A Bielefelder Thread !

[kittydoc]

I am officially a Bielefelder owner! I purchased hatching eggs from @ChickCrazed . Most hatched on Easter Sunday. I have 7 female chicks, and 4 male chicks. The males vary in color a lot--I'll try to get the lot of them in a single photo to post later after my DH (aka "chick wrangler") gets home from work today. Is there a standard for the breed in Germany/Europe that I can view online, by any chance?

My babies hatched from medium-brown, somewhat speckled eggs. Their parents are all from the 2011 GFF imported lot and their descendants, but individual parents came from two different farms.

Later, I'd like to trade cockerels with someone who has different individuals from different breeders, at least, than I do. I know just about everyone is working with the 2011 GFF imports, but you still get some genetic diversity by using birds from different intermediate breeders/owners. I'll wait until the price drops a lot on the 2013 imports, as they inevitably will, before getting any of those.

I don't know if anyone is interested, but I am only going to keep two of the cockerels for now, leaving two available. If you are interested in them, please PM me. I am NPIP certified.

 

[DesertChic]

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!!!!

This is really good to know. I was contemplating Sulmtalers for meat, but with that type of personality I'll definitely reconsider.

 

[DMRippy]

No problem. I have definitely owned worse! Take Sulmtalers for example - YUK! Horrid creatures

Also not in favorite pile - Rhodebars, Isbars, Langshans, Quail, BCMs, for varied reasons.....

Current favorites - Basque Hens, can't say enough good things about them!!! Also nice are Orpingtons, Wyandottes, Breda, and currently my little duckwing OEB pair and bantam Mottled Cochin chicks...too adorable

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.

 

[Ron Skekel]

This is really good to know. I was contemplating Sulmtalers for meat, but with that type of personality I'll definitely reconsider. 

I have sulmtalers and bresse. As far as personality I like the breese they are calm and sweet. Don't ask about taste etc. mine are young so haven't had any meals yet. Pam

 

[Sylvester017]

No problem. I have definitely owned worse! Take Sulmtalers for example - YUK! Horrid creatures

Also not in favorite pile - Rhodebars, Isbars, Langshans, Quail, BCMs, for varied reasons.....

Current favorites - Basque Hens, can't say enough good things about them!!! Also nice are Orpingtons, Wyandottes, Breda, and currently my little duckwing OEB pair and bantam Mottled Cochin chicks...too adorable

I'm glad it's not just me - but we and our friends did not have a good experience w/ Marans. We had Cuckoo and our friends had BCMs. Our Cuckoo was not the best layer about 2-3 / week was her avg and not particularlly dark (#4 egg chart) but that wasn't our reason for rehoming. It was because of the sneaky pecky temperament - seemed all calm around humans but vicious and always challenging to flockmates - pecking order establishment is ok but not if it disrupts the flock or injures another bird. Our friends said their BCMs had nice eggs but the BCMs were too aggressive in their mixed flock and rehomed. Egg Farm said their Isbars from GFF had some sort of bacteria that was causing poor hatchrate and their customers were saying the same so they stopped w/ the program and didn't want to try again w/ GFF's 2nd imported Isbar group. I got feedback from some that Langshans were poor layers. Don't know much about Rhodebar but when I see a Sulmtaler they have a downright mean expression lol - because of their wide breasts and flavor they seem to be more meat birds - Sunbird Farms have mostly meat birds like Sulmtaler, Barbezieux, Bresse, etc. I wasn't impressed with our friend's Buff Orp because of aggression. I watched a video of BO chicks and the 6 of them scurried around in the pen disrupting and pecking their Leghorn chick flockmates and 2 little ducklings that were all minding their own business. Wyans I never had but the feedback has been over 50% negative - mostly too dominant/bullies. Wyans are so gorgeous and I was tempted to get a BLRW but so glad I didn't after the mostly negative feedback on their temperaments.

Bantams are the cutest! Because of bantams' great ability at flight we settled for flightless Silkies because we open range in our yard. We have 2 opposites - one that's a real pistol and the clown of the group and the other is a dainty little lady in every way.

Now I come to the Breda which I have fallen in love with. We got one this past week 4 m/o along w/ a Blue Ameraucana 4 m/o and these two are real sweeties. Someone described the Breda as calm and REGAL and that's the descriptor I like best. Our girl is so sweet she drips syrup! We've also loved Amers for their prolific blue eggs but are yet to see what our Breda outputs since she's our first Breda.

Can you share your reason for not having Quail in your favourite pile? I've been sharing any Quail info w/ a friend who is researching to have some and like me she likes to research breeds before investing. Thx!

 

[johnderosa1]

 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.

Hi Donna, nice to see you weigh in here... I know you are all about production! Have you had your bielefelders long enough to say if they measure up to the hype when it comes egg production, egg size?

 

[RWD]

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.

 

[speedy2020]

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.

Since both group from GFF 2011 bloodline, why they are so difference?

 

[RWD]

Since both group from GFF 2011 bloodline, why they are so difference?

The age difference, and one group is laying and the other one is not. Plus group B is on grass.

 

[RFR of CA]

"Can you share your reason for not having Quail in your favourite pile? I've been sharing any Quail info w/ a friend who is researching to have some and like me she likes to research breeds before investing. Thx!"

Coturnix Quail... easy to raise and mountains of eggs everywhere starting very young (6-8wks!) but again they are way too nervous for me... panic and fly straight up banging their heads at the slightest provocation. I guess I am not into flighty animals

. Also when you handle them they BARF and poop on you on purpose....ewwwwwwwwwwww. Loved the sounds they made and the babies are about the cutest things ever when they hatch. Roosters make the poor hens bald pretty quickly too, but the little fluffed up dance they do and the pleasant "crow" they make was great.
If you like to eat them, the roosters get heavy pretty fast. Eggs are a bit bland and hard to open without a cigar tip scissors.