My flock page (AKA The Important Stuff):
Pipd's Peeps!
About me: See this thread with a 7-years-later update in this post.
A couple things that have changed since then:
I graduated with my B.S. in Ecology in December 2018. Some departments got cut not long before then so I didn't end up with the German minor.
Still working on self-sustainability, or, well, more accurately, working toward less reliance on processed foods. The garden hasn't been providing very well due to unfavorable conditions, so we moved to potted vegetable plants instead this year (2019). I have made an effort to cut out any source of commercial eggs and chicken from my diet and do a lot more cooking / baking now. We've been getting locally raised chicken for a few years, but I don't feel as if that's enough. We have been taking extra cockerels from hatches to butcher yearly since the fall of 2017. I'm hoping to have a meat bird tractor built next year (2020) to start raising a small batch of broilers every year as well.
COVID-19 delayed... basically everything I wanted to do this year (2020). Guess we're holding out for another year.
I started making egg soap mid-2021 and haven't used commercial soap since.
2022 - I've decided to indefinitely shelve the tractor build for raising broilers. Hopefully it'll happen some day, but for now I am focusing on breeding my silkied Cochin bantams.
2023 - After a lot of self-reflecting, I've decided to go back to college in 2024 for a more promising career than what my current degree affords me.
Check out my flock thread here.
Pages about my birds:
The Dorkings
OLD Pages about my Birds (very, very old and out of date!):
The Reds - The Banties - Merlin and the Wyandottes - Freema - The Barred Rocks
The Easter-Eggers - The Fab Five! - Te Heihei - The Littles
Informative articles I've written:
Chicken First Aid Kits - The Question of Supplemental Heat - The Essential Quarantine
Better Brooder Heaters - Chick Sexing Methods Experiment - Chicken Identification Guide
The Humble Sexlink Chicken - Wintertime Preparation Checklist
100 Pictures of my Flock - My 100 themed picture project for 2016.
Rest well, my beloved Frou-Frou
♥ My Frou-Frou ♥
Pipd's Peeps!
About me: See this thread with a 7-years-later update in this post.
A couple things that have changed since then:
I graduated with my B.S. in Ecology in December 2018. Some departments got cut not long before then so I didn't end up with the German minor.
Still working on self-sustainability, or, well, more accurately, working toward less reliance on processed foods. The garden hasn't been providing very well due to unfavorable conditions, so we moved to potted vegetable plants instead this year (2019). I have made an effort to cut out any source of commercial eggs and chicken from my diet and do a lot more cooking / baking now. We've been getting locally raised chicken for a few years, but I don't feel as if that's enough. We have been taking extra cockerels from hatches to butcher yearly since the fall of 2017. I'm hoping to have a meat bird tractor built next year (2020) to start raising a small batch of broilers every year as well.
COVID-19 delayed... basically everything I wanted to do this year (2020). Guess we're holding out for another year.
I started making egg soap mid-2021 and haven't used commercial soap since.
2022 - I've decided to indefinitely shelve the tractor build for raising broilers. Hopefully it'll happen some day, but for now I am focusing on breeding my silkied Cochin bantams.
2023 - After a lot of self-reflecting, I've decided to go back to college in 2024 for a more promising career than what my current degree affords me.
Check out my flock thread here.
Pages about my birds:
The Dorkings
OLD Pages about my Birds (very, very old and out of date!):
The Reds - The Banties - Merlin and the Wyandottes - Freema - The Barred Rocks
The Easter-Eggers - The Fab Five! - Te Heihei - The Littles
Informative articles I've written:
Chicken First Aid Kits - The Question of Supplemental Heat - The Essential Quarantine
Better Brooder Heaters - Chick Sexing Methods Experiment - Chicken Identification Guide
The Humble Sexlink Chicken - Wintertime Preparation Checklist
100 Pictures of my Flock - My 100 themed picture project for 2016.
Rest well, my beloved Frou-Frou
♥ My Frou-Frou ♥
2005: Started with several mixes of mixes my sister brought home without permission. Afterward, we went to TSC and got a few more chicks; Easter-eggers mostly, plus an Australorp and a production Rhode Island Red. No real reason for them, I don't think; we were kids and my parents didn't care what we got. Roughly by the end of this year, it was me and my mom taking care of the flock, my sister was no longer interested.
2007: One of my mom's coworkers got a huge order of RIRs and my mom offered to take some off her hands.
2009: By this point, the chickens were 100% mine. I wanted more chicks this year, so we went to TSC and all they had was red sexlinks. So, I got red sexlinks. We had a predator attack and kill some of them, so in a very misguided attempt to protect my chickens, I also got my first Guinea fowl this year.
2010: I wanted more chicks, so off to TSC again. This year we got more red sexlinks, an Amberlink, three Gold-laced Wyandottes, two Rhode Island Reds, and an Easter-egger. The EE I remember was because she was the only chick left in the bin, so I got her out of pity. The rest, I guess I was trying for variety? I don't know, I was young. Also, this year my mom went to a swap meet and came home with some Gold Sebright bantams and two Lavender Guinea keets. I believe this was the year we hatched more Guinea keets from the original Guineas we got the previous year, too.
2011: I had seen a picture of a Barred Rock and decided I wanted some of them, so we found a real small, local hatchery to order some from and got some Easter-eggers from them as well. The EEs just have always been a favorite, so that's why we got more of them. Also, my mom went to the swap meet again and came home with Silver Sebrights to go with the Golds from the previous year.
2012: I don't know if I was planning on getting chicks that year or not, but my mom surprised me with a small order from Meyer hatchery. She picked out two Speckled Sussex, two Partridge Rocks, and a Splash Marans.
2013: I had decided by now I wanted to build a colorful egg basket, but had always heard that white egg layers were flighty. So I decided to try a brood of a bunch of different white-egger breeds to see which I liked. I ended up with an Ancona, an Exchequer Leghorn, a Silver Lakenvelder, a Light Brown Leghorn, a Golden Campine, and an Egyptian Fayoumi. I also decided to try a couple bantams just for fun, an EE and a frizzle Cochin, but the Cochin ended up not being frizzled. Oh, and lastly, I got my first Silkie hen as a birthday gift to myself that year.
2014: Continuing to build my colorful egg basket, I got two Black Copper Marans and a Welsummer. I also got two Silver Gray Dorkings because I had ordered one the previous year and they had had a poor hatch. I also got two Cream Legbar chicks from someone locally for the blue eggs, but one was a mix up and actually turned out to be a Bielefelder. I also don't remember the exact details of this, but I had either contacted someone or was contacted by them to take their Swedish Flower Hen who was being picked on in their flock. This was the year I got call ducks, first with a failed attempt to hatch shipped eggs and then later just buying a pair from a breeder at a poultry show.
2015: I hatched my one and only Crash duck from my call duck pair! I also got another Swedish Flower Hen from the same person mentioned above, and a Silkie cockerel from someone else.
2016: I let my Silkie hen hatch some Silkie chicks this year fathered by the Silkie rooster from the previous year. Got more Dorkings because I adore them. I also grabbed a bunch of random other breeds for fun with the Dorkings. A Blue Ameraucana, another Easter-egger, a Blue and a Splash large fowl Cochin, a Light Brahma, and a Lavender Orpington.
2017: I went in with someone on an order from Sand Hill Preservation Center and got myself some Red and Dark Gray Dorkings, and Black Copper and Wheaten Marans. I also hatched more silkied Cochin bantams out of the ones I had gotten the previous year.
2018: Hatched some chicks out of the Black Copper Marans from the previous year. Hatched more silkied Cochins. I made an impulsive Meyer Hatchery order and got 6 Mottled Cochin bantams and two more Silver Gray Dorkings. I also got my first pair of Fawn Silver Duckwing Old English Game bantams this year.
2019: Hatched some chicks from the OEGB pair. Hatched some Silkie x Easter-egger chicks and a Cochin x Easter-egger mix. Bought 2 more EE pullets and 2 bantam EE chicks from Meyer Hatchery.
2020: Finally, FINALLY found more silkied Cochins to hatch! Hatched more OEGBs as well and some mixes between a Silkie rooster and silkied Cochin hen to test out skin color sexlinking.
2021: Hatched more OEGBs, more silkied Cochins, and some English Orpingtons. Made another trip to Meyer Hatchery for some Barred Rock bantams and Blue Orpington pullets. Ended up coming home with a Cream Legbar pullet as well.
2022: Hatched my first naked neck bantam chick, and more silkied Cochin bantams. Also some smooth Chocolate Cochin bantams.
2023: Hatched a whole ton of silkied Cochin bantams!!
2007: One of my mom's coworkers got a huge order of RIRs and my mom offered to take some off her hands.
2009: By this point, the chickens were 100% mine. I wanted more chicks this year, so we went to TSC and all they had was red sexlinks. So, I got red sexlinks. We had a predator attack and kill some of them, so in a very misguided attempt to protect my chickens, I also got my first Guinea fowl this year.
2010: I wanted more chicks, so off to TSC again. This year we got more red sexlinks, an Amberlink, three Gold-laced Wyandottes, two Rhode Island Reds, and an Easter-egger. The EE I remember was because she was the only chick left in the bin, so I got her out of pity. The rest, I guess I was trying for variety? I don't know, I was young. Also, this year my mom went to a swap meet and came home with some Gold Sebright bantams and two Lavender Guinea keets. I believe this was the year we hatched more Guinea keets from the original Guineas we got the previous year, too.
2011: I had seen a picture of a Barred Rock and decided I wanted some of them, so we found a real small, local hatchery to order some from and got some Easter-eggers from them as well. The EEs just have always been a favorite, so that's why we got more of them. Also, my mom went to the swap meet again and came home with Silver Sebrights to go with the Golds from the previous year.
2012: I don't know if I was planning on getting chicks that year or not, but my mom surprised me with a small order from Meyer hatchery. She picked out two Speckled Sussex, two Partridge Rocks, and a Splash Marans.
2013: I had decided by now I wanted to build a colorful egg basket, but had always heard that white egg layers were flighty. So I decided to try a brood of a bunch of different white-egger breeds to see which I liked. I ended up with an Ancona, an Exchequer Leghorn, a Silver Lakenvelder, a Light Brown Leghorn, a Golden Campine, and an Egyptian Fayoumi. I also decided to try a couple bantams just for fun, an EE and a frizzle Cochin, but the Cochin ended up not being frizzled. Oh, and lastly, I got my first Silkie hen as a birthday gift to myself that year.
2014: Continuing to build my colorful egg basket, I got two Black Copper Marans and a Welsummer. I also got two Silver Gray Dorkings because I had ordered one the previous year and they had had a poor hatch. I also got two Cream Legbar chicks from someone locally for the blue eggs, but one was a mix up and actually turned out to be a Bielefelder. I also don't remember the exact details of this, but I had either contacted someone or was contacted by them to take their Swedish Flower Hen who was being picked on in their flock. This was the year I got call ducks, first with a failed attempt to hatch shipped eggs and then later just buying a pair from a breeder at a poultry show.
2015: I hatched my one and only Crash duck from my call duck pair! I also got another Swedish Flower Hen from the same person mentioned above, and a Silkie cockerel from someone else.
2016: I let my Silkie hen hatch some Silkie chicks this year fathered by the Silkie rooster from the previous year. Got more Dorkings because I adore them. I also grabbed a bunch of random other breeds for fun with the Dorkings. A Blue Ameraucana, another Easter-egger, a Blue and a Splash large fowl Cochin, a Light Brahma, and a Lavender Orpington.
THIS WAS ALSO THE YEAR! I saw a post on another site from someone selling out of them, just up in Chicago. We're in northeast Indiana, so not too far. I was practically in tears at the thought of passing them by. So my mom, sister, and I made a road trip up and I got my very first silkied Cochin bantams, my Reds!
2017: I went in with someone on an order from Sand Hill Preservation Center and got myself some Red and Dark Gray Dorkings, and Black Copper and Wheaten Marans. I also hatched more silkied Cochin bantams out of the ones I had gotten the previous year.
2018: Hatched some chicks out of the Black Copper Marans from the previous year. Hatched more silkied Cochins. I made an impulsive Meyer Hatchery order and got 6 Mottled Cochin bantams and two more Silver Gray Dorkings. I also got my first pair of Fawn Silver Duckwing Old English Game bantams this year.
2019: Hatched some chicks from the OEGB pair. Hatched some Silkie x Easter-egger chicks and a Cochin x Easter-egger mix. Bought 2 more EE pullets and 2 bantam EE chicks from Meyer Hatchery.
2020: Finally, FINALLY found more silkied Cochins to hatch! Hatched more OEGBs as well and some mixes between a Silkie rooster and silkied Cochin hen to test out skin color sexlinking.
2021: Hatched more OEGBs, more silkied Cochins, and some English Orpingtons. Made another trip to Meyer Hatchery for some Barred Rock bantams and Blue Orpington pullets. Ended up coming home with a Cream Legbar pullet as well.
2022: Hatched my first naked neck bantam chick, and more silkied Cochin bantams. Also some smooth Chocolate Cochin bantams.
2023: Hatched a whole ton of silkied Cochin bantams!!
Quick Reference Breeds of my Flocks:
Main flock:
Hens: 2 Cochins (Blue and Splash), 13 Cochin bantams (4 silkied Black, 3 silkied Blue, 1 smooth Chocolate, 2 smooth Mottled, 3 silkied Red), 5 Dorkings (1 Dark Gray, 1 Red, 3 Silver Gray), 4 Easter-eggers, 2 Marans (Black Birchen and Black), 2 Old English Game bantam (1 Fawn Silver Duckwing and 1 Silver Duckwing), 3 Silkie mixes (2 Silkie x Cochin bantam, 1 Silkie x Easter-egger), and 1 each of the following: Ancona, Cream Legbar, Exchequer Leghorn, naked neck bantam, Blue Orpington, Barred Plymouth Rock bantam. TOTAL: 37
Roosters: 2 Cochin bantams (silkied Red and silkied Black), 1 Old English Game bantam (Fawn Silver Duckwing), and 2 Silkies (Paint and White). TOTAL: 5
Ducks: 1 Butterscotch Call
Breeding Flocs:
Hens: 8 silkied Black Cochin bantams, 6 silkied Blue Cochin bantams, 2 silkied Splash Cochin bantams. TOTAL: 16
Roosters: 1 silkied Black Cochin bantam, 1 silkied Blue Cochin bantam, 1 silkied Splash Cochin bantam. TOTAL: 3
Bachelor Flocks:
Roosters: 2 Cochin bantams (1 silkied Splash, 1 smooth Chocolate), 4 Old English Game bantams (1 Fawn Silver Duckwing, 3 Khaki Silver Duckwing). TOTAL: 6
OVERALL TOTAL: 67 chickens and 1 duck
Previously Owned Breeds / Varieties: Amberlink cross, Ameraucana (Blue), Australorp (Black), Bielefelder, Brahma (Light), Campine (Golden), Cochin bantam (smooth Black, silkied Partridge, silkied White), Egyptian Fayoumi, Lakenvelder (Silver), Leghorn (Light Brown), Marans (Splash, Black Copper, 'golden' Black Copper, Wheaten), Orpington (Chocolate Mottled, Crele, Lavender), Plymouth Rock (Partridge, production Barred), production Rhode Island Red, Red Sexlink, Sebright (Gold and Silver), Silkie (Black and Porcelain), Sussex (Speckled), Swedish Flower Hen, Welsummer, Wyandotte (Gold Laced), and several mixed breed chickens
Loved and lost since 2005:
Cub, Chickie, Maddie, Ducki, Smokey, Aspen, Baby, Toasty, Toes, Twisty, Pace,
Olive, Sienna, Ethel, Lucy, Pen, Dot, Rexy, Hawk, Blizzard, Mocha, Tyto, Jubula,
Sunburst, DQ, Flicker, Corella, Martha, Amy, Rose, Betty, Diana, Natalie, Cricket,
Moose, Thomas, Pogonip, Vespa, Marama, Po, Kit, Louise, Georgette, Violet, Sora,
Emmy, Donnie, Gus, Ani, Cordelia, Mabel, Skua, Izzy, Debra Jo, Tilde, Frannie,
Poppy, Trudi, Tiwhiri, Indigo, Iddy Biddy, Josephine, Lady, Echo, Scooter, Mako,
Malcolm, Darwin, Benjamin, Havok, Bumblebee, Nadine, Ihi, Maggie, Margaret,
Altair, Raven, Sybil, Hank, Troll, Diesel, Cressida, Armada, Murphy, Gluttony, Myrtle,
Neela, Winston, Harley, Gus, Callette, Bryony, She Who Sleeps Standing Up,
Huka, Athena, Zinnia, Reinette, Skeeter, Boba, Marka, Vira, Mona,
and my beloved girls, Frou-Frou, Elda, Freema, Rooska, Dandelion, and Abra
And Umru, Vander, Stewpid, Rigby, Ramsay, Lucky, Tygo, Theodore, Charon, Puck, Titan, Oberon, Dante, Toliman, Jasper, and Rufus, who all went to freezer camp, and Omelet, Hika Ma, Buzz, Axel, Russell, Dawson, Rayburn, Bruner, and Jack, who were rehomed, and Scramble, Coffee, Tori, Tyson, Otus, Leo, Castor, and Pollux, who I took care of all their lives, but they were big meanies.
Cub, Chickie, Maddie, Ducki, Smokey, Aspen, Baby, Toasty, Toes, Twisty, Pace,
Olive, Sienna, Ethel, Lucy, Pen, Dot, Rexy, Hawk, Blizzard, Mocha, Tyto, Jubula,
Sunburst, DQ, Flicker, Corella, Martha, Amy, Rose, Betty, Diana, Natalie, Cricket,
Moose, Thomas, Pogonip, Vespa, Marama, Po, Kit, Louise, Georgette, Violet, Sora,
Emmy, Donnie, Gus, Ani, Cordelia, Mabel, Skua, Izzy, Debra Jo, Tilde, Frannie,
Poppy, Trudi, Tiwhiri, Indigo, Iddy Biddy, Josephine, Lady, Echo, Scooter, Mako,
Malcolm, Darwin, Benjamin, Havok, Bumblebee, Nadine, Ihi, Maggie, Margaret,
Altair, Raven, Sybil, Hank, Troll, Diesel, Cressida, Armada, Murphy, Gluttony, Myrtle,
Neela, Winston, Harley, Gus, Callette, Bryony, She Who Sleeps Standing Up,
Huka, Athena, Zinnia, Reinette, Skeeter, Boba, Marka, Vira, Mona,
and my beloved girls, Frou-Frou, Elda, Freema, Rooska, Dandelion, and Abra
And Umru, Vander, Stewpid, Rigby, Ramsay, Lucky, Tygo, Theodore, Charon, Puck, Titan, Oberon, Dante, Toliman, Jasper, and Rufus, who all went to freezer camp, and Omelet, Hika Ma, Buzz, Axel, Russell, Dawson, Rayburn, Bruner, and Jack, who were rehomed, and Scramble, Coffee, Tori, Tyson, Otus, Leo, Castor, and Pollux, who I took care of all their lives, but they were big meanies.
Colors I like to use for headers in articles (since I keep forgetting them):
a45e19 800000
