First Run of Cornish Cross Meat Birds and Super Excited!

[JessicaThistle]

No kidding! That girl has a serious set of gals! Maybe I will make Sunny and Pearl some bras

Sounds like Sunny could use some oyster for a week or so to get her eggs figured out. Especially if she is laying a shell-less egg. How long has she been laying now, a month? You wouldn't think there would still be shell-less eggs.
But then again, we would get one, from an unknown chicken, every now and again months after they started laying.
Is there rope light in their coop too? The light could also be messing with her a bit, probably not, but maybe.
In reference to her hiney, does she ever have bloody poo after the double yolker gigantor? (spell check can't stand this sentence!)
When Dixie laid that crazy egg, the next day or two there was bloody poo. It actually was horror movie-esque. But all was back to normal in a couple of days. I ask because if there was, I would say that size of the tennis ball egg would be an issue. If not, she is quite likely okay. Just my opinion.

I get a kick out of wet silkies strutting through the yard! Well, I get a kick out of silkies in general, but wet ones are especially cute!

In other news, it warmed up and the foot and a half of snow melted to slush. It froze again. I have 4 inches of ice everywhere. It started snowing again, but not before it created another layer of ice in the places the snow melted off completely.
The girls ventured outside yesterday for the first time since Christmas, but I can guarantee they will not be out today. Finicky.

Didn't someone ask about frostbite a page or two back?
I know if you keep moisture out of the coop it is supposed to make it much less likely for frostbite. BUT, we have been having a very humid winter here, so I feel there is not much I can do moisture wise. Ralphie lives in the capitol of humid and cold winter!
Putting Vaseline on their combs is supposed to help. I haven't done it. Of my 8, only 4 have a single comb, and only 1 currently has a little spot of frostbite. If it seems to be an issue later, I would do it. Watch, when I motivate myself enough to go out and get their water and food taken care of, they will have frostbite... knock on wood!

Sunny's only laid for a couple of weeks. I think I've gotten a total of 6 eggs from her. I am going to add some oyster just to give her a boost. I'm sure it won't hurt. I have not noticed any bloody poo around. I think she's ok. I don't have any light in the silkie coop with the exception of the light that shuts off at 8:00. I think her body is still figuring it out.

My silkies are hilarious. They way people on here talk about silkies, it's almost like they aren't a chicken and need to be coddled, bathed and perfumed. Never keep them around other chickens because they will just get pecked to death. Well, not mine. My dominant silkie hen, Tweety, is a peck first, ask questions later type when it comes to dealing with the big hens. As I have said before, she is the total boss of Sunny and Sunny probably weighs at least 15 pounds more than her. My silkies love their free range time, poking around and getting themselves in trouble. They actually seem to like the rain and it makes them look hilarious. I love to watch them because they walk around like the are up to something, almost like they are sneaking around. They are funny birds.

I asked about the frost bite. Mostly because I read on another thread that it can cause infection, blah, blah. That worried me some.

You know, I have all but stopped reading other threads on here because i have found that that talk is mostly arguing about varying opinions, blowing things out of proportion or just simply nobody talking at all. I just don't have the energy for it.

Ralph: I think I kinda get the message that you are trying to send.

 

[mountain mom]

Ralph- I imagine it would be impossible to stave off frostbite where you are. And I don't think it makes you an uncaring chicken owner. I have read more than once about you chasing and hunting chickens down so they get in the coop at night. And you pet them. You also don't make them eat snow for water in the winter!

Don't get me wrong, I love my chickens. I too have done silly things to be sure they are all in the coop and safe from the fox family that lives in our back acre. I have tried to nurse a chicken back to health by hand feeding and watering it for almost a week (and she went to the mountains with us over a weekend while being nursed... yes, I am that crazy chicken lady), but I also decided enough was enough and I killed her to put her out of her misery. I also do not, and will never, have a vet for my chickens.
I do love them and snuggle them, bring them inside to visit the spa when they are too dirty, and talk to them like a crazy person. I even make chicken noises at them to try and communicate. I should really delete that last sentence...

I could see the frostbite being an issue if the discoloration caused pecking and sores led to infection. Pain wise, do they have nerve endings in their combs and waddles? I don't think that they do. Could be wrong, but don't think so.

On to other topics like funny silkies. Clyde, our silkie, always looks like she is up to no good... Her counterpart was Bonnie, the aforementioned chicken that was sick. Those two were trouble! They knew that they could team up and be enough of a threat to scare someone else off. That piece of scrap whatever was just too delicious to let someone else have!
All our chickens seemed to not mind the rain. They would all still be out pecking around looking for worms. The snow is a different story... chickens.

Anyhow, I agree Jessica, I don't really read any other threads here anymore.
I posted a couple of other questions or what not, and was discouraged by the lack of response, someone telling me I was totally wrong about something (um, hello. I asked a question, clearly I didn't know!) or the general unfriendliness.
I feel happy here

thanks for starting such a perfect thread!

Just wondering, has anyone here read Backyard Homesteading by someone whose last name begins with an M? I am drawing a blank...
I was told it is a great book by my local chicken feed store guy. It had not great amazon reviews though.

 

[Fyremelody]

I don't always chime in because I often don't have much to say. Although now I'm feeling like I should go out and inspect everyone for frostbite and lug out Vaseline... though that would mean I have to go to the store because I don't have any Vaseline on hand...which ultimately boils down to it's not happening because I refused to go out anywhere in this darn cold.

(And my editor would shoot me for that sentence. It's amazing how she hangs out in my head when I've never met her in person. Anyway.)

Where I was going with that: This is my favorite thread pretty much anywhere.

I'd love to have your alls opinions on some breeding crosses, but none of them are Cornish so it's completely off topic. I'll find a better place to post I guess and put the link on here if you'd like to chime in.

I had the third Cornish Cross chime in with eggs yesterday. We got three within a couple hours of each other. One normal - the one who's been laying. One medium sized. And one small, with speckles, just like the other two put out initially. For whatever reason they are late afternoon layers, and I'll discover here in another hour if they left me any gifts today. I'm getting very anxious to get some fertile eggs come spring. Meanwhile, I have discovered another issue. Lice. UGH! It's too bloody cold out there to powder everyone. And I'm relatively certain which chicken brought them in. Although that one did stay in quarantine almost a month, I didn't know enough about bringing in birds to even think to look for lice. I diligently checked each eye and nostril for discharge and all the other stuff. Could just shoot myself now. I've now resolved to never buy another bird. (Right. If you believe that one, I have some beachfront property....)

Do tell me that once I powder every bird and every coop the problem will be resolved? It's Co-Ral powder, recommended by my vet. Smells gawdawful. Had a gawdawful price tag too. So don't tell me it doesn't work. Well... okay you can tell me, but they are getting powdered with it anyway, dang it!

Have any of you raised straight Cornish? Were you pleased with them? Could you recommend a breeder who has quality, older, lines and healthy birds?

Oh! And I initiated phase 2 of "Rehab Ben", the Buckeye rooster intended for my CornishXs, the one they like, who has leg issues and unfortunately won't breed any birds. Spoke to the bird vet today and have a game plan, now that I've rehabbed him to the point he can walk period, to move forward with getting him more motile. I'm very very excited about it. He's such a sweet sweet bird, and you've never heard a chicken talk the way he does when he's given scrambled eggs.

MM--I speak chicken too. Well, at least I like to think I do. I'm probably uttering foul things unbeknownst to me. (Like the pun? Hee hee).

 

[mountain mom]

I don't always chime in because I often don't have much to say. Although now I'm feeling like I should go out and inspect everyone for frostbite and lug out Vaseline... though that would mean I have to go to the store because I don't have any Vaseline on hand...which ultimately boils down to it's not happening because I refused to go out anywhere in this darn cold.

(And my editor would shoot me for that sentence. It's amazing how she hangs out in my head when I've never met her in person. Anyway.)

Where I was going with that: This is my favorite thread pretty much anywhere.

I'd love to have your alls opinions on some breeding crosses, but none of them are Cornish so it's completely off topic. I'll find a better place to post I guess and put the link on here if you'd like to chime in.

I had the third Cornish Cross chime in with eggs yesterday. We got three within a couple hours of each other. One normal - the one who's been laying. One medium sized. And one small, with speckles, just like the other two put out initially. For whatever reason they are late afternoon layers, and I'll discover here in another hour if they left me any gifts today. I'm getting very anxious to get some fertile eggs come spring. Meanwhile, I have discovered another issue. Lice. UGH! It's too bloody cold out there to powder everyone. And I'm relatively certain which chicken brought them in. Although that one did stay in quarantine almost a month, I didn't know enough about bringing in birds to even think to look for lice. I diligently checked each eye and nostril for discharge and all the other stuff. Could just shoot myself now. I've now resolved to never buy another bird. (Right. If you believe that one, I have some beachfront property....)

Do tell me that once I powder every bird and every coop the problem will be resolved? It's Co-Ral powder, recommended by my vet. Smells gawdawful. Had a gawdawful price tag too. So don't tell me it doesn't work. Well... okay you can tell me, but they are getting powdered with it anyway, dang it!

Have any of you raised straight Cornish? Were you pleased with them? Could you recommend a breeder who has quality, older, lines and healthy birds?

Oh! And I initiated phase 2 of "Rehab Ben", the Buckeye rooster intended for my CornishXs, the one they like, who has leg issues and unfortunately won't breed any birds. Spoke to the bird vet today and have a game plan, now that I've rehabbed him to the point he can walk period, to move forward with getting him more motile. I'm very very excited about it. He's such a sweet sweet bird, and you've never heard a chicken talk the way he does when he's given scrambled eggs.

MM--I speak chicken too. Well, at least I like to think I do. I'm probably uttering foul things unbeknownst to me. (Like the pun? Hee hee).

Well, I have no experience with avian lice. Or any lice for that matter. Except for that one time in college... (okay, I can't let this ride. My husband said it would be funny, I am mortified. I worked with disabled adults and one gal ended up with lice... everywhere.) That is my college experience.
I hope the powder helps!
I am also void in experience of straight Cornish. I *almost* went with straight Cornish instead of CX because of the horror frankinbird stories... but the nice lady at my feed store told me she does not like the way they "grow out". She recommended CX. I was horrified that I said "yes, order me 15". Thankfully, that very same day I found this thread!

I would also venture to say talking crossing other chicken breeds would be permitted by Jessica. She has been so kind to not kick Ralph and I off the thread for talking turkey.

Hopefully operation "Rehab Ben" goes well, he sounds like a sweet bird! I love the "happy chicken" noise they make when they get a treat they especially like!

My gals are all late morning to late afternoon layers too. It infuriated me at first. I wanted eggs first thing in the morning when I went to let them out. Now I have accepted they lay in the afternoon. Well, they did. Right now nobody is laying. I need to get those dang lights up! But it is cold. I should have done it when we had a freakish 55 degree day! Dang it.

 

[duluthralphie]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/72771/minnesota/3550#post_14584308


Please go to this link, read the comments the guy after me made about guinea fowls... had I been sipping and adult beverage when I read it, I would be drying off my keyboard now.....


Fryemelody, I think you can talk about anything here now, We have discussed it in the past and Jessica even thought about opening a new thread for us, with a different name and I know some of us said lets just continue talking on this one...

Personally, I think she should change the name on this to " Jessica's Bar and grill, without the grill"....

We all love our CX's and we all like doing things differently and trying things new to us. So many threads are very one way, and you get put down for doing things different. It is amazing how many threads talk about CX's as if they are a sub species of chickens crossed with aardvarks.

MM please feel safe enough to share any and all " one time only college activities" with me either here or in PM's. I promise to not tell anyone, much of what you say...

Good luck with Ben Melody. It really screws up your plans when something happens to your Daddy roosters! I lost Brutus to some unknown problem and I am still trying to figure out how to fix it. I did get a guy on the Mn thread to give me a EE rooster, which will help solve my one problem I caused my self..... ( It is proof drinking vast quantities of Beer, and chasing an rotten rooster, with a bad attitude towards the girls, and keeping a rifle in the shed the beer fridge is in, is not a always a good idea.


However, it did stop him from chasing the girls! and he tasted real good!!

Speaking of good tasting, this is how I got rid of eggs tonight!





My first ever soufflé! And it tasted great too, even the war department liked it!

 

[Fyremelody]

Oh my gosh that souffle looks amazing. What did you put in it?


Okay so... two of you've said I could discuss chickies and eggs here, and it's your thoughts I'd like to hear, so I'll have at it.

First, I have three other breeding projects if they ever get off the ground where I actually am invested in the outcome. What I'm wanting input on is what will garner me the most "useful" mutt bird to satisfy my and my children's need for chicks this spring. I have way too many hens to be thinking of buying "just for fun". And those particular breeding projects are going to hit my pocket book when it comes to buying chicks this year for them, so I'm conserving dollars. (Looking into SQ Silver Phoenix, APA Bourbon Red Turks, and SQ Silkies)

Second, I put useful in quotes because of the mutt possibilities I have none seem to stand out as any exceptionally heavy laying offspring or likely strong meat candidates. So I guess I'm looking at "fun" chicks -- cute/pretty, moderate lay, unique eggs, The Cabbage Patch Kid variety--so ugly you can't help but adore it, etc.

Third, barring direct crosses here, if anything stands out to you that I should look at hen, or rooster wise, given what I have below, point me that direction. Laugh.

Here's my candidates:

Roosters:
1. What I'm pretty sure is an EE. He's a pretty boy, has a muff, decent temperament, dominantly red and gold and green coloring, and is about 9-10lbs. He's a big boy. And I know he's fertile.
2. Year old Sussex Rooster who is bitey but otherwise not aggressive, pretty typical of the breed. Never bred a hen. Hatchery stock.
3. Buff Cochin - typical of breed, hatchery stock
4. Big Buckeye boy, who is hopefully able to get along with the CX this spring, but if not maybe he'd fit someone else. And he could produce meat birds. Not SQ, but came from SQ Stock -- his black bleeds into the topside of his feathers and he was a cull from their program because of it but the breeder felt he would fit my goals with the CXs
5. 2 Silver Phoenix that will be evaluated for standards later
6. 1 OEGB Crele color, amazing little bird who is all attitude
7. Cranky white silkie roo
8. Partridge cochin roo

(Never take my oldest to the chick bins; he picks out roosters Every Time.)

Hens: (all hatchery quality)
*3 RIRs (One might be a New Hampshire. I've forgotten.)
*2 white Leghorns
*1 Barred Rock
* 1 Dutch Black Bantam
*1 Dutch Golden Bantam (who really might be an OEGB, but I don't think she is much in the quality department)
*3 Americaunas - one blue, one red splash, one reddish
*1 Easter Egger -- although I saw another photo of another breed I can't remember now, and she resembles that, and I think she's my rogue white egg layer
*2 Black Sex Links
* 1 Buff Silkie
1 Buff Brahma
2 Golden Comets / Red Sex Links
1 Blue Laced Polish
1 porcelain D'uccle
1 Red Frizzle Cochin
1 Golden Seabright
1 Dark Cornish
1 Silver Laced Wyandotte
1 Gold Laced Wyandotte
1 Welsummer
^^1 White Silkie
^^1 Speckled Sussex

* -- all presently with the Easter Egger / Americauna Roo, Roosty
^^ -- presently with the white silkie and red cochin roos
the rest are with the OEGB Roo and the 2 Silver Phoenix.

The silkies are all going into a silkie pen as is the frizzle; I listed them here in case there are other options.

I am erecting another 15x12 this year, then dividing it, half of which would be devoted to banties in general

Otherwise, they are currently paired by their hatch collections Everybody currently gets along and I haven't wanted to stir up the peaceful balance going into winter. All but Roosty and the hens with him are last year's hatch.

So what would you all do with this mess?

Val

PS. One last question. Are roosters like stallions in the sense that they won't have a full out fight, usually, unless there is a mare (hen) to fight over? Can I, to give my penned-up boys some more freedom, move them across the farm to a pen of their own all together?

 

[duluthralphie]

FryeMelody, We are in much of the same situation. I have 33 hens and 4 roosters. I keep for breeding. I lost the rooster I wanted to bred ( brutus) to something, not a predator he was just dead one morning.

Pictures would help.

I am going to breed several this year and hope to not buy any hatchery birds.

I am going to breed my Black Australorp to the Black Australorp hens. I am also going to breed him to a very black shiny EE mutt I have. I like the black color on the EE and the shimmering, I am interested in if I can isolate it. Let me see if I can find a picture of her:



The black one, I think is her but the shimmering does not show here.


The second picture is "enhanced" but it lets you see the shiny blue/black a little. dang IPhone camera.

I have a Rainbow rooster I plan to breed to other rainbows and hens I deem needing his taller larger legs. I may breed him to one of my CX's also.

My CX rooster that I will breed to the cx's and then decide what to do with later as to crosses.

My production red or RIR I will cross to a lot of the birds, He may actually just get the other hens as his. He does not have the body size Brutus had but he is a size docile bird. I am not sure what he is even. But I like him.

I have turkeys. I have 2 I bought being told they were Blue slates. Their feathers were in really bad shape when I got them, They hardly had any they were dirty and just not pretty. Once they molted this fall I found they were not blue slates but red slates, which I understand is a blue slate crossed with bourbon reds.

They are actually a very pretty bird, I plan to breed them again this year and hopefully do a better job hatching them. Ethel did hatch 5 chicks of her own from the two of them and they were beautiful babies. I will show you some pictures of them. The eagles found them tasty and ate them all!

The babies:










I will go out a take pictures of the parents today. If you want I can send you some of their eggs this spring to hatch your own "reds".

Anyways. I got distracted and lost my train of thought will get back to you soon.

 

[LindaB220]

Wish me well, Time to venture out, collect rent from the girls and let them outside.... I am putting it off because it is 18 below here today, and to add to the fun we have a breeze!

Hopefully, I will survive my chores and talk to you all later.

Okay Raphie, I'll admit it. I'm terribly spoiled. Never had chickens in the winter before. It was 16 last night and today water is frozen and soooo cold. I went out in my sweater like always. Ha. Fifteen minutes later I'm back and pretty sure I have frostbite on the fingers. I don't own winter gloves. I have a pair of gardening gloves that I'll be hunting out. Jeez!!!! I may have to buy a coat. My slackers, other than the nice one blue egg layer are still slacking.
I told SIL about my baby finally starting to give me eggs. He's been buying eggs for months now and came to me today and said where are the eggs Your chickens are supposed to lay. She gives me one tiny blue one every 3 days. Buy until they start laying. Only trouble is I'm going to incubate everyone of the white rocks and sussex. That leaves 2 blue egg layers.

 

[duluthralphie]

Okay Raphie, I'll admit it. I'm terribly spoiled. Never had chickens in the winter before. It was 16 last night and today water is frozen and soooo cold. I went out in my sweater like always. Ha. Fifteen minutes later I'm back and pretty sure I have frostbite on the fingers. I don't own winter gloves. I have a pair of gardening gloves that I'll be hunting out. Jeez!!!! I may have to buy a coat. My slackers, other than the nice one blue egg layer are still slacking.
I told SIL about my baby finally starting to give me eggs. He's been buying eggs for months now and came to me today and said where are the eggs Your chickens are supposed to lay. She gives me one tiny blue one every 3 days. Buy until they start laying. Only trouble is I'm going to incubate everyone of the white rocks and sussex. That leaves 2 blue egg layers.

If it never got below 16 degrees here , I would not own any clothes!

There would be no need of them.

I am going out to check on eggs again. There is a light snow coming down and the birds are not going outside. I hate when they refuse to go outside, I get too much moisture inside the coop then. Because of the weather I only got 4 eggs this morning. I am hoping I will get 20 or so more yet today.

 

[JessicaThistle]

No, no, no. No talking about other things here. Let's keep on topic.....

Just kidding. We've been off the topic so long I don't even remember what it was anymore.

I love the idea of calling this Jessica's Bar and Grill...without the grill. That's funny!

I also love the idea of talking about crossing chickens. Mostly because I have 4 mutt roosters now and don't know what to expect out of them. One is a lovely red EE, one seems to be a possible Black Copper Maran, then I have a lovely Gold laced Wyandotte cross and the last is, black and gold. Who knows what I am going to get mixed up with when they start making friends with my Barred Rocks, Buff Orpingtons and EE's. I think I'm going to wind up with some Olive Eggers, which would be fun!