- Mar 26, 2009
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Yeah, the pods have to be split open, and they shouldn't be sour, they should be more perfumey, like eating flowers. I hope you are successful with your tree!!
Arizona Chickens
- Thread starter paynemom
- Start date
Yeah, the pods have to be split open, and they shouldn't be sour, they should be more perfumey, like eating flowers. I hope you are successful with your tree!!
Arrowroot, a 10 month old Silkie who hatched two chicks at the beginning of January, has gone broody again so I gave her 5 eggs to hatch. 3 are from BC's flock and 2 are from the old flock (5 hens who will be 5 years old in May). I am not sure which of the old hens are laying but one egg is brown (either Thyme or Cumin) and one egg is green (either Clove or Cinnamon as I doubt that Ginger can get up into the nest). Since the old flock free ranges with both BC's flock and Timmy's flock, either rooster could be the sire for those two eggs. These eggs should hatch May 7th.
The two older chicks, hatched in January, we had to put in a pen by themselves last week because they were picking on the blind chick. They are doing well and I am letting them free range with the old flock and Timmy's flock. However one of the hens in Timmy's flock picks on them. They will need to stay in the separate pen when not under supervision until they are bigger.
The blind chick is still doing well and is just a little smaller than its sibling. It is now able to perch on low items and has gotten on top of an 8" block at least once. It is getting around the pen fairly well but does not navigate the steps. We take it out to the pen in the morning and bring it back to the coop in the evening. We keep the coop door closed at night so that it cannot get separated from Tapioca at night. The young chicks are getting their teenage feathers and the two from Timmy's flock are feathering completely black with no white barring unlike their older sibling who looks like a Barred Rock. Since the grandmother hens were New Hampshire and/or Easter Eggers, this is not surprising. Their grandfather was a Barred Rock. The New Hampshire chick is a bit bigger.
Two mornings ago we found one of the 10 month old Silkies, Peppermint, dead under their roost. She seemed fine the day before and had laid an egg as well. I could not find any injuries, abnormal poop, or any other reason for her sudden death. Yesterday I did see Tapioca, the broody Silkie hen with the three chicks, and Marshmallow, the bearded Silkie hen, chasing each other. Marshmallow sometimes picks on the chicks and then Tapioca chases her away. I am beginning to suspect that Peppermint may have been pecked on the head and suffered brain damage. If so, then it was either Tapioca or Marshmallow as the chicks are still small and Arrowroot has been broody for a few days and sits very still. She did not even get out of the floor nest when I slid it out from under the other nests while cleaning the coop looking for clues to Peppermint's demise.
The two older chicks, hatched in January, we had to put in a pen by themselves last week because they were picking on the blind chick. They are doing well and I am letting them free range with the old flock and Timmy's flock. However one of the hens in Timmy's flock picks on them. They will need to stay in the separate pen when not under supervision until they are bigger.
The blind chick is still doing well and is just a little smaller than its sibling. It is now able to perch on low items and has gotten on top of an 8" block at least once. It is getting around the pen fairly well but does not navigate the steps. We take it out to the pen in the morning and bring it back to the coop in the evening. We keep the coop door closed at night so that it cannot get separated from Tapioca at night. The young chicks are getting their teenage feathers and the two from Timmy's flock are feathering completely black with no white barring unlike their older sibling who looks like a Barred Rock. Since the grandmother hens were New Hampshire and/or Easter Eggers, this is not surprising. Their grandfather was a Barred Rock. The New Hampshire chick is a bit bigger.
Two mornings ago we found one of the 10 month old Silkies, Peppermint, dead under their roost. She seemed fine the day before and had laid an egg as well. I could not find any injuries, abnormal poop, or any other reason for her sudden death. Yesterday I did see Tapioca, the broody Silkie hen with the three chicks, and Marshmallow, the bearded Silkie hen, chasing each other. Marshmallow sometimes picks on the chicks and then Tapioca chases her away. I am beginning to suspect that Peppermint may have been pecked on the head and suffered brain damage. If so, then it was either Tapioca or Marshmallow as the chicks are still small and Arrowroot has been broody for a few days and sits very still. She did not even get out of the floor nest when I slid it out from under the other nests while cleaning the coop looking for clues to Peppermint's demise.
I live in Gilbert, AZ, not too far from you. We call our hobby farm Chicken Scratch Ranch.
Keeping your chickens alive during the summer can be a challenge if the weather is super hot with humidity and no wind, which happens sometimes during the monsoon season, between June and August. Chickens need ventilation first and formost above anything else in hot weather. They cool themselves by lifting their wings up and letting air pass under them, as well as with their comb and wattles, by opening their mouths and panting, and with their feet by touching cool areas, perches, or water. Although, be warned that water can be a catalyst for illness and bacteria to spread among chickens. So, instead of wetting their location down, here are some ideas for keeping chickens cool in the AZ summers:
1. Provide shelter in a breezeway, where, if there is wind, it will blow on them and help them to stay cool.
2. Fill as many 2 liter plastic soda bottles more than halfway with water, but not full, with water. Freeze them and place them in the shady spots where the chickens usually lay. That way, they can cool themselves by laying against them. I keep two sets of as many as I need, freezing one set, while cooling the chickens with the other. Then I can start each day with new bottles. It is a little laborious, but worth having live chickens.
3. If they sleep indoors or in a coop, provide fans or a swamp cooler for air circulation. Chickens are creatures of habit, especially when hens become broody. They will sometimes try to sleep in areas that are too hot for them to survive in. If they are smart enough, they will migrate to the coolest places they can find in the summer. If those places are not cool enough, your chickens may not survive. I have a couple of pens for chickens that have a limited amount of shade in the summer. They are great for winter time, but I move the chickens to the coolest pens, which have a barn or lots of shade from trees, and a breezeway. I provide perches in the shade, such as a frame from a round glass outdoor table or frames for lounge chairs without the cushions on them. They perch in the breeziest spot on those at night, and they do very well in the summers because they have a variety of ways to cool themselves.
4. Make sure their water is in the shade, or it will get too hot to drink. I use automatic waterers because it is also too hot for me midday in the summer here in AZ. The auto waterers are gifts from heaven, making caring for chickens in AZ a ton easier! I still have to clean them out from time to time at night, but I don't have to refill them daily like I did when I had refillable waterers.
5. Allow them to graze on grass if you have it. Summer is when the grass grows well here in AZ. Let them forage, as well as feed on organic lay crumble. I am convinced that grassfed chickens are not only healthier, but more resistant to disease and heat.
Hope this helps! Come and see us sometime and pick my brain for any other info you may need. www.chickenscratchranch.net
Keeping your chickens alive during the summer can be a challenge if the weather is super hot with humidity and no wind, which happens sometimes during the monsoon season, between June and August. Chickens need ventilation first and formost above anything else in hot weather. They cool themselves by lifting their wings up and letting air pass under them, as well as with their comb and wattles, by opening their mouths and panting, and with their feet by touching cool areas, perches, or water. Although, be warned that water can be a catalyst for illness and bacteria to spread among chickens. So, instead of wetting their location down, here are some ideas for keeping chickens cool in the AZ summers:
1. Provide shelter in a breezeway, where, if there is wind, it will blow on them and help them to stay cool.
2. Fill as many 2 liter plastic soda bottles more than halfway with water, but not full, with water. Freeze them and place them in the shady spots where the chickens usually lay. That way, they can cool themselves by laying against them. I keep two sets of as many as I need, freezing one set, while cooling the chickens with the other. Then I can start each day with new bottles. It is a little laborious, but worth having live chickens.
3. If they sleep indoors or in a coop, provide fans or a swamp cooler for air circulation. Chickens are creatures of habit, especially when hens become broody. They will sometimes try to sleep in areas that are too hot for them to survive in. If they are smart enough, they will migrate to the coolest places they can find in the summer. If those places are not cool enough, your chickens may not survive. I have a couple of pens for chickens that have a limited amount of shade in the summer. They are great for winter time, but I move the chickens to the coolest pens, which have a barn or lots of shade from trees, and a breezeway. I provide perches in the shade, such as a frame from a round glass outdoor table or frames for lounge chairs without the cushions on them. They perch in the breeziest spot on those at night, and they do very well in the summers because they have a variety of ways to cool themselves.
4. Make sure their water is in the shade, or it will get too hot to drink. I use automatic waterers because it is also too hot for me midday in the summer here in AZ. The auto waterers are gifts from heaven, making caring for chickens in AZ a ton easier! I still have to clean them out from time to time at night, but I don't have to refill them daily like I did when I had refillable waterers.
5. Allow them to graze on grass if you have it. Summer is when the grass grows well here in AZ. Let them forage, as well as feed on organic lay crumble. I am convinced that grassfed chickens are not only healthier, but more resistant to disease and heat.
Hope this helps! Come and see us sometime and pick my brain for any other info you may need. www.chickenscratchranch.net
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I had my husband grab some Grapefruit seed extract from Whole Foods for me. So now I'm wondering how much to use per lb of seed. For those of you who use it in your fodder, how much do you use? Do you put it in the soak water or the rinse water, or both.
I wish I could take him! But I'm down in Tucson.I have a sweet 4 month old Ameraucana* roo to rehome. I call him flame because of his blue and red coloring, he's stunning but I am only keeping silkie roos for now. He's been raised on organic foods and handled a lot so he's friendly.
* I've been told because of his coloring, he is NOT an Ameraucana but that's how the hatching eggs were sold to me by a breeder in Tucson.
I'm north of Prescott.
I really enjoyed your website! What did you mean when you were chosen from 13 families to live on the 2-acre ranch? I really need that kind of help or luck. I rent a .83 suburban home where I can have chickens (and roosters), but no large stock. And I am a horse person! The only way I'll be able to afford to do that myself is to have the ponies at home.
I copied this from a website for future reference and thought I would shareLine Breeding via a Spiral Breeding Program
3 breeding trios of the selected variety
3 breeding pens (minimum), bachelor pen, juvenile quarters
Detailed journal/records
Wing Bands or Toe Punching/Leg Banding to identify birds from hatch
To accomplish spiral breeding, you will need at least 3 breeding pens and a bachelor pen along with grow out pens and at least 3 trios of birds of the variety you are working with. You will also need a detailed journal to keep your records, and the birds must always be identified with at least the pen they came out of and year of hatch. Wing bands can be used as a permanent marking from hatch, otherwise a toe punch system or zip ties may be used to identify the chicks from hatch. Incubate the eggs from different pens separately so that you know which chicks came from which pen. (Using staggered hatching or egg baskets or other means of keeping the chicks separate until they can be marked.)
The following is a toe punch numbering system that may be used. Good records are critical to maintain a properly rotating spiral system. The type of labeling isn't as important as the accuracy and record keeping of knowing what line each bird came from.
Picture
Standard Toe Punch Diagram, allowing for marking of up to 15 crosses, #1 being reserved for birds of unknown parentage.
Spiral Breeding Plan
Form 3 breeding trios. These will form your 3 lines. Label one pen Line A, the second pen Line B, and the third pen Line C.
Year One, make the following crosses:
A x A line male; producing A' chicks
B x B line male; producing B' chicks
C x C line male; producing C' chicks
This is the line breeding year, breeding males and females from the same pen.
A' daughters remain in the A line pen with their mothers, always adding daughters to their mother's pen.
A' sons are compared to their sire and the best A line male is selected for year 2, as are the B' and C' sons.
In this breeding program, the daughters always stay with the pen that produced them while the males rotate to the next pen every other year. (A daughters stay in the A pen, and so on.)
Sons should be compared to their father and the best male selected for the next year's pairings. Keep the males in a bachelor pen, but tagged / marked with the line that produced them so that you can determine which males you are choosing from for each year's pairings.
Year Two, make the following crosses:
Best A line females x Best B line male
Best B line females x Best C line male
Best C line females x Best A line male
This is the outcrossing year, breeding males cross over to the next pen's females.
The year 2 A line daughters are again identified and placed back into the A pen with their mothers.
The year 2 A line sons are identified and compared with their sire to determine the best male(s) for the next generation.
At the end of year 2, all 2 year old birds are retired (the grandparents).
Year 3, the cycle is repeated. Choose the best A line male (from year 1 or 2) and breed to the A best A line females, line breeding for the year.
Year 4, cross over again as in year 2.
Carry on, line breeding for a year, then out crossing for a year. In this manner, the males move over a line every other year.
This is a very old system which has been used to keep enough genetic diversity in a closed line to prevent inbreeding depression. One family reportedly maintained a line of Rhode Island Reds for 90 years using this system with 5 matings each year.
3 breeding trios of the selected variety
3 breeding pens (minimum), bachelor pen, juvenile quarters
Detailed journal/records
Wing Bands or Toe Punching/Leg Banding to identify birds from hatch
To accomplish spiral breeding, you will need at least 3 breeding pens and a bachelor pen along with grow out pens and at least 3 trios of birds of the variety you are working with. You will also need a detailed journal to keep your records, and the birds must always be identified with at least the pen they came out of and year of hatch. Wing bands can be used as a permanent marking from hatch, otherwise a toe punch system or zip ties may be used to identify the chicks from hatch. Incubate the eggs from different pens separately so that you know which chicks came from which pen. (Using staggered hatching or egg baskets or other means of keeping the chicks separate until they can be marked.)
The following is a toe punch numbering system that may be used. Good records are critical to maintain a properly rotating spiral system. The type of labeling isn't as important as the accuracy and record keeping of knowing what line each bird came from.
Picture
Standard Toe Punch Diagram, allowing for marking of up to 15 crosses, #1 being reserved for birds of unknown parentage.
Spiral Breeding Plan
Form 3 breeding trios. These will form your 3 lines. Label one pen Line A, the second pen Line B, and the third pen Line C.
Year One, make the following crosses:
A x A line male; producing A' chicks
B x B line male; producing B' chicks
C x C line male; producing C' chicks
This is the line breeding year, breeding males and females from the same pen.
A' daughters remain in the A line pen with their mothers, always adding daughters to their mother's pen.
A' sons are compared to their sire and the best A line male is selected for year 2, as are the B' and C' sons.
In this breeding program, the daughters always stay with the pen that produced them while the males rotate to the next pen every other year. (A daughters stay in the A pen, and so on.)
Sons should be compared to their father and the best male selected for the next year's pairings. Keep the males in a bachelor pen, but tagged / marked with the line that produced them so that you can determine which males you are choosing from for each year's pairings.
Year Two, make the following crosses:
Best A line females x Best B line male
Best B line females x Best C line male
Best C line females x Best A line male
This is the outcrossing year, breeding males cross over to the next pen's females.
The year 2 A line daughters are again identified and placed back into the A pen with their mothers.
The year 2 A line sons are identified and compared with their sire to determine the best male(s) for the next generation.
At the end of year 2, all 2 year old birds are retired (the grandparents).
Year 3, the cycle is repeated. Choose the best A line male (from year 1 or 2) and breed to the A best A line females, line breeding for the year.
Year 4, cross over again as in year 2.
Carry on, line breeding for a year, then out crossing for a year. In this manner, the males move over a line every other year.
This is a very old system which has been used to keep enough genetic diversity in a closed line to prevent inbreeding depression. One family reportedly maintained a line of Rhode Island Reds for 90 years using this system with 5 matings each year.
Hi all! It's been a VERY long time since I was here last (on BYC period). I have no idea if anyone will remember me...
My life has gotten pretty crazy since I was here last - I've got a total of ten chickens now, 22 turkey poults on the way, a milk cow that just freshened and in November 2013 I had my beautiful baby girl. Things have been crazy to say the least, and that's without this darned heat! Hope everyone is well, and I look forward to catching up!
Glad you're back!
X2!! Post photos if you can
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