donrae
Rest in Peace -2017
I'm going to stick with your first post and address that plan
So, you're going to get 15 straight run BO, correct? Hope for 50/50, say 7 hens and 8 roosters. By time to process you'll have a pretty good idea who your keeper rooster is going to be, so you're good there. I wouldn't process any hens at all, keep them all. You'll either need a separate bachelor pad to house those roosters until processing age, around 20 weeks, or you'll have to take them younger as they hit adolsecence. Housing them all with the hens will make for some very miserable hens, and more fighting amongst the males than if they're housed separate. If you have a tractor for your CX, that would work nicely for housing your roosters as long as it has enough space.
About the silkies....I have bantam cochin hens I keep for this purpose. I keep them separate as my roosters are too darn big for them. If you have a space, I'd do that. It just makes life easier. Get at least 2. If you're already doing a hatchery order, go ahead and get them. If you hit the broody lotto with your BO hens, you can always sell those silkies next spring or whenever. Silkies are one breed that seem to sell well most of the time so I can't imagine you'd have any problem there.
Your brooder set up is exactly how I was taught to brood chicks. It works great! Elevate the water so it doesn't get splashed onto the bedding and you're good to go. Just make sure that shed has some airflow/ventillation.
You'll probably only want the CX in the brooder 2-3 weeks, then out to the tractor. They're very messy when confined!
I'd say get the meaties sooner rather than later, they get heat stressed easily. If you get them soon and plan to butcher say mid-June you should be good to go.
Your heat is going to stress pretty much any chicken breed. We get tons of threads here during the summer about keeping birds cool. Shade, lots of water are basic. Some folks use misters in the coop/run, some set out bottles of ice, kiddie pools, etc. Sometimes hens slow down the laying in the heat of August, they pick back up nicely in Sept.
Overall, sounds to me like you've done some good research and have a good handle on things. IMO hatchery birds are a great way to start out, they're not as expensive as breeder birds so you don't take as big a hit if you lose birds when you're starting out. They're not perfect, but they're a great starter bird and fill a niche most of us want.
So, you're going to get 15 straight run BO, correct? Hope for 50/50, say 7 hens and 8 roosters. By time to process you'll have a pretty good idea who your keeper rooster is going to be, so you're good there. I wouldn't process any hens at all, keep them all. You'll either need a separate bachelor pad to house those roosters until processing age, around 20 weeks, or you'll have to take them younger as they hit adolsecence. Housing them all with the hens will make for some very miserable hens, and more fighting amongst the males than if they're housed separate. If you have a tractor for your CX, that would work nicely for housing your roosters as long as it has enough space.
About the silkies....I have bantam cochin hens I keep for this purpose. I keep them separate as my roosters are too darn big for them. If you have a space, I'd do that. It just makes life easier. Get at least 2. If you're already doing a hatchery order, go ahead and get them. If you hit the broody lotto with your BO hens, you can always sell those silkies next spring or whenever. Silkies are one breed that seem to sell well most of the time so I can't imagine you'd have any problem there.
Your brooder set up is exactly how I was taught to brood chicks. It works great! Elevate the water so it doesn't get splashed onto the bedding and you're good to go. Just make sure that shed has some airflow/ventillation.
You'll probably only want the CX in the brooder 2-3 weeks, then out to the tractor. They're very messy when confined!
I'd say get the meaties sooner rather than later, they get heat stressed easily. If you get them soon and plan to butcher say mid-June you should be good to go.
Your heat is going to stress pretty much any chicken breed. We get tons of threads here during the summer about keeping birds cool. Shade, lots of water are basic. Some folks use misters in the coop/run, some set out bottles of ice, kiddie pools, etc. Sometimes hens slow down the laying in the heat of August, they pick back up nicely in Sept.
Overall, sounds to me like you've done some good research and have a good handle on things. IMO hatchery birds are a great way to start out, they're not as expensive as breeder birds so you don't take as big a hit if you lose birds when you're starting out. They're not perfect, but they're a great starter bird and fill a niche most of us want.
