Belgian Malines (Mechels)

[bayocum]

Hi Shellz,

Thanks, and yes, they are about 4.5 weeks old. Funny you said that about the cockerel…did you notice the little orange band on his leg? It's hard to tell in these pictures, but that exact chick is the only one of the 14 that I've tagged so far. I felt as you did; he looks promising

. On another note, have you had much luck sexing them as chicks? I've read that roos will "sometimes" have the white dots on their bum as well as their head, but it seems that the most accurate measure is coloration, given that the roos have the "double-cuckoo" gene and therefore more white than the pullets. What has your experience been?
Best,
Brice @ SF

 

[Shellz]

I have 4 chicks here in my grow-out coop - all roos I think. 6 weeks old. Biggest 2 were 2 lbs. at 5 weeks old.

 

[bayocum]

I have 4 chicks here in my grow-out coop - all roos I think. 6 weeks old. Biggest 2 were 2 lbs. at 5 weeks old.

Wow…I haven't weighed them yet, but I doubt they are that big. That said, they feel very solid. They look really great!

 

[Shellz]

Wow…I haven't weighed them yet, but I doubt they are that big.  That said, they feel very solid.  They look really great!

Yep, they generally feel nice & solid. Not like most birds I've dealt with in the past. If these are your first Malines, you are going to LOVE them! I recently separated a roo & 2 hens (for about a month) until the roo went to his new home. When I released the 2 hens back into the flock, there was very little chaos. They're more lovers than fighters.

 

[threesons]

I just received two chicks from GFF rare breed special! I'm very excited to see them grow.

 

[Shellz]

I just received two chicks from GFF rare breed special!  I'm very excited to see them grow.

Nice! Please keep us posted.
Just weighed one of my 10 week olds. 4 lbs 10 oz.

 

[Shellz]

My new bloodline is a week old now. Here's a roo & a pullet.

 

[Shellz]

Hi Shellz,

     Thanks, and yes, they are about 4.5 weeks old.  Funny you said that about the cockerel…did you notice the little orange band on his leg?  It's hard to tell in these pictures, but that exact chick is the only one of the 14 that I've tagged so far.  I felt as you did; he looks promising  .  On another note, have you had much luck sexing them as chicks?  I've read that roos will "sometimes" have the white dots on their bum as well as their head, but it seems that the most accurate measure is coloration, given that the roos have the "double-cuckoo" gene and therefore more white than the pullets.  What has your experience been?
Best,
Brice @ SF

Hi Brice. Sorry I missed this post. Yes, I've had trouble sexing my chicks until they were about 4 weeks old or so. Once feathered in, you can't mistake the lighter colored feathering of the cockerels & the darker feathering of the pullets. My hope is the new line may help in this regard. When I attempted to sex my original chicks as day olds, I went by the light gray down on the backs of cockerels. Pullets though, seemed dark in comparison, but some would end up fading to gray & becoming cockerels. I'm hoping I've got it right with my new line chicks. Looks like I have 2 cockerels & 6 pullets. There appears to be greater contrast between them.

 

[cutipatooti]

I just got a rare chick special from GFF. I'm expecting 3 malines. I have multiple other meat breeds, not sure if I will keep these. I hear they are pretty docile, that's good as I have young children. It will be interesting growing them out.

 

[Ali_Howard]

You still have some, Bart? We have only a few hens and would love to eventually do chick or egg exchanges to keep our flock healthy. We have four roosters. Two colours.


QUOTE="Bart Nagel, post: 10537075, member: 50021"]
Please PM me. I have them here in Canada.
[/QUOTE]