Meyer Hatchery Chicken pics anyone??

[matt44644]

88 days old,all from Meyer Hatchery.

 

[DRGLENNON]

A healthy looking flock.

 

[matt44644]

Thanks

 

[christine9]

88 days old,all from Meyer Hatchery.

They are cuties!

 

[daniellea2912]

They sell in the local feed stores & in a couple of the local pet stores in town. There is a store that carries it less than 5 minutes from my house. 50 lb bag of layer is $38 - organic, soy free, non-gmo. It ferments great! All the ingredients are locally farmed/sourced as well. They have a listing of where they get all the ingredients & I could actually go to each farm & check them out if I wanted to. Most of them I know from the local farmers markets...which is the coolest part.

Hope you don't mind me asking a few questions about this feed

Do you know if it is separated whole grains or pelleted? Is there a brand name? I visit a friend in Louisville every month or every other month, so I could possibly pick up while I am down there. I have yet to find any nearby me and refuse to pay as much in shipping as I do for the feed.

I'm still debating on switching from my normal layer feed, to be honest I've never had anyone who buys eggs ask if they are fed organically or not... Plus they are out on pasture most of the day so its not like their diet is all the pelleted feed. I just wish the organic wasn't over twice the price! As of right now, my egg sales is paying for all their bagged feed, which is super nice.

Those hawks are so scary! My neighbor just told me hawk migration here is the next week so lots of the small birds go into hiding. My girls will be more at risk but I only free range 1 hr./day and I'm out there with them. But not all the hawks migrate so we still have them around all fall and winter. I didn't free range last winter and with less leaves on the trees I would think it is much more dangerous for them. I'll have to just see what it's like.

Yes, scary it was. They were closed up in the coop and run for almost 3 days before I let them out supervised (super supervised- I was on a lounge chair in the middle of the pasture with a broom for defense lol

) for a few hours Saturday night. Yesterday they were out most of the afternoon but I was just nearby... I had some bush pruning, flowerbed cleaning and horse grooming to do all really close to their pen. Believe me, I was on edge the whole time. Today they are going to be out most of the day but I have the windows open and I keep checking on them every like 10 minutes. I'm gonna just play it by ear right now, any more sightings and their free range time will be cut down. I'm thinking this winter I will just let them out in the run rather than the pasture, for the same reason you mentioned (less leaves/hiding places). If this winter is anything like the last, there will be enough snow they won't be venturing far from the coop anyway.

 

[NanaLynn]

88 days old,all from Meyer Hatchery.

Pretty and healthy looking flock you have there.

 

[rnchick74]

Hope you don't mind me asking a few questions about this feed

Do you know if it is separated whole grains or pelleted? Is there a brand name? I visit a friend in Louisville every month or every other month, so I could possibly pick up while I am down there. I have yet to find any nearby me and refuse to pay as much in shipping as I do for the feed.

I'm still debating on switching from my normal layer feed, to be honest I've never had anyone who buys eggs ask if they are fed organically or not... Plus they are out on pasture most of the day so its not like their diet is all the pelleted feed. I just wish the organic wasn't over twice the price! As of right now, my egg sales is paying for all their bagged feed, which is super nice.

I know the chick food is crumbles, I don't know about the layer because I haven't gotten it yet. I threw away my last bag (not the food, but the actual bag) so I will have to take a picture of the bag next time I'm at the store.

 

[NotableNancy]

We're still having trouble with our Blue Andulasion, Andi. I thought it was just one chicken picking on her, but it looks like all of them are now.

She has always had the laying issues and messy butt. I examined her a few weeks ago and was planning on soaking her etc, but after a up close look she seemed okay, she was just pink around the vent area and missing feathers.

Now she is losing feathers due to a molt .This morning it seemed that all the chickens did not want her near any of them. Maybe they sense something is wrong with her?

She is eating and drinking and does sneak in here and there for treats. I'm not quite sure what to do with her, she doesn't look ill just has the featherless rear and rough look of a molt, but she has feathers everywhere else.

Just concerns me since I know chickens can sense the weakness of other flock members so she is being shunned. No one is pecking her or attacking her, just chasing her away. If she seemed sick I would probably cull her, maybe I still should due to her laying issues from before? Or I'll just give her some more time? Not sure what to do, if she looked like she was suffering, I would know for sure. I hate these choices. This is the bad part of chicken keeping.

Awww, poor Andi. How is she now?

I noticed everyone has been picking on Amelia, not to that extent and seemingly for no reason except that she's the most docile. Morgaine our Marans has alway kept her furthest away from treats. I've witnessed Victoria the Dorking "hustling" her when they are free-ranging, walking right against her wing, standing taller and pecking her head to keep her away from what she perceives as the best foraging areas. Baby the Buff Orp has been persistent in her long and ridiculous rise to power, the only one I'm sure is higher than her is Morgaine but Amelia was one of the first to submit after a month of all them not taking her pouncing seriously. And even Clara the EE her best bud has pecked her on the head from time to time. A few weeks ago I noticed one of her wattles had been pecked, it has healed to a small white scar. These last two nights when I've gone to close up the coop she has been standing on the lip of the droppings board, below the perch, then when she sees me and I pet her she goes up to roost, but she's not happy being on an end right next to Morgaine. Sigh, we'll see what happens when everyone else starts laying. It's sad though, because she was our boldest chick, I always thought she would be head hen.

Speaking of chicken bullying, my mother-in-law just got three year old EE hens from a guy in her town, they were with 40 RIR and were getting picked on of course! He was originally asking $3 each but she brought her grandkids and the guy gave them to her for free. She sent a pic, they are molting but ones ginger colored with black flecks, the other two are pretty mottled one lighter one darker. No white and black ones or she would have saved it for me.

LOL.... 'Long and ridiculous rise to power" Too funny I've noticed the boldest chicks don't always end up being at the top of the pecking order. My EE, Cleo, was always the first to do everything but she ended up in the middle of the pack. Free EE's.... nothing better!!

88 days old,all from Meyer Hatchery.

Cute girls. Hopefully you get eggs soon!! Do you have other chickens?

Yes, scary it was. They were closed up in the coop and run for almost 3 days before I let them out supervised (super supervised- I was on a lounge chair in the middle of the pasture with a broom for defense lol

) for a few hours Saturday night. Yesterday they were out most of the afternoon but I was just nearby... I had some bush pruning, flowerbed cleaning and horse grooming to do all really close to their pen. Believe me, I was on edge the whole time. Today they are going to be out most of the day but I have the windows open and I keep checking on them every like 10 minutes. I'm gonna just play it by ear right now, any more sightings and their free range time will be cut down. I'm thinking this winter I will just let them out in the run rather than the pasture, for the same reason you mentioned (less leaves/hiding places). If this winter is anything like the last, there will be enough snow they won't be venturing far from the coop anyway.

I swear, every bird call I heard today I thought was a hawk! I have to go to youtube and listen to hawk calls so I know what to be listening for. Maybe you can put a few things in the pasture for them to hide under when the leaves start coming down? Like a small ladder with branches in it? Just thinking here...

 

[matt44644]

Awww, poor Andi. How is she now?

LOL.... 'Long and ridiculous rise to power" Too funny I've noticed the boldest chicks don't always end up being at the top of the pecking order. My EE, Cleo, was always the first to do everything but she ended up in the middle of the pack. Free EE's.... nothing better!!

Cute girls. Hopefully you get eggs soon!! Do you have other chickens?

I swear, every bird call I heard today I thought was a hawk! I have to go to youtube and listen to hawk calls so I know what to be listening for. Maybe you can put a few things in the pasture for them to hide under when the leaves start coming down? Like a small ladder with branches in it? Just thinking here...

I have 15 all the same age. 5 RIR 2 New Hampshire 2 Barred rocks 5 Dominique 1 Buff Orpington.I got the 15 brown egg layer assortment .

 

[MamaShell]

I have 15 all the same age. 5 RIR 2 New Hampshire 2 Barred rocks 5 Dominique 1 Buff Orpington.I got the 15 brown egg layer assortment .

Nice selection! It will be interesting to see how many eggs you get and who will be the first to start.