B.Y.C. Dorking Club!

[ki4got]

Quote: Were you losing adult chickens? We lost 2 Modern Bantam hens and 3 chickens that were around 3-4 lbs. Set traps out and caught the same cat twice and let it go until it occurred to us it could be the CAT killing the birds! That cat won't get set loose the next time.
What size were the birds you lost? I wonder how many people assume it's raccoons (I did, too) when really it's cats?
i'm pretty sure they were coons that got mine... they pulled chicks thru 1" welded wire. the cats' paws are bigger than that.

 

[dncarr09]

Ok, let me clarify. When I say that I took care of the neighbor’s cat I didn’t kill it or anything. I don’t want PETA sending me hate mail lol. About a month ago I came home one evening from school, I am a college student, and I forgot to close the door to the chicken tractor, and the next morning I came out and something had killed 9 of my 5 week old chicks that were in there. It didn’t eat them or anything, just killed them and left them. I suspected that it was the neighbor’s cat, but couldn’t prove it. This time I caught the neighbor’s cat in the act, but it was too late. It killed my 5-6 week old SG cockerel that I was referring to. I let my little ones out to graze, and put them up at night, but this was during the day. I really liked the cat, but wasn’t going to tolerate him killing my chickens. I gave him to a family member who wanted him. My neighbors wouldn’t do anything to keep him up so I made him do a disappearing act. But he disappeared to a good home.

Were you losing adult chickens? We lost 2 Modern Bantam hens and 3 chickens that were around 3-4 lbs. Set traps out and caught the same cat twice and let it go until it occurred to us it could be the CAT killing the birds! That cat won't get set loose the next time.
What size were the birds you lost? I wonder how many people assume it's raccoons (I did, too) when really it's cats?

 

[greenhorn]

Were you losing adult chickens? We lost 2 Modern Bantam hens and 3 chickens that were around 3-4 lbs. Set traps out and caught the same cat twice and let it go until it occurred to us it could be the CAT killing the birds! That cat won't get set loose the next time.
What size were the birds you lost? I wonder how many people assume it's raccoons (I did, too) when really it's cats?

We lost 1 adult rooster and 1 young bird. Can't say 100% the cats were doing it but we haven't had any problems since we quit catching cats.....

 

[pysankigirl]

I took one of my pullets to the vet this afternoon. I now have a $75 dorking pullet.
but I like her. she's a sweetie. and she was a trooper...no freaking out or anything and he gave her two shots

one of my friends at work's father used to work for perdue when she was a kid. she thinks it's hillarious that I took my chicken to a vet.

.

 

[Sydney Acres]

i'm pretty sure they were coons that got mine... they pulled chicks thru 1" welded wire. the cats' paws are bigger than that.

If you've got your chickens in pens, that's the classic finding when raccoons are your predator -- heads or feet or wings or chicks pulled through wire that you thought was protective. A friend of mine had a serious raccoon problem before I got my first chickens, and told me to attach 1/2" hardware cloth to any wire were a chicken could be within reach of a raccoon. So far it's worked great, and I've got lots of raccoons on the property.

I've never had a problem with cats killing my chickens, but if you've got timid chickens and really confident cats I guess it could happen. I introduce my chicks to my cats when the chicks are 4-5 weeks old. My cats are very aggressive hunters, but they also understand a firm "NO!" So as they stalk a few chicks they are told to stop, and as they do the chicks become quite confident. After a week the chicks are starting to flare their hackles or flap their wings and as they do that the cats get startled are back away. The chicks are then confident and pretty soon are chasing the cats all over, with encouragement from me. Once they're doing that, they are allowed into a dog/coyote proof area, but there are several stray cats that do wonder in. The chicks thinks of them as prey, and confidently chase them en masse, and those cats run. Now, admittedly, the chicks have been intentionally set up for success. I have no doubt that any cat could kill the chicks, and that a good feline hunter could even kill an adult rooster. But this technique has worked quite well for me so far, just by taking advantage of the natural behavior of each species and working to enhance it. I do not think, however, that it would be effective at night, if chicks are not adequately protected during that time, when any cat would have a huge advantage against even a large bird.

Thank you, dncarr09, for finding a humane solution to your situation. I would do anything to protect my chickens, but I have to admit that your original post made me a bit uncomfortable. Thank you for the full explanation

 

[greenhorn]

Sounds quite a bit like my recent experiences. The chickens were left to rot, the culprit did not eat the birds or try to pull them through our fence.

The cats also got relocated to good homes, that's one of the reasons we use live traps.

 

[HallFamilyFarm]

A bit off topic, but does anyone know who raises Dorking Bantams?

One of our local parents wants them for herself. Her boys have Salmon Faverolles and Jersey Giants. Her husband wants large fowl Malays. But she wants Dorking Bantams.

 

[capayvalleychick]

A bit off topic, but does anyone know who raises Dorking Bantams?

Jim Parker. I'll PM you his email.

 

[dncarr09]

Ok, I have been fortunate enough to find some more Dorkings locally. As some of you may have seen my earlier posts looking for a new roo because mine was terrible quality. I couldn't believe that I found some about 20 minutes away from me. I was only looking for a roo, but this person needed to thin down there herd and offered to sell me the roo of my choice plus 3 hens for only 25.00. I was very excited to say the least! Then the more I got to talking to him he decided to give them to me. He said that he really didn't care about the money, that he just wanted them to have a good home was his main concern. These dorkings are 5 months old and I need some advice on picking out the best roo possible. The ad was posted on Craig’s list and he said that I was the only normal person that had responded to him and that he could tell I would take great care of them. I need to know what the main things are that I should be looking for as far as a quality roo goes? These are 5 months old, and I get my pick out of about 5 or 6 roos. Above are the pictures from craigslist, and I will post new pictures when I get them. I just need some expert advice on picking out the very best possible. I know some things to look for, but not compared to most of you guys! Thank you!
!

 

[capayvalleychick]

I need to know what the main things are that I should be looking for as far as a quality roo goes? These are 5 months old, and I get my pick out of about 5 or 6 roos.
!

I posted a silhouette back on post #2409 to show correct type. That should give you an idea, although 5 month olds are not going to be as filled out yet. The Dorks in those photos look older than 5 mths.

Make sure that you quarantine all birds that you buy, to avoid introducing any diseases, parasites etc. to your flock. If you are serious about breeding, you should buy a copy of the APA SOP. There's lots of helpful information, not only in the breed description, but in the first section of the book, to help breed & select better birds.