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I am so sorry to hear that. Angela

... I didn't even barely get cooped when some guy was hounding me about the birds, though...wanted to know if I was selling, when I would have chicks, kept pressing me as to when I may have chicks for selling, etc.   I wasn't interested in selling to him, even if I had plenty of stock to sell. ...

Promoting them as high in omega-3s is heart-healthy, and both educated and uneducated customers usually know that much about nutrition. I would worry that "low cholesterol eggs" would draw in the ignoramuses. (I, personally, hate dealing with the general public on my time off.;)) I once read...

Humans REQUIRE cholesterol to be able to form hormones, from thyroid to sex hormones, and to maintain healthy cell membranes. (Damaged cell membranes are the first step in forming atherosclerotic plaques.) Anti-inflammatory fatty acids (mostly the omega-3s,) also help heal damaged cell...

It is much easier to snap a pic with my phone and post on Facebook, so I posted it there. My husband got the basic plans from http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/ASC/ASC189/ASC189.pdf and adapted it to suit us. Specifically, he used different fence panels, different wire on the ends, and made a...

I would rephrase your statement to "you can't make progress if you can't hatch any. My first year's stock laid in the weeds, roosted at the top of a 2 story barn, and were only seen after dark, with a flashlight. My second year I had almost 100% fertility, but only 15% of the eggs developed...

You give me hope. For over 35 years, my "happy chicken daydreams" revolved around Silver Gray Dorkings. I gave up on them after 3 years of disappointment in the quality of the stock I was able to procure. I am currently working with Blue Laced Red Wyandottes, learning a lot and having fun...

Sharpie-dots are probably a LOT easier than dyeing an entire chick.

I have used numbered zip ties, blank zip ties and wing bands, and like them all, for reasons already cited by other thread members. I, too, pair mate and keep the eggs from each pair separated during hatching. I use a Sharpie pen to color a dot on a yellow-downed area of the chicks, and combine...

Yes, that is how I understand the barring gene works. If I remember correctly, Campines have autosomal barring, not sex-linked barring. (The males and females are the same "darkness" right?) Angela

No, but the barring gene is on the same chromosome as most of the feather-growth-rate genes. There are fast, medium, slow and very slow feather-growth-rate genes. Getting the tiny, crisp bars of the exhibition-strain Barred Rocks requires the barring gene plus the very-slow-feather-growth gene...

Quote: Here is my (purely theoretical) opinion, based on my reading, not on actually owning any of the strains in question. As I understand it, it requires the barring gene plus at least one slow-feather-growth gene to make the crisp barred look of a show/SOP Barred Rock. If you combine the...

In researching lacing earlier this year, I learned that eb, Brown (from the NHs) is the basis for most single and double lacing, as well as partridge/pencilling. Obtaining a single-laced bird like your female also requires the pattern gene, (BR, begins the lacing,) melanizer, (BR, completes the...

BLRW project update: The last time I posted about this, the "blue" family of offspring were pleasing while the "reds" were less so, and fully one-third of the red chicks exhibited genetically recessive disqualifying traits. I decided to never repeat the red mating, and swapped breeding partners...

Possibly because recessive sex-linked traits will manifest in the hemizygous female offspring, while they would be cloaked in the heterozygous males? that's my guess, anyway. Angela

I remember reading that nugget from Mr. Blosl. My recollection is that he was focused on increasing egg production, first and foremost. When he had accomplished that, he realized he had simultaneously tightened up the feathering in his flock. He then deduced that egg production was somehow...

Broody hens only leave the nest to poop and drink once every few days, so if you see a hen off the nest, she is NOT broody. Incubators are more reliable than most hens these days. I do have a reliable Dorking hen, and am hoping the bantam Cochins will also make good foster mothers. So far, my...

My applicator pliers work great.

You can wing band anytime, but I found it easier to do when they were about a week old. They were small enough to easily handle alone, but the wing web was bigger and easier to correctly position.

Congratulations to Ms. Consol, Ms. Joyce, Mr. Leonard and Mr. Anderson for the high-quality article on Delawares in Backyard Poultry. (I read it yesterday.) Angela