Recent content by Bill Matthews

  1. Bill Matthews

    The Heritage Rhode Island Red Site

    Check out Central Hatchery in Nebraska.....He has Reds similar to the ones seen on farms back in the 1930s-1950s......Big, Dark Red Birds....Not show type....Fifty chick minimum order I recall....You can find him online....
  2. Bill Matthews

    The Heritage Rhode Island Red Site

    Check out Central Hatchery in Nebraska......While not show winners, they are close to the Old Fashioned Farm Bred Reds of the 1930-1950s......A family hatchery with great service......Great laying chickens and good size also.....Minimum order of 50 chicks, I believe.....
  3. Bill Matthews

    Rhode Island Reds but look very different?

    Was wondering where you got the information to support such sweeping and questionable generalizations?.......... Just to give one among several examples.....Cackle Hatchery New Hampshires and Rhode Island Reds look nothing alike..........The owners of that hatchery say that their flocks date...
  4. Bill Matthews

    Dark Cornish Meat Birds

    There is no one "Best" egg layer or meat bird.....If you want really quick results with the minimum amount of cost and time, get Commercial White Cornish for meat and a hybrid such as Red Sex Links or White Leghorn for eggs......If you want something in between Freedom Rangers or Kosher KIngs...
  5. Bill Matthews

    central hatchery

    Most of the Silgos will be like other commercial Red Sex Links: brown/white pullets, rusty males, with a few dark female chicks.......Seems like the original Silgo or Sil- Go breeders were the Parks Family of Barred Rock Fame........Marti's from MO sold them for years and some of theirs were...
  6. Bill Matthews

    What type of broiler is this?

    Notice the white in the earlobe and leghorn type comb........Thick breast and squat large legs..........Brown eggs....What shade of brown, maybe cream colored?.......Too large for a Leghorn/Leghorn Type Cross but too small for a Cornish Broiler...........Where did she come from...
  7. Bill Matthews

    Can humans get Ascites from chickens?

    Sorry about my answer......Ascites in chickens is retention of cavity fluids caused by organ malfunction......Same in humans, usually liver failure.....While the causes are similar functionally, there is no causal connection between the two......Ascites is an organ function failure not a disease...
  8. Bill Matthews

    Can humans get Ascites from chickens?

    NO!........Google ' ascites'...........
  9. Bill Matthews

    New ad is horrible

    Actually the narrower width is a Blessing.......I hate to read the wider columns because they are unnatural in scope and are not set up to correspond with normal eye movements.....Narrow columns allow us to read and comprehend more easily.........The ads are not a distraction, and if you guys...
  10. Bill Matthews

    White leghorn egg laying questions

    Please ignore what I said about dewormers....Seems that I don't really know what I am talking about.......There is a thread on this forum entitled simply, "Deworming chickens page 4"....These people know more than I do about this....Sorry for the false info......Always been anti-meds except in...
  11. Bill Matthews

    White leghorn egg laying questions

    Your leghorns appear to be considerably less than 16 weeks old.....I do know of a flock of different breeds from Murray McMurray that started laying even earlier than 16 weeks, and they weren't even leghorns.......Also, on the deworming.....I've been around chickens for 73 years.......Unless you...
  12. Bill Matthews

    White leghorn egg laying questions

    White Leghorns will start to lay anytime between 17 and 20 weeks of age.........The surest sign of being ready is bright red, enlarged combs and wattles.......Start them on layer feed about that age.......
  13. Bill Matthews

    Gender of my babies?

    Barred Rock, pullet; RIR ? because of stance; d'Uccle, cockerel; Polish, ?......Not much help .....?
  14. Bill Matthews

    Barred Rock over Barred Rock?

    NO........Some VERY EXPERIENCED breeders may be able to sex the babies from down and shank coloration.....But the average person is deluding himself/herself when they claim to be able to .......However, if you use a RIR or NH Rooster over a Barred Rock hen the chicks can be sexed at once because...
  15. Bill Matthews

    What breed is our free chick from mcmurray ?

    McMurray Hatchry people are real pros....They would never send a bantam alone in a box of large size chicks.....Also, have never heard of them using any bantams as mystery chicks...If anyone lives in a rooster prohibited zone tell them to mark your order NO MYSTERY CHICK....I used "never" twice...
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