Arizona Chickens

[igorsMistress]

Wishing you speedy recovery,,
Have you been burning the Yule Log?

Thanks Cavey, I’m definitely getting better!

We didn’t have a Yule log this year and celebrations were pretty minimal just TJ keep it simple. How about you? Did you have a wonderful time with your family?

 

[cavemanrich]

Thanks Cavey, I’m definitely getting better!

We didn’t have a Yule log this year and celebrations were pretty minimal just TJ keep it simple. How about you? Did you have a wonderful time with your family?

We did indeed have a Joyous time with whole family over by our house.
The little snow that was present 2 days earlier,, all melted. I'm fine with that. I do like the roads to be safe for everyone's Holiday Travels.
17 people total, including children, and Myself and DW.
2 days celebration.
Christmas Eve Supper.
Christmas Day dinner. After dinner we exchanged gifts.
I did quite a bit of baking.
Also made trays of baked goodies to share with neighbors.

Here is a quick jump to baking thread where I posted my bakes.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/any-home-bakers-here.921333/post-28260890

 

[igorsMistress]

We did indeed have a Joyous time with whole family over by our house.
The little snow that was present 2 days earlier,, all melted. I'm fine with that. I do like the roads to be safe for everyone's Holiday Travels.
17 people total, including children, and Myself and DW.
2 days celebration.
Christmas Eve Supper.
Christmas Day dinner. After dinner we exchanged gifts.
I did quite a bit of baking.
Also made trays of baked goodies to share with neighbors.

Here is a quick jump to baking thread where I posted my bakes.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/any-home-bakers-here.921333/post-28260890

That sounds like a wonderful time, I’m so happy for you!

I will check out the goodies, thanks so much for sharing.

 

[EmmaDonovan]

It looks like Inspire Farms in Mesa has changed their business model.

They used to have hatch dates on their web site and you could order two or more chicks of any particular breed.

Now you can only special order chicks with no hatch date, and they have a minimum of five per breed (!).

They also used to sell chicks eight weeks and older, roos/cockerels, and established laying hens, and those categories are gone.

Does anyone know why they changed? We're happy with the chicks we got there last March. All females, healthy, good layers. I was thinking of getting two cream legbars and maybe one or two others in the spring but five more of any breed would be too many for us.

 

[EmmaDonovan]

Happy New Year Arizonans!

How are your flocks doing? What are your plans for this year?

Our hens decided to molt more just as it's getting colder. We are getting fewer eggs these days but it's okay with us if they need a break. They started laying on July 29th and we've had a total of 1130 eggs since then. That was more than we expected!

We're currently replacing all the tarp roofs on the temporary pens so they'll be protected against winter rain and any snow we might get. The tarps need to last until spring. We're also adding a Cozy Coop to their roosts. I know technically they don't need it but with this late molt I want to provide it for anyone who might want a bit of warmth.

This month we are finally beginning to rebuild our permanent coop and run that were destroyed by last summer's tornado. It's going to be slow going and will take us about three months to complete.

The new run will be about 260 sq. ft. and will have ten cement anchors to keep it in place during storms (we hope).

We'll have room for some additional hens. The breeds we're considering are California whites, welbars, brown leghorns, brown stars, buff rocks, and cream legbars. We're specifically looking for breeds that can handle the heat well. Egg production is secondary to that.

Anyone have experience with those particular breeds and know how they do with our brutal summers?

 

[cavemanrich]

They started laying on July 29th and we've had a total of 1130 eggs

 

[EmmaDonovan]

Is anyone familiar with Gallinaceous Hatchery in Tonopah? They have hundreds of free range and free breeding chickens (and turkeys). They started with standard recognized chicken breeds in 2017 and let them free range across ten acres. The resulting chickens are genetically diverse with excellent heat tolerance and robust predator avoidance skills.

With all of our predators in the desert I would not have thought such a thing were possible. I know of a guy in Florida who did the same thing, bought standard breeds and turned them loose on his property. Over the years they've developed into a huge flock of very smart and fast birds. I figured that's possible in Florida because they have a ton of dense foliage so free-range chickens have a lot of protection.

I'm putting off getting new birds until the fall (too much going on right now). Gallinaceous doesn't sex their chicks so all chicks are straight run, which is not for us because we can't have roosters, but you can also buy laying hens 20+ weeks old. Heat tolerance is my top priority for chickens so these hens might be a good option.

Has anyone purchased from them?

 

[igorsMistress]

Is anyone familiar with Gallinaceous Hatchery in Tonopah? They have hundreds of free range and free breeding chickens (and turkeys). They started with standard recognized chicken breeds in 2017 and let them free range across ten acres. The resulting chickens are genetically diverse with excellent heat tolerance and robust predator avoidance skills.

With all of our predators in the desert I would not have thought such a thing were possible. I know of a guy in Florida who did the same thing, bought standard breeds and turned them loose on his property. Over the years they've developed into a huge flock of very smart and fast birds. I figured that's possible in Florida because they have a ton of dense foliage so free-range chickens have a lot of protection.

I'm putting off getting new birds until the fall (too much going on right now). Gallinaceous doesn't sex their chicks so all chicks are straight run, which is not for us because we can't have roosters, but you can also buy laying hens 20+ weeks old. Heat tolerance is my top priority for chickens so these hens might be a good option.

Has anyone purchased from them?

I have never heard of them but this is great info! Thanks for sharing.

I have five chickens and three ducks, all hens. I made all the changes last year, but I think I’m done with birds when this crew is gone. I want to move out of the area sooner rather than later.

 

[EmmaDonovan]

I have never heard of them but this is great info! Thanks for sharing.

I have five chickens and three ducks, all hens. I made all the changes last year, but I think I’m done with birds when this crew is gone. I want to move out of the area sooner rather than later.

Where would you like to move to?

I need to be back on a coast. The desert is too hard on me physically. It gets harder the older I get.

I've been looking at property in several states, mostly Texas and Florida. I'm not planning on moving for another three or four years, though.

We got a used Honda minivan and I had planned on packing it with camping gear and doing a driving trip earlier this year to look at coastal communities across several states but so much happened that I had to put it off. I'm just watching the markets and saving money for now.

 

[igorsMistress]

Where would you like to move to?

I need to be back on a coast. The desert is too hard on me physically. It gets harder the older I get.

I've been looking at property in several states, mostly Texas and Florida. I'm not planning on moving for another three or four years, though.

We got a used Honda minivan and I had planned on packing it with camping gear and doing a driving trip earlier this year to look at coastal communities across several states but so much happened that I had to put it off. I'm just watching the markets and saving money for now.

I would like to move north, even north in AZ would be ok. I love the forest, but with fires and stuff we’re just not sure yet.

I’ve packed my car with gear and checked out a few places, Flag and Sedona areas so but haven’t found quite the right thing and those places are so expensive! The Globe area is also beautiful but the crime statistics are so so. I haven’t done any trips this fall/winter because we had a lot happen as well, but we need to hang on a few more years here. I understand the desert getting to you more as you age, I’m having the same issue. Who knows, maybe we’ll just buy a van and go on the road for a while until we find what we like.