LETHBRIDGE, ALTA. -- What started as a fun and educational side business may soon be going national.

“Our plan is to go right across Canada with this,” said Dean Torgerson, one of the founders of Nanny McCluckins, a company that rents out eggs and equipment so families can hatch chicks at home.

Torgerson, from Calgary, hatched the idea for the business along with his wife Kathy and their partner Marilyn Hnatuk.

“We wanted to bring something families could do together. Something that was educational but also a lot of fun,” said Kathy. In less than two years the business has expanded across much of Alberta, and has brought the hatching experience to Vancouver and the Okanagan in British Columbia.

They are actively working on finding agents in eastern Canada, and plan to launch in Toronto within a couple of months.

“When we saw this opportunity we thought it would be super fun,” said Gemma Salt, who has become a repeat customer.

Salt has three young children, and decided to try the hatching experience a few months after the pandemic started, while they were waiting for school to resume.

“We were stuck at home, so it was a good experience that was going to take a month and something to look forward too.”

The hatching experiences are based on a four week rental that includes fertilized eggs, a small incubator, a housing bin, food, a heater and shavings.

Hatchers are also provided with instructions on how to successfully hatch and care for the chicks.