Pennsylvania!! Unite!!

[AnneInTheBurbs]

The ayam Cemanis are cute! They seem to grow slow and don't get all that big, kinda like legbars.

How old is the turkey again? I don't see anything that screams tom yet. Just looks like my Eve right now lol

The turkeys are 4 months old in a few days. Funny Turkey story. This morning as I was in my bedroom, I heard my turkeys make quite a racket and I saw my Tom running down the driveway. I ran outside to find all of the young turkeys had seen the Mom across the street walking her kids to the bus stop, and were following her and the kids and being noisy. Thankfully, they are used to the turkeys and were just laughing at them. I had to herd them back home.

 

[OneMountainAcres]

The turkeys are 4 months old in a few days. Funny Turkey story. This morning as I was in my bedroom, I heard my turkeys make quite a racket and I saw my Tom running down the driveway. I ran outside to find all of the young turkeys had seen the Mom across the street walking her kids to the bus stop, and were following her and the kids and being noisy. Thankfully, they are used to the turkeys and were just laughing at them. I had to herd them back home.

Lol, that's funny!
If they're about 4 months old, I'm guessing that's a hen. You could double check with the turkey Experts In the turkey thread though to confirm

 

[AnneInTheBurbs]

Lol, that's funny!
If they're about 4 months old, I'm guessing that's a hen. You could double check with the turkey Experts In the turkey thread though to confirm

Will do! "She" is bigger than the other and has a redder head and neck, but I have no experience.

 

[WVduckchick]

So far, not very nice as pets, more like I expect from game breeds. They are hard-feathered and my only adult roo is mean to people, but good with his hens. I expect them to be great at free ranging, but they won't be replacing Legbars, Ameraucanas or Orpingtons as backyard chickens for most people.
I'm hoping to find some better tempered roos amongst the young ones I'm raising, and I'm also experimenting with crossing them to Legbars and Welbars. The only thing that would improve on a Legbar would be if the males chicks were valuable for their feathers, and if the females were a bit more "predator savvy". Not sure if it will work as I hope, but it's fun to try and see.

@dheltzel how big are those birds? I like them! (except the mean roo part! lol)

 

[dheltzel]

A customer came by last week with some long feathers in her hair. I showed her my mean roo with the feathers much like those in her hair. She was impressed.

Some fly tiers on forums I was researching in have complained about this new craze driving up demand, and prices.

Yesterday, I was cleaning the pen. I *thought* he and I had arrived at a sort of peace treaty, but he came rushing in and attacked my hand. I'm much faster than he remembers apparently, because he was pinned to the ground immediately, then spent some time in detention (a cat carrier) while I finished my work in peace.. Before I put him back, I pulled a few more feathers to give to a friend. I know that must have hurt, but I felt he deserved it. When I put him back into the pen, he rushed out to the run and stayed out there. I wonder how long the lesson will last. I think these are game-type chickens and therefore should be smarter than average. I'm gonna find out how his good his memory really is.

Hey @dheltzel , I found another use for your hackle feathers besides fishing. Saw these on the boardwalk last night.

 

[dheltzel]

@dheltzel how big are those birds? I like them! (except the mean roo part! lol)

They are about the size of a Welsummer or Ameraucana. Not the largest or smallest of the breeds I have. Their eggs are small and not many, but seem very fertile and hatch well.
I am growing out all the chicks, male and female, and will need to sort through them in another month or 2 as I move them to winter quarters. I can't keep all the roos, so if there is any interest, I can make a few available. I figure on releasing a few roos on the farm. I suspect they will be superb free rangers and given their demeanor and size, will probably be popular with the lady hens once they mature and battle their way to the top. There is always some risk with letting them free range, so if someone really wants one, I would do that instead.

 

[OneMountainAcres]

took some pictures of the new baby

 

[fisherlady]

Wow, now those pictures speak a thousand Words! What a change in 2 weeks!

 

[Werforpsu]

Evening all!
We added to our flock in the last week. We got two from a friend who didn't want to winterize her coop for the two girls. The next day I had two jumbo eggs in my coop that were different from mine, so we know they laid right away.
Then husband and I went to the Belleville Animal Auction and bought 5 hens. I was skeptical because there is no way to tell their age, but they were only $2 each. I vent checked them when they arrived at our house and am hopeful because they all had large wet vents. Not long after getting home, one laid the biggest egg I have ever seen. I weighed it... 3.3oz!
In the 5 days since we got our last ones, I have gotten anywhere from 6-10 eggs a day from 15 layers. I am hoping to have that fill out to about a dozen a day. Some appear to be molting and I know that due to protein needs, they often don't lay during molt.
Last, but not least is that I bought a mama hen and 5 baby chicks in a box all together. They looked to be a few days to a week old. We built them a little secure pen in the coop and We are feeding and watering them, but letting mama do all the heavy lifting. I imagine that they will all be together in "the annex" until at least Thanksgiving. We have never had a broody mama before so the mama raising chicks thing is new to us.
CAN ANYONE TELL ME:
How big do the chicks need to be (with a mother protecting them) to be exposed at all to the rest of the chickens?
Should the Mama stay with them until they are big enough to co-mingle, or will she loose the desire to stay with them when they get to a certain point in development?
At what point will she probably start to lay again?

Hope all is well with you all and that you and your flock are enjoying the nice weather!

 

[WVduckchick]

Evening all!
We added to our flock in the last week. We got two from a friend who didn't want to winterize her coop for the two girls. The next day I had two jumbo eggs in my coop that were different from mine, so we know they laid right away.
Then husband and I went to the Belleville Animal Auction and bought 5 hens. I was skeptical because there is no way to tell their age, but they were only $2 each. I vent checked them when they arrived at our house and am hopeful because they all had large wet vents. Not long after getting home, one laid the biggest egg I have ever seen. I weighed it... 3.3oz!
In the 5 days since we got our last ones, I have gotten anywhere from 6-10 eggs a day from 15 layers. I am hoping to have that fill out to about a dozen a day. Some appear to be molting and I know that due to protein needs, they often don't lay during molt.
Last, but not least is that I bought a mama hen and 5 baby chicks in a box all together. They looked to be a few days to a week old. We built them a little secure pen in the coop and We are feeding and watering them, but letting mama do all the heavy lifting. I imagine that they will all be together in "the annex" until at least Thanksgiving. We have never had a broody mama before so the mama raising chicks thing is new to us.
CAN ANYONE TELL ME:
How big do the chicks need to be (with a mother protecting them) to be exposed at all to the rest of the chickens?
Should the Mama stay with them until they are big enough to co-mingle, or will she loose the desire to stay with them when they get to a certain point in development?
At what point will she probably start to lay again?

Hope all is well with you all and that you and your flock are enjoying the nice weather!

I get my broodies back in with the flock as soon as possible, even the first few days. i keep an eye out to make sure momma can handle protection, but I've found the longer I wait, the worse it gets. Most of the time, i let them go thru the sitting and hatching right with the others, unless the other hens are a nuisance trying to lay in the same nest, then i block momma off, or move them, until a day or so after hatch. JMHO.