Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[Lacy Blues]

Methods of Kill

Weasels are known to be very cunning. Their cleverness and guile makes them first class predators, and their prey is often no match to their agility. Chickens with the back of their necks and heads missing, with its intestines out and bitten at the rear are most likely victims of this wily animal. What’s interesting is that weasels kill not only for food, but also for sport. In fact, they are known to keep killing until there is nothing left to kill. Due to its slender body, these animals can easily wiggle through chicken wires, small runways, and narrow holes—making them the bane of poultry owners.

In looking at mouse trap designs and stuff last night, I came across this.

Nanakat, if you have weasels, perhaps this can help.

 

[Lacy Blues]

Scott, thanks for that info.

I don't leave any food or water in the coops overnight except for what MIGHT get spilled. But in this particular pen, they are fed and watered outside so I am 100% positive that there are no food tidbits inside. I go through the aggravation every single evening of collecting uneaten food and I also empty the waterers.

Its a pain in the backside to have to deal with this in all weather situations but I simply refuse to knowingly feed vermin! Guess I'll be doing something more drastic!

The mouse wars are on!

 

[Robert Blosl]

Quote: Big problem is lots of books and videos on how to raise back yard chickens and feed store chickens. Nothing on raising Standard Breed fowl like they are growing on trees. First step get two pair of good breeders. Get some good 15 to 20% animal protein feed. Get you a timer and a over head light from Wall Mart and a good incubator No need to get pretty books, fancy stuff you got to start hatching and learning how to rear your chicks which you should be able to do well from the experience you have learned from feed store chicks. Then next June we start to learn to cull that's when we need to learn what we want to keep for next year. Very simple we are selecting for type only not color. Be patient its in my head just got to get in on paper.

 

[Apdeb]

Good feed brands types???? Good incubator brands/types??? This is not guesswork to you.
For us greenhorns specifics matter

 

[NanaKat]

​

Great advice! 

Do you have the judge's test pictures for Wyandotte in your arsenal of information?
I have my SOP and make black and white pictures for comparison for type.  I like the filled in silhouette too.

Had a night time visitor to the keeper pen last night.  Took the head and neck off one of my saved Blue Columbian Wyandotte project cockerels.  Fortunately it left my good Columbian Wyandotte pullets alone.  Can't think of anything other than a skunk that would leave the carcass, but didn't know a skunk would climb over a 4 foot 2x4 inch wire fence.  Going to set a trap tonight.

 
Methods of Kill

Weasels are known to be very cunning. Their cleverness and guile makes them first class predators, and their prey is often no match to their agility. Chickens with the back of their necks and heads missing, with its intestines out and bitten at the rear are most likely victims of this wily animal. What’s interesting is that weasels kill not only for food, but also for sport. In fact, they are known to keep killing until there is nothing left to kill. Due to its slender body, these animals can easily wiggle through chicken wires, small runways, and narrow holes—making them the bane of poultry owners.

In looking at mouse trap designs and stuff last night, I came across this.

Nanakat, if you have weasels, perhaps this can help.

We don't have weasels in my neck of the country...but great video. I'm setting a live animal trap with catfood tonight for a skunk .... Have a gun and a plastic sheet for transporting the cage. Will shoot it once away from the house and will dispose of it by burying. This is war!

 

[bnjrob]

Good feed brands types???? Good incubator brands/types??? This is not guesswork to you.
For us greenhorns specifics matter

Feed kinda depends on what you can get locally. Much of what some of the others here use isn't available to me. I use Tractor Supply brand game chick feed and Purina Flockraiser for the older birds, since it has more protein than the reg chicken feed available here. And my chickens wont eat pellets so I have to get crumbles. Where I'm at, the choices seem to be the vegetarian chicken feed to satisfy the "trendy" chicken keepers or lowest cost feed w/low protein. I get what works for me.

My favorite incubator is a Brinsea, but I've got a Hovabator Genesis that works. Incubating at first seems intimidating, but after a while it isn't so intimidating and you can throw eggs in and not worry so much about everything about the incubator being perfect - cuz broody hens hatching eggs don't worry about all the stuff we tend to mess with when incubating.

 

[Robert Blosl]

Good feed brands types???? Good incubator brands/types??? This is not guesswork to you.
For us greenhorns specifics matter

We have discussed this in earlier posts. So to save time for you here goes. It depends on your region on feed. To get a good protein feed you got to shop around in the South I like FRM feed. If I could not get that in say Iowa or Indiana for sure then look for a good animal type protein on the bag . If you want to give your birds vegetarian soy bean feed for personnel reasons go right ahead I could care less. Its nice I think for some folks enjoy doing this and the results will be in the finish and that will not be as good as animal protein .

What some of my friends have done is gone to the Game Bird Layer then you know you are getting the top grains and animal protein as you cant put a good finish on a Pheasants or Quail with cheap feed or low vegetarian protein . Cost more but we are not raising a lot of chickens are we.

For incubator I just get the check book out and get a Georgia Quail Company Genesis and get it over with. It is almost good as a Rolex which cost about $650. Its about $175. Most people buy the cheapest incubator than can buy at the feed store. Has not to good humidity and goes up and down on temps and then the hatches are not so hot. If you have one and you are a success with it then disregard my comments. I take these incubators apart and use the parts in a home made wooden incubator hatcher with a good forced fan on the top and great success as a hatcher. Many are not gifted to use a saw and glue and make such a box. So that's why I say go out and get a good one. If you find a good incubator for sale used and can get it for half price that's a good investment because you should be able to get the same price used if you want to ever sell it some day. Hope this helps you. Now I am taking three days off from this thread. So kick the can down the road. Help the beginners out you guys. bob

 

[thedragonlady]

We have discussed this in earlier posts. So to save time for you here goes. It depends on your region on feed. To get a good protein feed you got to shop around in the South I like FRM feed. If I could not get that in say Iowa or Indiana for sure then look for a good animal type protein on the bag . If you want to give your birds vegetarian soy bean feed for personnel reasons go right ahead I could care less. Its nice I think for some folks enjoy doing this and the results will be in the finish and that will not be as good as animal protein .

What some of my friends have done is gone to the Game Bird Layer then you know you are getting the top grains and animal protein as you cant put a good finish on a Pheasants or Quail with cheap feed or low vegetarian protein . Cost more but we are not raising a lot of chickens are we.

For incubator I just get the check book out and get a Georgia Quail Company Genesis and get it over with. It is almost good as a Rolex which cost about $650. Its about $175. Most people buy the cheapest incubator than can buy at the feed store. Has not to good humidity and goes up and down on temps and then the hatches are not so hot. If you have one and you are a success with it then disregard my comments. I take these incubators apart and use the parts in a home made wooden incubator hatcher with a good forced fan on the top and great success as a hatcher. Many are not gifted to use a saw and glue and make such a box. So that's why I say go out and get a good one. If you find a good incubator for sale used and can get it for half price that's a good investment because you should be able to get the same price used if you want to ever sell it some day. Hope this helps you. Now I am taking three days off from this thread. So kick the can down the road. Help the beginners out you guys. bob

Bob, I love the fact that you are distilling such a "complicated science" down to it's essence.KISS.It ain't hard if you obey a few rules. New people are put off by all the mumbo- jumbo of lockdowns, etc. that they read.Chuck good eggs in a decent incubator, and you will get chicks. Then the "garbage in , garbage out" principal applies.

 

[Texasmja]

Good incubator brands/types??? This is not guesswork to you.
For us greenhorns specifics matter

I have been extremely happy with my Binsea incubators. My personal opinion is my eggs are valuable to my breeding program so I am not going to waste my time or eggs using incubators that need constant adjusting and attention. To me, it is just as important to invest in a good quality incubator as it is to invest in quality stock. This is just my opinion.

 

[cbnovick]

We have discussed this in earlier posts. So to save time for you here goes. It depends on your region on feed. To get a good protein feed you got to shop around in the South I like FRM feed. If I could not get that in say Iowa or Indiana for sure then look for a good animal type protein on the bag . If you want to give your birds vegetarian soy bean feed for personnel reasons go right ahead I could care less. Its nice I think for some folks enjoy doing this and the results will be in the finish and that will not be as good as animal protein .

What some of my friends have done is gone to the Game Bird Layer then you know you are getting the top grains and animal protein as you cant put a good finish on a Pheasants or Quail with cheap feed or low vegetarian protein . Cost more but we are not raising a lot of chickens are we.

For incubator I just get the check book out and get a Georgia Quail Company Genesis and get it over with. It is almost good as a Rolex which cost about $650. Its about $175. Most people buy the cheapest incubator than can buy at the feed store. Has not to good humidity and goes up and down on temps and then the hatches are not so hot. If you have one and you are a success with it then disregard my comments. I take these incubators apart and use the parts in a home made wooden incubator hatcher with a good forced fan on the top and great success as a hatcher. Many are not gifted to use a saw and glue and make such a box. So that's why I say go out and get a good one. If you find a good incubator for sale used and can get it for half price that's a good investment because you should be able to get the same price used if you want to ever sell it some day. Hope this helps you. Now I am taking three days off from this thread. So kick the can down the road. Help the beginners out you guys. bob

GQF genesis is a good incubator...and good hatcher...1 for each purpose is ideal to start IMO. Feed quality...what to feed...boy, that's a veritable Pandora's Box. IMO,No matter what one feeds, it will be essential that the birds either get animal protein whether through feed, grazing (free ranging) or supplementing with plenty of mealworms. Chickens are natural omnivores not vegetarians. The overall finish and vigor of the bird will tell the tale ultimately....animal protein one way or the other is ideal.