Arizona Chickens

[cavemanrich]

Everybody can't afford/or want that big juicy steak, so the next go-to is chicken and/or fish.

I agree with you totally.. We eat a lot of chicken and turkey. We eat it for health benefits as well. I do not eat my chicken though. They are pets only. We are CITY SLICKERS. I only have a few. One barbecue would wipe out my whole flock.......
This is ALL of them...

 

[Bobby Basham]

Everybody can't afford/or want that big juicy steak, so the next go-to is chicken and/or fish.

I agree with you totally.. We eat a lot of chicken and turkey. We eat it for health benefits as well. I do not eat my chicken though. They are pets only. We are CITY SLICKERS. I only have a few. One barbecue would wipe out my whole flock.......
This is ALL of them...
View attachment 1215325

Yeah, you got some slim pickings there. They don't look like a bunch of meat birds for sure. I bought my chicks for egg production, but if they happen to turn into pets, then so be it. When it comes to the end of their laying cycle, then I need to make a decision as to whether keep them as beloved pets or just go ahead and process the free loaders. It's sort of a tough tradeoff.

 

[Bobby Basham]

Here is the problem with this. These are just personal thoughts.
BTW there is a person that developed a variety all her own, and its not flying off the shelf. At least no Hatchery is interested in taking it over.
(you read all the post here so you may remember her, The ones that look similar to the Swedish Flower, only smaller.) If I was closer I would already own 2 pullets.
So in order to cash it in BIG, one would have to develop A SUPER CHICKEN, and it would have to be STERILE. This way only you have the formula, and breeding stock in your possession.
The reality with chickens is............ Buy a few of the desired chickens and breed them your self.
Those peeps do not return to you for more purchases very often.
Of course there are breeders that do well with their line of chickens. They breed to SOP. They work hard at it. Their volume does not match those of the large hatcheries.

Yes, I remember her with the boyfriend that wanted her to give up everything and move to Hawaii, and travel all around the world. I commend him for wanting to travel with the one he loves, but it's still selfish on his part, and I'll leave it at that.

 

[FeatherPugs]

Yeah, you got some slim pickings there. They don't look like a bunch of meat birds for sure. I bought my chicks for egg production, but if they happen to turn into pets, then so be it. When it comes to the end of their laying cycle, then I need to make a decision as to whether keep them as beloved pets or just go ahead and process the free loaders. It's sort of a tough tradeoff.

I have one girl that will be 7 in January and 5 or 6 that will be 6! Then there are those that are 4 & 5........ I'm looking to get quite a few chicks this Jan/Feb to work with this "aging flock aka pets" of mine. My egg $$ people have dwindled! If I had the dollars and sense it took I would find me a giant 5 acre lot (preferably already fenced in) full of shade and start a sanctuary for those old girls (okay & boys!) and just let them enjoy, enjoy, enjoy.

 

[DesertChic]

A
Anyone notice chicken eye color change during molt?

The only time I've noticed a change in eye color is when they advance from juvenile to adult, which may or may not coincide with molt.

 

[DesertChic]

Here is the problem with this. These are just personal thoughts.
BTW there is a person that developed a variety all her own, and its not flying off the shelf. At least no Hatchery is interested in taking it over.
(you read all the post here so you may remember her, The ones that look similar to the Swedish Flower, only smaller.) If I was closer I would already own 2 pullets.
So in order to cash it in BIG, one would have to develop A SUPER CHICKEN, and it would have to be STERILE. This way only you have the formula, and breeding stock in your possession.
The reality with chickens is............ Buy a few of the desired chickens and breed them your self.
Those peeps do not return to you for more purchases very often.
Of course there are breeders that do well with their line of chickens. They breed to SOP. They work hard at it. Their volume does not match those of the large hatcheries.

You're referring to Sommer Prosser up in the Phoenix area...creator of the Aloha Chicken (and it's NN counterpart). I'm actually getting some of her NN/Aloha chicks just after the start of the New Year to go along with the Lavender Australorp and Swedish Flower Hen eggs I'm hatching (surprise Xmas gifts from my husband). Hopefully I can work with her birds to not only perpetuate her hard work, but maybe also add more size to them. If all goes well, the two of us may be able to combine our efforts to increase awareness and demand for her NN/Aloha crosses at the very least.

 

[DesertChic]

Bobby, I am not interested in selling mine to hatcheries. I only sell to individuals who live in my state who want what I have. I do not plan on having some big operation.

I'm in the same boat as you. I've worked for only three years on creating my "perfect" breed for this climate, but my focus has been on heat tolerance for production birds that supply an abundance of eggs AND a substantial amount of meat. Dividing my NNs into two lines helped me accomplish that. I love shipping hatching eggs to others who appreciate this breed, but I've no interest in selling to hatcheries. My birds are perfect for our dry, over-heated desert, but may or may not fair well elsewhere. When you become truly dedicated to a set of breeding ideals, selling only to others who truly appreciate your efforts has a certain appeal to it.

 

[DesertChic]

I have one girl that will be 7 in January and 5 or 6 that will be 6! Then there are those that are 4 & 5........ I'm looking to get quite a few chicks this Jan/Feb to work with this "aging flock aka pets" of mine. My egg $$ people have dwindled! If I had the dollars and sense it took I would find me a giant 5 acre lot (preferably already fenced in) full of shade and start a sanctuary for those old girls (okay & boys!) and just let them enjoy, enjoy, enjoy.

I'm preparing to start culling down some of my 3-year old birds because of light laying....but I have so many birds here already with more about to hatch out that it's necessary for me to keep the soup pot stocked, irrespective of sentiment. That was the deal I made with my husband when he gave me the okay to start this. That said, there are two roosters here who've been officially "pardoned" by both of us. They're just too amazing and affectionate to be anything other than pets. So far I've only got a couple hens that approach that level of affection, and my little Silkie hen, who I expect will be bossing around the bigger birds long after she's stopped laying. She's just too darn cute to cull.

 

[BlueBaby]

I'm in the same boat as you. I've worked for only three years on creating my "perfect" breed for this climate, but my focus has been on heat tolerance for production birds that supply an abundance of eggs AND a substantial amount of meat. Dividing my NNs into two lines helped me accomplish that. I love shipping hatching eggs to others who appreciate this breed, but I've no interest in selling to hatcheries. My birds are perfect for our dry, over-heated desert, but may or may not fair well elsewhere. When you become truly dedicated to a set of breeding ideals, selling only to others who truly appreciate your efforts has a certain appeal to it.

Really? Do you have some nn blue hatching eggs? I know here I go again, and I might have to pull my incubator out again! But I want to put some blue egg genes in with these new crosses that I hatched out last.

 

[DesertChic]

Really? Do you have some nn blue hatching eggs? I know here I go again, and I might have to pull my incubator out again! But I want to put some blue egg genes in with these new crosses that I hatched out last.

The lavender Australorp eggs are still in the incubator, but I fully intend to cross them with my NNs. Nearly all of my girls have been slow to return to laying after a very hard season of molt this year, so I haven't done any NN breeding yet. I have a pen of girls set up for focusing on black, white and blue NNs and NN crosses as soon as they're all laying consistently.