Arizona Chickens - Page 2649

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sonoran Silkies 

I had someone message this link to an article.  In particular, I found the de-crowing information interesting, and started wondering if perhaps the simplest/least expensive/safest de-crowing method might be to give female hormones?  I guess the questions are how safe is it really, and the extent to which it would affect fertility of the rooster.

 

http://www2.ca.uky.edu/afspoultry-files/pubs/Anatomy_Respiratory.pdf

 

That was a good review of the avian respiratory tract.  A very interesting question about female hormones being used for chemical de-crowing.   Seems that it was done early on with an aim to fatten up chickens faster.   Depending on what hormone, dosage and age administered, estrogens can certainly disrupt male behavior.  The problem seems to be disruption of testes development/atrophy along with the crowing behavior.   A more modern study showed that exposing males to estradiol while incubating reduced the crowing behavior in adults without disrupting gonad size.  Treated and untreated adult males also had similar circulating testosterone levels.   Interestingly, in the same study, they showed that treatment of females (while incubating) with aromatase inhibitor (aromatase is the hormone that converts androgen to estrogen) causes them to crow in adulthood.  I guess the trick is to identify males while they are still in the egg.  Otherwise, it seems to be a relatively simple thing to do.  I'd like to read the whole study.
 

The seed box is an AZ BYC exclusive.  

It is passed around to those of us (NOT Mikey) who have green thumbs and seeds are added and removed as you see fit.

Sounds like a bunch of fun for those people that can plant something and have it live more than a week.  

Hmmm, so basically something more or less equivalent to amniocentesis for chicken eggs to determine gender, then treat the males.  I was actually wondering if hormones would reduce crowing if given to adult males rather than males who are still developing.

I did win the Short Story Contest! Thanks to all of you!

Bootsie, Thank you I will try again with some Ameraucana eggs but a smaller amount. I want to try again before I get those Serima eggs. I am so afraid I will loose them! What happened to my hatch! I hatched Aurorarose eggs just fine with little loss. The only thing I did differantly with Aurorarose eggs is that is candled them at 14 days and that is what it look like they developed to until they died, or a day or so after. Aurorarose eggs I didn't candle until lockdown. Both eggs batches I hand turned. Any one have an idea what happened? 

My bator is a LG still air. As I said my first hatch was wonderful in it!Oh one more thing I remembered. The Easter Egg batch was a lot larger than the first batch I hatch. Could I have had to many eggs in that kind of bator?

Anyone heard from Meg lately?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikey D 

The seed box is an AZ BYC exclusive.  

 

It is passed around to those of us (NOT Mikey) who have green thumbs and seeds are added and removed as you see fit.

 

Sounds like a bunch of fun for those people that can plant something and have it live more than a week.  

 

Cool.  Next time the box makes its way to Tucson I've got some seeds to contribute. 

Hey, Mikey, you know you can combine welding and gardening.  The trick is to weld a bunch of really cool trellises and plant stuff under them.  Then when the plants die you still have a nifty garden of yard art. 

I'll try to post some more picts this weekend..

.