A Bielefelder Thread !

[Chickielady]

That's awful! You'd think all that German engineering would've made them smarter than that.

Yeah, you'd think so.
The ones I have are supposed to be direct from GFF.

 

[Chickielady]

Yes I have noticed the "bird brain" is overly tiny in this breed too

No accidents though. All I kept from chicks made it to adulthood in one piece.

I only run 7 girls and a rooster bought from GFF last Febuary and get maybe 5+ XL large eggs most days so laying is good. They did quit early in the fall way before molt and way before any other of mine, and refused to lay for months until I gave in and put a light on them around January. Nice thing was that molt was minimal if not long. No balding at all, just feathers everywhere.

Fertility has been high. I put 40 in the incubator 10 days ago and 36 are developing nicely. I do get late quitters on occasion, but no major issues zipping, or problem chicks seen so far (cross beak, stunted growth, retarded feathering, leg deformities, etc.) Most hatch out easily and they are active hardy chicks.

I have had what looked like rye neck in two chicks (out of 60+ so far) at around 4-6 weeks. I think that they grow so fast the tendons and the bones in the neck sometimes don't grow out evenly which bends their necks down severely, but that is just my opinion. I have only seen it in the Bieles. I gave extra liquid vitamins in the water and by mouth, higher protein (32% mixed in feed), and apple cider vinegar, and both recovered with no issues after a few weeks. Whether is was due to my treatments or not, I cannot say.

This is only the first generation from GFF though, so future generations will show the issues that need work more frequently. I would say they are "okay" after my year with them. They are pretty much middle of the road as a breed. Overall, I am personally not happy with the amount of feed they eat compared to my other breeds, their dull temperaments, or their overly long down time, so this likely will be the end of this breed here with us.

I have given Broiler Booster (high vit avain pak) in their water, so far no issue !

 

[Chickielady]

70 degrees? Really? Everything I've read has indicated a much higher, consistent temp above at least 80 degrees.
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2013/01/facts-and-myths-about-fertile-eggs.html

The book
" A Guide to Better Hatching" by Janet Stromberg recommends temps at below 60, with ideal at 50 degrees, and of course turned as they are held.
Above 60, the embryo struggles to life, and that internal timer begins to tick, and after a while, the embryo gives up, leaving you at best, a bloodring.

I LOVE this book, and read it every year ! Even after raising chickens for 40 years !
(OK OK For 50 years.........

)


Optimal egg storage condition After oviposition the development of the embryo which started in the hen’s body, has to be stopped. Therefore the egg should be cooled down below “physiological zero” (26 – 27 °C) (Funk and Biellier, 1944). This process usually happens inside the nest or on the egg belt. If the ambient temperature is higher (which is not uncommon during summer months), delayed cooling may be a problem. In this case eggs should be collected more frequently to assure that the temperature of the embryo is brought down from 40 °C body temperature to 26-27 °C within six hours. A temperature in the 37-27 °C range leads to unbalanced development and hence early embryonic mortality. Too quick cooling may also weaken the embryo. Further research is needed to determine whether this is due to retarded development or other factors (Schulte-Drüggelte and Svensson, 2011)

DesertChic: It seems the web site you have shown, is describing how to tell a fertile egg, and how to develope it into a chick.
What we were discussing is how to prevent the embryo from developing, and proper handling of these eggs until we set them for incubation.
Unfortunately, once the eggs are exposed to warmer temps, that embryo will try to develope, and that is why eggs need to be held under 60 degrees, then warmed breifly at room temps, and then set in your incubator.

 

[Chickielady]

You got me curious, why don't you like sulmtalers?

Yeah, I wanna know too !

 

[Chickielady]

Maybe it was after the 100th time one of them flew straight up and hit me in the face in a blind panic every time I came into the pen to feed them even when I moved slowly and tried not to walk too close to them as if they were wild animals. (I raised them as chicks same as everyone else)

and how they crashed about stupidly breaking feathers and eggs and knocking themselves even more stupid thinking I was going to kill them if I even looked at them sideways

or every time when I did pick one up they screammmmmmeeeeeed bloody murder and pecked my hands HARD

---> flighty flighty flighty...... even the roosters were crazy..... YUK.

Right now I only have two pullets left who are being raised by NORMAL friendly hens instead of their own kind, and they are much calmer. Nervous and dingy still, but not psycho!

Please warn me about any other breeds like this so I DON'T buy any!!!!

I have had that issue with all leghorns to the point where I DELETED THEM in 1 evening.......ahh, all is quiet now, and I no longer have the gashes in my face nor my glasses knocked off & broken everytime I walk into the coop !!
So far, Sulmtaler are not even close to that behavior, but the Biels are NUMB DUMB is the best discription I have.

 

[Chickielady]

Funny.... I will not get anymore Orpingtons or Wyandottes. I like production and I would not say either of those are good producers. I would take Rhodebars (they lay as well almost as my WL) and BCM's anyday. I can't sell Orpingtons locally but I can't hatch enough BCM to sell here. I could make a fortune on Wyandottes if they would lay enough eggs and survive so I could sell them.

If I am going to raise a meat chicken, I raise Cornish Cross.
I LIKE the tender melt-in-your-mouth juicy bird, especially on the barbie.
No dual purpose breed can compete with this nasty little freak, but the fact remains, they are the best eating.

What people want around here is Olive Eggers !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(and/or Easter egger that lay a minty green egg~~~~)
They want breakfast, and the oddity of an olive egg is just a draw to them.................................

and some bird from belgium or Germany or Asia has no impression on them whatsoever !

 

[Chickielady]

In response to the comments about Bielefelders being feed hogs, I just finished a 21 day track of 22% mini pellet feed. There are 2 groups, group A consist of 5 hens and 1 roo all being 23 months old and laying 4-5 eggs per day. Group B consist of 5 pullets and 1 roo all being 23-27 weeks old and not laying but are in a portable coop with access to grass and soil. Group A was fed 73.5 lbs.over a 21 day period which would avg. .59 lbs. of feed per day each. Group B was fed 63 lbs. over the same 21 day period which would be avg. of .50 lbs. of feed per day each. Both groups are from 2011 GFF import but from different breeders. Both groups are fed free choice with feed remaining in feeders each night. Feed cost are $14.50 per 50 lbs. so feed cost per bird in group A = 17 cents per day and group B = 14.5 cents per day.

Impressive !
Mine do not seem to eat anymore than any other birds I have, and a whole lot less than the Jersey Giants and Buckeyes I had.
Their eggs are HUGE, they lay everyday, they are dense, and not a bird I'd let free range as they do not seem to pay alot attention to the world, I'll compare them on the exact opposite of the spectrum from Leghorns.
leghorns being ATTENTIVE and flighty...Biel's are the exact opposite.
My SO says the Biel's were blond in their other life....which I object to, being a blonde LOL......................

You wanna see a pic of recent Biel eggs here ???
Lemme go get my camera~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[DMRippy]

Quote:
Not sure on production yet.... they are taking a break LOL. They are pullets and have only been laying for a few weeks.... Eggs are HUGE and they were laying almost everyday. So far I am sold! I will sell my Rhodebars now.

 

[Chickielady]

Ok I had a few saved for setting in the incubator...so here ya go:


















They are HUGE
I tried to weigh them & keep reading 3-4 oz.....does that sound correct ?
It is a mediocre OZ scale....just wondering

 

[Chickielady]

Not sure on production yet.... they are taking a break LOL. They are pullets and have only been laying for a few weeks.... Eggs are HUGE and they were laying almost everyday. So far I am sold! I will sell my Rhodebars now.