Single hen

[Janepie33]

For 7 one to three day old chicks!

 

The school where I work as a nursery nurse has hatched out chicks for the 2nd year running - last year I kept 2 and they are now fully established members of my flock of 5 and laying most days. Because they were handled from day 1, they are very very friendly and docile.

 

This year only 7 out of 10 eggs hatched - 3 girls and 4 boys - and I have been staring at them all evening. Earlier I had 8 teenagers in the house, also transfixed!

My daughter is trying to persuade me to keep some again this year, but one of the caretakers has a coop on his allotment and he wants to keep the girls.

 

The company that provided the eggs will take back any unwanted chicks and have assured us that they will all go off to free range in a lovely field, but in the case of the boys, I'm not so sure - or am I being very cynical?! The company is called 'Living Eggs' . Has anyone heard of them.

 

Must pop off now to see if the chicks are asleep in a pile or leaping about in a burst of activity. I'll see if I can post some photos if anyone is interested.

[Olly]

Awww, how cute!

 

Don't have any personal experience of this, but a friend teaches at a primary school, and before they did this last year she rang the company and was told the same as you, that make chicks would not be destroyed. It sounded a bit too good to be true, but she followed this up by actually phoning the farm, I believe, and eventually satisfied herself that it was for real.

[BeckyBoo]

I'm really sorry but I think these things are all wrong. If schools are going to hatch out chicks then they should have an answer for all the results. They should be prepared to keep the girls AND the boys or they should dispatch them themselves, because I'm DARNED sure that that is what will happen to the boys when they are returned to the company. I know chicks are cute and kids love them, I've done two hatches myself and I stand there going "aaahhhh" for hours too, but they only stay like that for about a week, then they start growing. Fast.

Just as well you were prepared to take some last year and just as well the caretaker is taking some this year. But I really think it's totally irresponsible of the school to keep on hatching just for the "aaahhhh" factor then hand the results back as they can't be bothered to keep them. Someone should point out to the head that the boys will be killed and if they can't find a home for the girls there is no guarantee as to what will happen to them either. They won't go off to t Teletubbie like hill in the sunshine and live happily ever after, these companies are there to make money, not look after non-profit making cocks and hens.

 

Sorry, but it's that time of year again and there's been so many discussions on here about hatching chicks and employing prudence before succombing to the "cute" factor. Personally I think these companies are awful, you wouldn't borrow half a dozen puppies then give them back to be slaughtered when they stopped looking cute?

 

 

Off my soap box now. Glad the girls at least have got homes and enjoy going "awwwww" - what with them and the forum you'll get nothing done at all!!

 

BeckyBoo

[Olly]

I agree, Becky, if that were what is happening - but both Janepie and my friend are aware of the usual fate of chickens, and have asked the question, and got the answer that the chicks WON'T be destroyed.

 

It is of course entirely possible that the organisation concerned are lying, but that's quite a big assumption! My friend definitely took it a step further, I can't remember the details now but I'm sure she phoned somewhere down the line to find out. I know it sounds too good to be true, but in my view an organisation that works with many schools like this would be unlikely to risk its credibility by giving a false response to that question.

 

Who knows - maybe someone on here can come up with more information.

[BeckyBoo]

I hope you're right Olly, I'd be very interested to hear what the answer is to all the unwanted cockerels as it's one of the main things that stops people hatching, what to do with the boys. In both my last hatches I had more than 50% boys, I know what I do with them but in the commercial world they are of no use. And I don't think you could keep hundreds of cockerels together or surely they would fight?

 

Will check this thread out for any answers...

 

 

BeckyBoo

[Janepie33]

Well the chicks have gone to their new home. The caretaker took them all in the end and he said that when the boys are too big, he will give them to a local farm as he is unable to kill and eat them himself.

 

I checked again with the lady who provided the eggs and she assured me that the unwanted chicks go to a local children's farm. I know the farm quite well as we bought 2 ten week old girls from them a couple of years ago, but I also know that they keep the girls for eggs and the boys for meat - which I don't have a problem with.

I also checked with another person from the same company in a different area and he said that the chicks go to local farms, allotments and smallholdings.

 

Not QUITE the same as puppies Beckyboo. Puppies don't form a part of my reguluar diet!

I do agree with you though, some of the companies are very iresponsible. A local nursery refused to have eggs from a certain company as they had refused to take back any hatchlings.