Farming and Homesteading Heritage Poultry

[punky rooster]

Quote:
Ditto.

Everyones needs are different I think we can all agree on that one. For me it is not so much about selling as it is about living. Sure it is nice to sell eggs( now alot harder to do since new law past) but chickens ranging help us more than that now. The eat bugs and grubs and fretilze that land. They are natural composters.

Now if I want a chicken that is too be looking like the breed I bought down the road then I have to bred to that ideal. Otherwise I will loose that look real fast. So here the SOP helps me to select those that will keep the body and style and look of the breed I bought. Since chickens loose size if breeding is not kept up I see no conflict here with breeding with SOP. No one said I had to show to breed my chickens for me or to even perserve a breed. But if I want that good size egg and carcase I better start breeding up to it and keep doing that or else I will loose it. This is where the SOP helps alot. For it is just not body size but other things that help you pick the birds to get there.

For those that have never seen or read the SOP you really need to get one. It is way more than just about breed history and body type. If you have no background in breeding animals to a purpose ie work, show, production then you need the SOP for sure. For those of you that have more than one breed it is a must for sure to own one. Those that argue about not having it and that they do not need it, will not be staying in chickens long. Reason after a few breedings their way they will not be happy and drop the whole thing. Chickens loose size fast one breeding they can go either up in size or down. If you just let the flock breed without gudiance then you will see a degrease in size and body type. If you do not know what to pick in a chicken to increase size then you will loose size. Just picking the largest will not keep you size up. I might get you taller but not wider. Which is what you want for a good meat carcase. One needs to read about how their breed was made and how it should look and what pairings work to make that happen. This is all in the SOP.

Agreed. There are certain characteristics a breed is known for that you cannot see that needs to be retained as well. For examples New hampshires are noted for being quick to feather out and fast maturing. Mine are and I hope to retain it. I am not implying pushing for extremes, but be faithful to the intent of the original breeders. What would a Dorking be if the hens did not go broody and were not good mothers?

X3 Exactly!

 

[ChestnutRidge]

I've read through this thread, and I appreciate all of the helpful links, breeding programs, and discussion of breed traits. I am researching and planning to own my first few chickens. My husband and I have a 1-3 year plan to move to a larger homestead on family land and live mostly off of our land. I've been training myself in other areas for the past five years or so, and now I endeavor to educate myself about poultry. I aim to raise 4-8 chickens this year and do as much of it myself as possible to learn as much as I can. Then, next spring or possibly the spring after, we will move to our larger homestead where I intend to have a flock of 25-50 birds, depending on what I find to be sustainable. I plan to free range the flock during the day and grow as much of their feed as possible.

I would like a dual-purpose breed that breeds true, lays consistently for several years, weighs at least 5 pounds, forages well, broods their chicks, is friendly and calm, and copes well with predators, being both aware of their surroundings and well-camouflaged. “Heritage” breeds are thus the best practical choice. I have identified several breeds that seem to fit this criteria by reading, but I would appreciate the counsel of those with experience. I am leaning towards Speckled Sussex. Has anyone had experience with these birds in a homesteading context? (I am hoping they won't get the frostbitten combs mentioned earlier on the thread.

) Are there any other breeds you would recommend?

I appreciate your help and advice.
Thank you!

 

[NotAFarm]

Quote:

and to the Farming and Homesteading Heritage Poultry thread. Can't comment on the Speckled Sussex but I'm sure someone will be along shortly that has experience with them.

 

[ericsplls]

I just found this thread and will have to read the last half of it tomorrow. I also am interested in finding a breed that fits me and produces eggs and meat well. While I agree in trying to raise a bird that can free range on it's own is a good measure of hardiness I feel you should also keep a pen of birds with feed in front of them. The reason is variations in rainfall and temperature each year could throw off your numbers on growth. With an animal that matures fast environment can have a large impact on production

 

[WallTenters]

both of you!

I always recommend Dominiques to anyone looking for a good dual purpose heritage bird that can FORAGE. When our Doms were allowed free range every day (now they alternate days with other flocks) they foraged for most of their food on their own and kept really good weight, while laying all through winter.

They are very hardy, and we have not yet lost a single bird to predators, even with all the hawks that were living right at the perimeter of our pasture. The hens are moderately broody and any good flock of Dominiques will reproduce at a steady rate to keep it's numbers up. Their rose comb and feathering makes them very cold hardy, and they are known for being a good winter laying breed.

We chose them for these features, and now we have genuinely fallen in love with this breed. They are wonderful to watch, have bright, interesting personalities, and are simply beautiful in person.

The roosters we've had have all been good flock protectors, especially towards newly introduced chicks, and besides a few cases of teenage confusion we haven't had any kind of aggression. They also exist well together as a true flock - with a top rooster and several others in there as well. We have only had one bad fight with our roo's so far and that was a dominance establishment. That's just one more thing I like about this breed - I can keep birds of all ages and genders in the same coop when I need to.

I highly recommend quality Dominiques to anyone looking for a real heritage breed - in every sense of the word.

 

[cybercat]

Quote:
Actually this is not correct. Any good chicken owner will free range and have feed out when needed. Chickens in a pen are very high maintance and much more prone to disease and bugs/pest like mite and lice. Free range tend to lay more consistant due to a better diet. They grow to their max size better too. This is a known fact with many breeders. The thing is chicken feed just is not all it is cracked up to be in the full nutrition area. Chickens are omnivores therefor need meat in their diet to do real well. Most feed do not have it for cost reasons and general public ignorance. If one is feeding a all veggi diet their chickens will not be growing or producing as well as they good be.

 

[ChestnutRidge]

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Thanks for the recommendation. I had read a bit about Dominiques, and they do fit the bill. I’ll put them on the short list for consideration.

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I agree. Remembering that I am a beginner and only know what I have read, I plan to free range and provide store-bought feed. Over time, I would like to replace more and more of that feed with things I can produce myself, to protect against economic difficulties and for my own sense of self-sufficiency. I'm thinking of growing sunflowers, amaranth, pumpkins, sweet potatoes, and perhaps raise earthworms or mealworms (although the latter makes my skin crawl.

) There are some great articles on this by Harvey Ussery over at the Modern Homestead.
(http://www.themodernhomestead.us/article/Feeding.html)

Is anyone else looking into growing their own feed? Any experiences to share?

Thanks!

 

[KenK]

Since you mentioned sweet potatoes maybe you are in the south? To read some of the posts here you would think corn was barely better than rat poison but folks here in the deep south would have starved without it to feed their chickens, hogs, mules and themselves.

 

[capayvalleychick]

Quote:
Actually this is not correct. Any good chicken owner will free range and have feed out when needed. Free range tend to lay more consistent due to a better diet. They grow to their max size better too. This is a known fact with many breeders. The thing is chicken feed just is not all it is cracked up to be in the full nutrition area. Chickens are omnivores therefor need meat in their diet to do real well. Most feed do not have it for cost reasons and general public ignorance. If one is feeding a all veggi diet their chickens will not be growing or producing as well as they good be.

I just found this thread and have not read back through the early posts, so I apologize if this has been discussed, but the feed issue drives me crazy. I agonize over feeding my flock!

I have tried so many different things to feed, my poor flock never gets the same thing for long. I have tried regular layer feed, Layena, Flock Raiser, a custom mix from the feed store with whole grains & Calf Manna, buying whole grains & sprouting them, raising mealworms, Organic layer feed, game bird feed and am now feeding Purina non medicated Turkey Starter crumbles. Friends of mine are suggesting the fly larvae, bucket method, but that grosses me out.
My chickens always free range during the day out on grass pasture with some clover, but I would never depend on that as their sole source of feed. I can't put flax, etc. in the pasture because it's shared by horses and other stock. The chickens still eat a huge amount of additional feed. For the past few months, they have been chowing down on olives from our grove, judging from the pits covering the mobile coop floor.
I'm not certified organic but I try to be as close to organic as possible. I was shelling out big bucks to feed the Modesto Milling layer ration, until I read the ALBC recommendations for protein level of feed for heritage chickens. That layer ration and most commercial rations do not have enough protein, plus the first ingredient is corn. Flock Raiser also has corn as the primary ingredient. I'm trying to feed less corn because my birds got fat when I was feeding them whole grains, which affected their laying. I had a necropsy done, during the whole grain feeding period, and there were signs of fatty liver syndrome. What I thought was a more natural & healthy diet was about to kill my birds. Sprouting grains was too labor intensive and difficult in the heat of summer. I'm still raising mealworms, but they can scarf down hundreds of mealworms in seconds and I can't raise enough, plus they go dormant in winter. There were some mice getting into the mealworm bins, which I was throwing to the chickens. They scarf down mice, so I was wondering if mice could be a protein source for chickens?
I am leary of meat in commercial feed, but don't mind feeding meat from a known source. I'm considering butchering an old cow, to provide hamburger for my chickens & pigs, but I wouldn't know how to provide a balanced ration that way. I don't mind fish in the commercial feed, which is one of the reasons that I'm feeding the turkey starter. Soy is the first ingredient, which is good for the protein, but I lost about half of my eating egg customers because they wanted soy free chickens. As if I wasn't having a hard enough time trying to figure out how to feed these chickens properly!

I can not figure out how to get them enough protein without soy.
In addition to this, my husband complains about how much I spend on the more expensive feed. I would love to find a more sustainable method to feed them that is healthy for them!
I know many breeders have their own mix made at a mill, but there isn't a mill around here and I don't have a way to store tons of feed.
Also, the turkey starter is a little higher in protein than the adults need, yet the game bird ration, with lower protein, has corn as the primary ingredient. I've also considered using Calf Manna as a protein source, but don't know how to make sure each chicken gets 1 tablespoon a day.
I will read back through this thread now and hope someone here can give me some advice.

Kim

 

[Jake Levi]

Re nutrition, free range chickens with feed in the coop will balance out their diet, all the feeds you mentioned will do well,

for an excellent dual purpose chicken it is hard to beat the LF RIR, my preference is the RC and they are the fewest in numbers, but both are excellent dual purpose chickens.