A Bielefelder Thread !

[Candy442]

He weighs about 7 lbs right now. Do you know how much they should weigh? The comb can be worked on pretty easily I think. But that straight back would probably be more difficult I would think. Thanks for your input. I am going to hatch only his chicks come spring

 

[TNBielefelder]

They should weigh 10-13lbs at maturity and yes he has a nice back. I believe you will have some nice chicks off him and your pullets come spring!

 

[Sylvester017]

I have always had a lot if trouble growing grass, the chickens sure aren't helping, lol. I soaked the ground and threw down some grass seeds, next day they had eaten all the grass seeds. They aren't going to have any grass to forage in, it costs to much water in this dry place to keep it growing well.

Make a raised vegetable garden bed (we purchased a couple that were 4-in tall) and make a wire screen for the top. As you water your sown seeds and they grow thru the screen the chickens will eat the greens without being able to dig up the roots. Worth a try. Everybody's chickens are different about what they like. I sprout seeds indoors for a couple days and then feed it to the chickens. They go nuts for the delicate sprouted green shoots. I don't give it to them everyday so that it's special when they get it. They love Spring when all the new sprouting weeds in our backyard are small and sweet and full of plant protein.

 

[Zinniah]

Make a raised vegetable garden bed (we purchased a couple that were 4-in tall) and make a wire screen for the top. As you water your sown seeds and they grow thru the screen the chickens will eat the greens without being able to dig up the roots. Worth a try. Everybody's chickens are different about what they like. I sprout seeds indoors for a couple days and then feed it to the chickens. They go nuts for the delicate sprouted green shoots. I don't give it to them everyday so that it's special when they get it. They love Spring when all the new sprouting weeds in our backyard are small and sweet and full of plant protein.

Thats a great idea, because my chickens eat everything, except for leaves from the trees and the bushes. Do you think chicken wire would work for the top?

 

[Sylvester017]

Thats a great idea, because my chickens eat everything, except for leaves from the trees and the bushes. Do you think chicken wire would work for the top?

My experience is that chicken poultry wire is useless and too weak to support weight. Perhaps green rubber-coated rabbit fencing criss-crossed across the top of the raised garden bed would be sturdier, or even a single layer 1/2-inch hardwire is best if you can afford it. The sharp edges of wire will have to be covered with strips of wood or some kind of finish so chicken feet don't get hurt on the unfinished edges of wire. Wire will always be the MOST expensive cost of chickeneering. I use a 50-ft-long roll of rubber-coated rabbit fencing around the yard to keep the chickens segregated from my veggie garden. They can easily fly over the 2-ft fencing but respect the barrier. They follow the rabbit fence wherever I happen to move it from season to season.

 

[Zinniah]

My experience is that chicken poultry wire is useless and too weak to support weight. Perhaps green rubber-coated rabbit fencing criss-crossed across the top of the raised garden bed would be sturdier, or even a single layer 1/2-inch hardwire is best if you can afford it. The sharp edges of wire will have to be covered with strips of wood or some kind of finish so chicken feet don't get hurt on the unfinished edges of wire. Wire will always be the MOST expensive cost of chickeneering. I use a 50-ft-long roll of rubber-coated rabbit fencing around the yard to keep the chickens segregated from my veggie garden. They can easily fly over the 2-ft fencing but respect the barrier. They follow the rabbit fence wherever I happen to move it from season to season.

I googled both, i think i will use the 1/2" hardware cloth, it would cost about the same as the double rabbit fencing. I found a seed mixture just for chickens called PVFS Omega-3 Chicken Forage Blend, it looks like really goof stuff, going to buy it when i get the raised bed built!

 

[Sylvester017]

I googled both, i think i will use the 1/2" hardware cloth, it would cost about the same as the double rabbit fencing. I found a seed mixture just for chickens called PVFS Omega-3 Chicken Forage Blend, it looks like really goof stuff, going to buy it when i get the raised bed built!

Hope it all works out for you!

 

[Bine]

Quote: Well I am not a judge but I think, that he is very promissing, too. All the right colors in all the right places, no single white/black/red feather clear cockoo strips and yellow beak and feet. He will hopfully put on some more weight and broaden/deepen his chest a little. With the wings I am not sure, since he is in motion on the pics. Maybe you can put him on a table and see if the wing line is parallel to the back line. His comb and his wattle will perhaps grow a little bigger, too. But that is not a problem as long as the comb does not lean to one side and the comb-base broadens, too.
A side note: We always look at the roosters but to find good hens with the right colors, a salmon colored chest, golden neck feathers with clear cockoo dots and a compact body with a large egg belly is as difficult to find and as important as a good rooster. If the coloring of the hen isn't good you risk the autosexing funktion and if her bodytyp is wrong you may have problems with the eggsize or health.

And o/c I am happy to hear that not all birds have problems with hot summers. Remember the breeders here can not select for heat tolerance. Hot summers are an exception.
But you can select for heat tolerance the same way you select for body type and color.

 

[jbkirk]

Ok, finally got pictures of both my boys. This is Fritz. I believe he is very pretty and so far no sprigs. My other older cockerel, Franz, was born in December. He is a real sweetheart, but has sprigs and not the long straight back. I will be keeping him around anyway.

Fritz born March 2015: Please * @Bine especially!! let me know what everyone thinks of his coloring, body shape, comb, etc.

One thing that I noticed right off was that his comb doesn't follow the the shape of his head (from what I've read not so good), though he doesn't look to have any white or blurred tail feathers

 

[TNBielefelder]

One thing that I noticed right off was that his comb doesn't follow the the shape of his head (from what I've read not so good), though he doesn't look to have any white or blurred tail feathers

They normally do not show their white tail feathers till after their first or second molt. Blurred barring seems to show first but there are exceptions to the rule but that seems to be the trend. And the combs should follow the shape of the head which would give it more height and arch and the points of the comb should never exceed half the height of the comb. Very interested in how this guy finishes out!!