The rooster is inside for the duration of this storm. He has a huge comb, so that might be why he has frostbite, or maybe it’s something else. He has Marek’s and some neurological issues, and often shakes his head around, so maybe his comb gets wet when he drinks water. Everyone else seem fine...
With hot and humid summers, I do not have an enclosed and protected coop. The coop is set in the trees, is fully covered with a metal roof, with hardware cloth sides. The roost area is protected on 3 sides (hardi siding) and open to the coop on the south side.
Breed wise I have a mix of...
Here are my hen and rooster at similar ages. There was never a question that Blue was a cockerel, which was what I requested. Andie didn’t have as much red, and her hackle feathers were more rounded - miss that bird. She was a character.
This is my third Andalusian from McMurray and she is much closer to my hen than to my rooster, but I’m worried that she might be developing hackle feathers. Almost 15 weeks old.
I’ll post pictures of my hen and rooster at a similar age in the comments.
She is great - curious and friendly. I'm happy with all of these chicks - the only biting has been them trying to eat the wedding ring "worm".
The attacking chicken is my one year old Andalusian rooster. He still attacks; more lately because we haven't been letting them free range after a hawk...
10 weeks - feathers are rounded, some of their flock mates have pinked up, and their comb is still on the pink side of red. I am thinking that they are a pullet.
He’s not unfriendly but his brain short circuits and he attacks. He seems just as surprised as us when he attacks. Mostly I hold still when he’s eying me until he remembers that I’m not a threat, and then we are good.
Quite a bit of pink on this chick’s command I am seeing the beginnings of wattles. I know 3.5 weeks is too soon to know, but I’m betting on cockerel. Bad news for my Andalusian rooster who occasionally thinks about attacking us, and sometimes follows through.
She remains the smallest of my chicks. Yesterday I noticed that her eye was injured - maybe pecked by another chick. It’s better today.
More concerning is that she continues to have pasty butt blockage. My brooder might be overcrowded - I moved all but the WLRC and Legbar to an outside pen...
I ordered a WLRC from McMurray and she is the tiniest chick. The description says she will weigh 8 pounds when mature but I wonder if she is a bantam. I have a cream legbar that is also small, all of the other chicks are significantly larger.
Anyone have experience with the breed from McMurray...
I purchased my first pullets from a local breeder. They came with Marek’s. Losing all but 2 over a period of 4 months was awful. I couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong; why they were dying. I also trust the sexing from a hatchery more than a breeder.
But if we don’t have a high rate of...
I have lost so many chicks and chickens this last year and a half. Started with two Rottweilers that killed 4 of our 7 pullets/cockerels and one hen. Lost half of the replacement chicks to USPS rough handling. Lost the last couple of 9 year old hens, and 2 of the 3 surviving 3-year old hens...
Y you our friend could search this forum for “hawk deterrent”. My property is heavily wooded; lots of undergrowth to hide in. I also added a rooster to my flock this year - I suspect he chased the hawk off. Maybe the jerk won’t be going to freezer camp after all. I haven’t heard of anyone doing...
Yes, hawk attacks are a problem for free range chickens. We usually have several attacks a year but luckily haven’t lost any hens. Last attack was 2 days ago - I suspect our cockerel chased the hawk away. The hawks will go for the hen’s eyes. You can see how much damage it did to Cleo’s...
So sorry that you lost him. We had a dog attack right after we moved our pullets to the coop and lost 4 of 7, plus an older hen. My 3 remaining pullets are still skittish, probably always will be. I’m still traumatized. One of my chicks was super friendly and I feel like I failed her.
I love...
I did not have Welsummer in my order. They came the week after the Amazon Prime event - between the heat and possible rough handling, or something wrong in my setup, I lost 4 the first week: Ancona, buttercup, Phoenix, white faced black Spanish. My understanding is that TBW is a mixed breed with...
I’m seeing pink wattles. 90% sure this is a cockerel. I have three survivors in this batch; the other two are an Andalusian cockerel and a golden Campine pullet. The TBW’s legs have always matched the Andalusian’s, as has his size. The GC is smaller and more delicate. We have heard some crowing...
Sorry for the late response. She was my sensitive child’s favorite hen and seemed happy enough, just that her legs were paralyzed. Healthy appetite, bright eyes. So we made her a box to give her some time, with the expectation of euthanizing her as she declined. We did have to bathe her...