North Carolina

[Tikkijane]

with all this chick talk... i've been thinking about getting an incubator (i'm going to be in SO MUCH trouble!)... i'm finding it hard to find the breeds i really want and price too is always a factor... and think it might be easier to get hatching eggs? any thoughts?

i've also been thinking that i want to start raising a heritage/ endangered breed... any thoughts there?

hope everyone is warming up!

Go to the livestock conservancy website. It has the full list of threatened, watching, recovered, etc. I always check there before ordering to see if there is anything I can get. You might be surprised at how many hatcheries work with the {A}LBC. For example, many of the breeds you can order through TSC {which uses a few different hatcheries} are endangered breeds. Just a few years ago, orpingtons were threatened. Now they are recovering. Great stuff!

 

[Tikkijane]

http://www.livestockconservancy.org/index.php/heritage/internal/conservation-priority-list#Chickens

Go to the livestock conservancy website. It has the full list of threatened, watching, recovered, etc. I always check there before ordering to see if there is anything I can get. You might be surprised at how many hatcheries work with the {A}LBC. For example, many of the breeds you can order through TSC {which uses a few different hatcheries} are endangered breeds. Just a few years ago, orpingtons were threatened. Now they are recovering. Great stuff!

 

[Tikkijane]

My experience with BPRs was okay.  We had a flock of equal numbers of Barred Rocks, Black Australorps, and Buff Orpingtons (all hatchery birds).  Honestly, the Barred Rocks were my least favorite of the three.  They were okay but they were skittish with us and a little aggressive with the other chickens.  Good layers, though.  For comparison, since they were all raised together, the Australorps were shy and stand-offish but gentle (and awesome layers).  The Orpingtons were great.  They would hop into your lap and liked to be carried around.  Anyway, that was my experience with them.

BRs are great birds. Ours were always great with us. They did have a tendency to band together- in our old flock, we called 'the barred rock gang.' One of my all-time favorite birds was a BR. I still miss her. They are really good egg layers.

 

[Tikkijane]

What breeds are you looking for?

I would recommend going to the Smithfield  poultry show the second weekend in March (the 14th). There will be lots of breeds to see and you can talk with the breeders. There will be some birds for sale outside and inside. I have breeder quality sumatras and lakenvelders, both are considered endangered. I find this odd since you can get them from almost any hatchery, but they compile the rare/endangered list based on breeding groups of 50 or more birds and only from people who say they have that many.  Now the trick and what I feel makes them rare/ endangered is finding good breeding stock of these breeds. Sumatras are easier to find good breeding stock of compared to some other breeds like the lakenvelder or campine, but harder to find than some of the more popular breeds like rocks and cochins. Lakenvelders on the other hand, are not so easy to find in breeder quality. I have the luck of a great friend to thank for my breeder quality lakenvelders, and besides for mine, I know of only one other with good quality birds. A lot of breeders with good quality birds tend to not sell eggs or chicks, only started or adult birds. This adds to the cost of the bird, but it ensures you get live birds and you know what quality you are getting versus hatching eggs were the eggs may not hatch and can cost a lot themselves.

Hope this helps you out some.

I got my silver lakenvelders {hatchery} because of their status. Their eggs are pretty small; not much bigger than bantam eggs. Even my hamburgs lay bigger eggs! But I love them, even if they are a more flighty bird.

 

[ramirezframing]

Quote: Most places have them listed as a bad layer and small eggs. Mine lay great and a good sized medium to large egg. I don't make pets of my birds so they all act like I'm gonna kill them when I catch them for whatever reason. But my son and I have shown a few lakenvelders this past fall and those lakenvelders have settled down pretty good. Even had one free range pullet make herself into a bucket baby (feed bucket). She is also the best looking pullet out of last years hatch (she was a late hatch), so my son will be showing her at the March show.

 

[Hollowoakfarm]

Yay! They just shut down campus! Took them long enough!

So that means I .....do housework? Ugh. Can't I clean a chicken house instead?

 

[LeanneP]

Yay! They just shut down campus! Took them long enough!

So that means I .....do housework? Ugh. Can't I clean a chicken house instead?

You're welcome to come clean mine LOL

 

[crazyhen]

Good morning This is my coop this morning. Absolutely beautiful but such a hindrance. Enjoy.

 

[dutchlion]

What breeds are you looking for?

I would recommend going to the Smithfield  poultry show the second weekend in March (the 14th). There will be lots of breeds to see and you can talk with the breeders. There will be some birds for sale outside and inside. I have breeder quality sumatras and lakenvelders, both are considered endangered. I find this odd since you can get them from almost any hatchery, but they compile the rare/endangered list based on breeding groups of 50 or more birds and only from people who say they have that many.  Now the trick and what I feel makes them rare/ endangered is finding good breeding stock of these breeds. Sumatras are easier to find good breeding stock of compared to some other breeds like the lakenvelder or campine, but harder to find than some of the more popular breeds like rocks and cochins. Lakenvelders on the other hand, are not so easy to find in breeder quality. I have the luck of a great friend to thank for my breeder quality lakenvelders, and besides for mine, I know of only one other with good quality birds. A lot of breeders with good quality birds tend to not sell eggs or chicks, only started or adult birds. This adds to the cost of the bird, but it ensures you get live birds and you know what quality you are getting versus hatching eggs were the eggs may not hatch and can cost a lot themselves.

Hope this helps you out some.

I am going to try to get to the poultry show. Who all from this group will be there?
I keep coming back to the Lakenvelders (something about them really speaks to me) and really think that's the breed I would like to get into raising. It would be great to actually talk to breeders and meet some of the birds. I don't want to get into something willy nilly though... I get excited about a project and then realize I am in way over my head. So I want to make sure I am making a good decision because that is only fair to everyone- especially the chickens. And having everyone's guidance and advice means a lot to this newbie! So anything else or suggestions are truly welcome!

 

[dutchlion]

http://www.livestockconservancy.org/index.php/heritage/internal/conservation-priority-list#Chickens

I got my Sebright from TSC last year... She's a hoot! She'll talk your ear off in half a second... Won't let you pick her up or pet her, but loves a good chat!