2021 Chick Order

[JacinLarkwell]

Here's my two (hopefully) pullets.

One looks kinda like she might be from a WLR hen too, but the other you can see almost looks like she's got patches of laced feathers and patches of mostly white (she does have a patch on her back missing, whatever took my 3 from this pen I think almost snagged her. She had some scabs and brusing when I moved them)

 

[NatJ]

One looks kinda like she might be from a WLR hen too, but the other you can see almost looks like she's got patches of laced feathers and patches of mostly white

Those patches dos seem a bit odd, but it looks to me like she could well have come from the White Laced Red hen.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Those patches dos seem a bit odd, but it looks to me like she could well have come from the White Laced Red hen.

It is possible. I have 3 WRL hens and at their lay date, only had one Dark hen, so the odds are against the dark eggs being the chosen few

 

[NatJ]

It is possible. I have 3 WRL hens and at their lay date, only had one Dark hen, so the odds are against the dark eggs being the chosen few

What roosters?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

What roosters?

Just my WRL boy

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Sigh

My little peanuts didn't put themselves away tonight. Found 2 of the 4 (thankfully at least the 2 I was planning to keep anyways). 1 was literally just sitting in the middle of the yard in the dark and asleep, and the other came calling when the 1st started calling when i woke her up.

Hoping the others are hiding and that I don't have that coyote back

 

[NatJ]

Just my WRL boy

Oh, I was assuming White Laced Red mother and something else father.
With the father being White Laced Red, I'm not sure which hen to guess is the mother-- could probably be WLR or Dark.

She's pretty anyway, although quite heavy on the white and not much red.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Oh, I was assuming White Laced Red mother and something else father.
With the father being White Laced Red, I'm not sure which hen to guess is the mother-- could probably be WLR or Dark.

She's pretty anyway, although quite heavy on the white and not much red.

We have one hen that's more a white laced buff than red, but she doesn't have the patches of darker lacing like these do.

We also have a hen that seems to throw defects nearly every chick (dwarfism and hydrocephilus so far) so the odds are almost more 2:1 since they have nothing wrong

 

[JacinLarkwell]

But I have 2 more dark pullets now, so next year the odds will be 3:3, or 2:3 if I consider the one throwing defects will continue. Normally I'd cull her, but she's basically an outdoor pet. I might just use food coloring for her next year and determine for sure it's her (we think it is because she is heavier than our male so we're thinking she has something up with her. No hard evidence though honestly)

 

[NatJ]

We also have a hen that seems to throw defects nearly every chick (dwarfism and hydrocephilus so far)

if I consider the one throwing defects will continue. Normally I'd cull her, but she's basically an outdoor pet. I might just use food coloring for her next year and determine for sure it's her (we think it is because she is heavier than our male so we're thinking she has something up with her. No hard evidence though honestly)

That's definitely interesting. Can you recognize the eggs that hatch defective chicks? Or would you have to use food coloring (or a separate pen) to know which hen laid which eggs, then hatch them and check the chicks for defects?