sex ratio

[Minorcafan]

So far this year I have one pullet and 14 cockerels :roll:

 

[dinosaw]

Not sure what I've got this year yet, but I've never had it quite that bad with previous hatches. Will you grow them on to eat?

 

[RichmondHens]

That's pretty rotten luck MF.
I have 15 pullets 14 cockerels so far - pretty much par for the course!

 

[Minorcafan]

Filled the incy again. Better luck next time. Will grow the rest on

 

[Marigold]

I hope you've got a big freezer!

 

[chrismahon]

We have a breeder here who also gets an abnormally high ratio of cockerels to pullets. Seems it may be down to the humidity level being too high in the first 18 days. The result is a small air sack which gives insufficient room for hatching and only the stronger males succeed. I would advise either running the incubator dry and checking air sack development, or checking the humidity reading in an automatic unit to make sure it is really 40%. This particular breeder is using a Brinsea cabinet unit which has a hatching tray at the bottom- problem with that is the humidity in the unit is the same for both incubation and hatching. By experiment 56% humidity has got the best results but really it would be best to hatch in a separate unit at 75% and incubate at 40% in the cabinet I think.

Worst cockerel to pullet ratio we ever got was 9:1, but that was then followed with a 2:12 and over the full hatch we ended up with 24:22. The ratio I've seen quoted many times is 50-55% cockerels.

 

[valeriebutterley]

I had 6 6 with my Croads this year, also I'm replacing (or trying to) my last years lost Pekins and the ratio seems about the same roughly 50/50.

With my lone survivor Gloria (bPR) it was just glorious Gloria!! - she really is an absolute sweetie, hope her little cage comes today, even if it is just for the company of some rather raucous Pekins!!