getting warmer our cockeralls are getting more and more amerous and our hens are also stepping upto the challenge - as a result we have some little day old chicks

We decided that we would try and incubate the first few eggs of the season and the result is a lot of cheeping in a RCOM Bird Pavilion brooder in the office.  I recall coming into work on Tuesday thinking that it was the last day for the eggs in the incubator (being day 21) and we already had a fluffy little chick sitting in the incubator looking a little startled at the sudden change in their world.

It’s very hard not to fall for the little fluffy bundles as they cheep away and interact with you as if you were their mother (don’t worry Trevor I’m not getting broody! lol).

We are now happy to say that we have Fertile Hatching eggs back for sale on the website.  As like before, we ask for people to have a little patience when it comes to eggs as we quote that the orders can take from 1 to 21 days to fulfill.  This way, we ensure that we do not hold a back stock of eggs with us being able to fulfill orders with the freshest eggs possible.  As always we pride ourselves on our speedy delivery and excellent service so we will do our utmost to get egg orders out as soon as we can.

Our little ladies are doing us proud and whilst on lunch I walked past one of our hens and saw a tell tale dusty patch on her back so it’s only fair to give a cheeky wink to our busy cockeralls also

Firstly hello to everyone

Being my first blog (hopefully first of many) I would like to say that before I joined P&T I was not the most experienced of people at all when it came to chicken keeping!  I recall many a day in my childhood on my grandparents farm, collecting eggs in the morning, knowing that I would enjoy them for breakfast that day, but that was probably as far as my knowledge went.

Since joining I have learnt so much and I hope that as this knowledge will expand and I will be able to pass it on and assist others with little “tricks of the trade” so to speak.

As Trevor mentioned we have lots and lots of little chicks who have been successfully hatched from one of our new incubators, and reared in the last few weeks.   I have been eagerly watching them and can say, without doubt that they have blossomed under the brooder hen, and enjoyed every mouthful of the chick crumb!  I never knew they could eat so much.

The next stage has started and we have erected a Seabright chicken house and run today, which looks really good.  There is plenty of space in the run (something I would imagine people would worry about) and as the house is raised the chicks will even have more room to run around in.

As new products, special offers and helpful tips come to my attention, I will be the first to pass this information on, however please feel free to email any questions, and if I don’t know the answer, I’ll just ask Trevor!!!!!

Hello Amanda, Thankyou for your question. To be honest we have tried everything and without a doubt we recommend an horse bedding called Easibed for chick rearing and for chicken houses. It is highly asorbant and the birds enjoy turning it over. Dust extracted shavings would be second best but start very thin and build up thickness over time. I really recommend AGAINST using shredded paper and cardboard as this is often eaten and fatalities are very high. I hope this has helped with your question. Kind regards P&T Poultry

A very common question, especially on hatching day

When your eggs pip in the incubator you should have your brooding / rearing area ready. In a brooding area you will need a brooder lamp, chick feeder and drinker.

When your eggs hatch in your incubator I advise leaving them in there for about 24 hours with no food or water. After 24 hours move the chicks to your brooding area with your chick drinker filled with water and your chick feeder filled with chick crumb. You can sprinkle a small amount of chick crumb on the floor but 99% of the time the chicks have a good instinct and they will find it.

The height for the brooder lamp really depends on your situation but a simple rough rule is if the chicks are all huddling very very close and on top of each other the brooder lamp is too far away from them and they are cold, however if the chicks are forming a circle or are staying away from the brooder lamp it is too low and they are too hot. Ideally they should be under the brooder lamp wandering around happily with a little space between them. If feeding and drinking and just milling around unstressed you got it right, dont forget though as they grow the brooder lamp will need to be raised.