A Bielefelder Thread !

[DCchicken]

I am going to keep all of them. They have really grown on me. Let's just hope that their food consumption slows down so that I don't have to take out a second mortgage just to pay for their food. Thanks for the advice everyone.

 

[TNBEARCHICK]

Mine eat a lot I have 3 of them in an A frame tractor that I have to move every other day compared to my other 4 every 4-5 days.

 

[texas75563]

From chicks up until they are adults (6 to 8 months) they do eat a lot. They put on weight a lot quicker than the rest of my chickens. Now that they have reached their weight, food consumption is just slightly more if any than my other chickens.

This was something I wondered about earlier myself.

 

[TNBEARCHICK]

I was hoping they would slow down.

 

[elizmartin]

From chicks up until they are adults (6 to 8 months) they do eat a lot. They put on weight a lot quicker than the rest of my chickens. Now that they have reached their weight, food consumption is just slightly more if any than my other chickens.

This was something I wondered about earlier myself.

Appreciate your observance. With the cost of feed nowadays even when supplemented with refer and garden scraps one hopes their favorite charges are not eating them out of house and home.

Another question, anyone know how they are in the forager department? Some poultry are great on their own, others need lots of supplementation and help.......

 

[bayocum]

elizmartin,
We have had our since late February, and during that time they have been allowed to free range a significant amount of time. Their permanent housing is an open-bottomed tractor. We have found them to be good foragers. They may not be the best we have, but when they are allowed to get out and scrounge for their own keep, it drops feed consumption by about half. The roosters tend to be on the look out quite a bit, while the hens go about their business. Given their size, I would highly recommend ranging these birds as much as possible. Hope that helps.
Best,
Brice @ SF

 

[bayocum]

.....

You can see the difference in the size of bilefelder eggs vs isbar

Great picture!

 

[Omegahillsfarm]

Just had our first bielefelder hatch this week. So far 5 out of 5 have hatched. Looks like 3 Roos and 2 Hens.

I'll try and post pics tomorrow when they leave the hatcher and go into the brooder.

Will have another batch hatching next weekend.

Man, I need a bigger incubator

 

[TNBEARCHICK]

elizmartin,
We have had our since late February, and during that time they have been allowed to free range a significant amount of time. Their permanent housing is an open-bottomed tractor. We have found them to be good foragers. They may not be the best we have, but when they are allowed to get out and scrounge for their own keep, it drops feed consumption by about half. The roosters tend to be on the look out quite a bit, while the hens go about their business. Given their size, I would highly recommend ranging these birds as much as possible. Hope that helps.
Best,
Brice @ SF

Ours are currently in an open bottom tractor hopefully next year they will get a coop and a large run to free range in. We have to many predators to trust expensive birds loose while we are not home. So free ranging for favorites and expensive are at least somewhat confined. I guess its kinda like a thief nothing is predator proof but I can sure slow them down. I agree mine go crazy when I move the chicken tractor to a new piece of grass, you would think it was Christmas and they were 8 years old.

 

[familypendragon]

Has anyone bought eggs from this listing and had them hatch? http://www.rarebreedauctions.com/au...elder-chicken-hatching-eggs&auction_id=115859 I am trying to determine if I've been scammed :/ It would be so easy. Shortest distance on hatching eggs ever to me and not so much as one attempted to vein up at all. I cracked a bunch and saw no sign of fertility but ? maybe I am wrong?? I know people only get rated on packing so it would be easy to pack a bunch of non-fertile eggs of whatever breed with similar egg color really well, throw in lots of extras - charge a really low rate to make people feel they are getting a great deal... You would get great ratings but never deliver any actual chicks to the recipients. I was told they must have been x-rayed or something. Literally these eggs were in perfect shape when they arrived - not even a loose air cell. He told me I should buy a male from GFF myself and buy a New Hampshire hen and that all their chicks would be pure bred Bielefelders. If its really that easy... then I would believe he would have shipped me good eggs. But then I read the Rhodebar thread (all 105 pages at the time) and saw that the same seller was caught lying on ebay saying they had Rhodebar eggs from GFF stock but GFF had only shipped its first chicks a little before that time and they said there was NO WAY. So makes me wonder what is really going on :/ Sorry to sound like Nancy Drew here, but I hate to feel like I was taken advantage of just because I trusted that site for some reason... I know most of the breeders advertising on there but I didn't know this person.