Australorps breed Thread

[RoseMarie1]

Yes, I do drain it for awhile in a small holed Tupperware colander before spreading it out on the glass plate. My DH found a plant pot that the plate fits perfect in and he stabilized it with rocks inside as it was fairly light. Didn't want them to knock it over. He got the idea from my water set up I made with a plant pot & glass bowl very similar. I like this system as I can easily clean it all daily avoiding any mold as I explained earlier. (NW wet marine climate). Below is a pic I took to share with you. I have it set under an old plastic table for shade protection.



My BA's are getting so big and pretty. 15 weeks old ~Dee~

are you kidding? Mine fling it around and I drop it etc. but they clean all that up. They almost lick their bowls.

 

[8machines]

are you kidding? Mine fling it around and I drop it etc. but they clean all that up. They almost lick their bowls.

I am going to try it stsrting next week. Our feed store has some really healthy grains in a 75# bag and I'd like to try. It will be easier than trying to find all if the ingrediants seperate. I love this thread!!! You are super neat people.

 

[RoseMarie1]

I am going to try it stsrting next week. Our feed store has some really healthy grains in a 75# bag and I'd like to try. It will be easier than trying to find all if the ingrediants seperate. I love this thread!!! You are super neat people.

I'm serious, if I drop some trying to get it into their bowls they will eat that as well. When I am standing there trying to fill their trough they fling it on me to and some of them will get it off my leg or my foot. lol They are a hoot with this stuff. When I say there is no waste with this, there is NO waste. I can wipe my scoop off on the poultry wire I have over their trough and they will even clean that up as well. It's a hoot.

 

[DeesHens]

Dee,
Forgive me if you have already said this, but what are they eating? Do you free feed or feed a few times a day?
You said pacific nw weather ... Are you perhaps in Washington? Trying to see which bird breeds do well up here, before I get my heart set on one breed that doesn't do well up here.

Jordann

Hello Jordann.
No problem. I feed my hens fermented non GMO organic grower from Scratch n Peck. Great stuff being local grown and all. Yes, I do live in NW Washington state. This is my first year with BA's but I am sure BA's will do great here from everything I have read about them. The biggest deterrent I experienced was how difficult it is to find BA's locally. I ended up purchasing hatchery chicks from Privett Hatchery sent to our Farm Store. If you can incubate eggs you have a better chance of getting them from a breeder. Seems for the most part they don't like to mail chicks or if they do you have to order 25 or more. I couldn't travel but I heard there is a BA breeder south on I-5 and east of Battle Ground. I didn't look further into it though. I had contacted our state poultry association and they gave me what they knew. Not much. LOL Nice folks though. You could go to the county fairs that are scheduled for Aug. and Sept. and probably find out more speaking with the poultry folks there.
~Dee~

 

[DeesHens]

Dee you ferment their food to? Mine are also huge and tomorrow they will be 3 months old. Folks that see them cannot believe they are only 3 months old because they look like grown chickens already.

Yep. I do.
You mentioned yours clean up after themselves. "little piggies" LOL I dunno, I guess mine are spoiled brats and overfed so they do not.

So that leaves me cleaning it up before it molds. I found some they threw out growing light gray fur and I was very alarmed then so began my quest for a better feeding system. So far so good!

I wash their dishes every night with vinegar and hot water to kill anything and wipe down the plant pot stand with vinegar. Otherwise slugs come to feast and make a mess. Wooden troughs and the like just did not work well for me as feed would get in the cracks, etc. and grow mold. Anyway, I can't bring wooden troughs in the house to wash in the tub. LOL Our mornings are foggy until almost noon these days and then our evenings are windy, cold and often foggy too. Just a few hours of sun in the afternoon before the wind starts blowing to cool things off again. Needless to say, I don't own many summer clothes as I don't need them. I can't stand heat so I am happy here.
I find my BA's cluck when they are startled now. Mostly when they talk to me they do their cute honky sounds which I adore. Hoarse voices have always pulled my heart strings for some reason. LOL ~Dee~

 

[RoseMarie1]

Yep. I do.
You mentioned yours clean up after themselves. "little piggies" LOL I dunno, I guess mine are spoiled brats and overfed so they do not.

So that leaves me cleaning it up before it molds. I found some they threw out growing light gray fur and I was very alarmed then so began my quest for a better feeding system. So far so good!

I wash their dishes every night with vinegar and hot water to kill anything and wipe down the plant pot stand with vinegar. Otherwise slugs come to feast and make a mess. Wooden troughs and the like just did not work well for me as feed would get in the cracks, etc. and grow mold. Anyway, I can't bring wooden troughs in the house to wash in the tub. LOL Our mornings are foggy until almost noon these days and then our evenings are windy, cold and often foggy too. Just a few hours of sun in the afternoon before the wind starts blowing to cool things off again. Needless to say, I don't own many summer clothes as I don't need them. I can't stand heat so I am happy here.
I find my BA's cluck when they are startled now. Mostly when they talk to me they do their cute honky sounds which I adore. Hoarse voices have always pulled my heart strings for some reason. LOL ~Dee~

I use a vinyl gutter trough for mines food that I made. I bought the ends for it and put them on it. I did have to cut it off some though. lol I keep saying mine are lil pigs to.

 

[Jordann]

I really like scratch and peck ... Can't beat local, either! Off to see what feeding chickies fermented food entails. A few feed stores around me get the Australorps in regularly, or will order for me, so I have done my research there. Making friends with the feed store owners now, so next year when I ask for a special order with their order, they won't mind .... Or we will order online ourselves. We are getting 10 plus 10-15 just meat birds, for us and a few friends. I have heard ordering from hatcheries doesn't give you pure bred chickies, but as with my other animals I don't mind a mixture. As long as they're healthy, fertile, and broody, I'm happy. (please don't shoot me! )

My husband doesn't know it yet, but we will be going to the puyallup fair to see the chickies.

 

[RoseMarie1]

Quote:
same here..... I don't mind a mixture just as long as I get some good eggs.

 

[RoseMarie1]

This BA is 3 months old as of the 9th of this month. Is this a cockerel or a pullet?




This is number 7 a cockerel. I really like the way he looks so I might have to keep him.
.



Then another one of #7.



A couple of these cockerels were fighting this evening and I was TRYING to get a pic of them bowed up at one another but didn't get one.

 

[CB and CG]

Hi,
Your BA is a cockerel.