Bantam chickens.. a friendly discussion about all pure and mixed breeds.

[Delaneygraces]

You're more than welcome!

Ah, that was my other guess. There's nothing more attractive than a rooster who's equally gorgeous inside and out. He's your only OEGB roo?

~Alex

I have him, then another Lemon Blue roo! Since his legs are so short (compared to moderns at least lol) I’ve named him Lord Farquadd from the Shrek movie!
I lost his LB hen, and sold the other brown red, and he is solely for showing/companion now. This Brown red rooster has 3 hens (1 br and 2 LB) for breeding. They are from a breeder who raises shows big time!
They are all so sweet

 

[Arbutus Peregrine]

I have a pair of Millie fleur d'uccle hens, some mottled, blue splash, calico, and black cochins as well as some mixes. I also have 2 bantam Easter eggers.

I think my Bantams that were called Blue Dutch and Blue Rosecomb are actually Blue Splash. Or maybe as they get older they get darker? Either way I love them as they are. I hope you post some pics of your birds!

 

[Arbutus Peregrine]

Very cute. I have around 6 little boys that I will move out of my bantam coop and integrate into my standard flock when they get a little bit older. I like the little stinkers. They go good with standard hens generally.

I'm installing branch perches in my run (I put up two yesterday) and am deciding on other fun run enhancements. If anyone here has fun things in their run that their birds enjoy, can you please post photos? So far the steel dust bath tub is not to their liking (!) but the perches seem to have been received well. I just need lots more! Thanks!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

My apologies....or not. I wonder how this could affect coop plans?

Awww, Cochins are awfully cute in their own puffy way. I've raised some myself, but sadly, they weren't Eagle Nest stock (look who's been spoiled ).


Sick? Of peep pictures? Naaaaaah.

Coop plans have changed big time. I'm now considering getting a 4x8 ft shed kit and adding a middle wall and floor to divide it into four 4x4 coop sections. I should mention this may have been spurred along by discovering Silver Crele OEGBs a couple days ago while thinking about your SDW x Crele babies. Add Crele to the list of my must-have varieties. I'm absolutely hopeless.

Ah, I see. I love my li'l Cochin bantams, such sassy little round munchkins.

We'll see on the pictures. I have a tendency to go WAAAAY overboard. My own thread has pages of just me replying to myself with pictures around baby season, I take so many of them. It's a serious problem.

Another thing....bantams are SNEAKY. Either they're hiding out on a secret nest of 100 eggs, or they flat out disappear on me. This past couple days, I've been searching for my Vampire, who I was certain had been killed in broad daylight. (despite the fact no remains were discovered)
But guess who decided to come waltzing out of the corn field last night? I squeezed her purple chubbiness for pure joy!

~Alex

I have never actually had that happen with my bantams, it was one of my LF Barred Rocks and my crazy Campine, Ihi, who disappeared into the woods to lay eggs every day when they were younger. When I finally found Ihi's hiding place, she had found an opening in the fence along the road and was laying eggs in the ditch. That bird truly wanted to give me gray hairs in her youth.

The bantams are experts at getting out of the chicken yard before free-range time, though, or at least the teeny-tiny ones (not so much the Cochins or Silkies). Vega and Altair, the two FSDW OEGB pullets, just love to find the weak points in the fence, and then they come walking up to me like nothing's wrong, halos at full power, when I go out to open the gate for the other birds. Little stinkers!

Vampire is so pretty! Is she a Buckeye bantam?

 

[Arbutus Peregrine]

Well the SQ hen Betty got 3rd place in junior division at a bantam show
And also got BV, BB, and best in class
She is a very sweet hen and is going through a very tough molt and isn’t laying a single egg and a handful of feathers fall out when I stroke her.
She is a purebred Mille fleur D'Uccle hen I got from a breeder

She is really beautiful! I got my birds from a hatchery but many seem like really nice quality. My Sebrights especially have turned out so nice (IMHO). The cockerels were stunning and the pullets just keep getting prettier. I can tell my Golden-laced Cochins are of varying "standard" quality, but I feel like I got really wonderful birds from a hatchery. I don't know that I'd do that again... but I'm loving these birds so much. I've never had purebred anything...just animals from shelters or found animals...but I always wanted Bantams so I felt like getting chicks in the mail was the way to go. Not being able to keep the boys is breaking my heart, so I don't think I'd do it again. I would love to show and breed if I had a farm. Good luck with your gorgeous show birds!!

 

[Arbutus Peregrine]

What a beauty! Does she enjoy a good chat, too? I've found my d'Uccles to be quite talkative....they have loud opinions about everything.

~Alex

Yes! She is a talker... ah heck, I think they all are! I LOVE THEIR NOISES!! The D'Uccle cockerels have VERY LOUD crows!! My Sebright cockerels (whom I rehomed) also were very loud. My 3 MF D'Uccles are the sweetest cuddliest little girls and very chatty. But honestly, so are the Blue Rosecombs and the two Dutch varieties I have. They all have unique noises! Even my Sebright girls want to be cuddly, they are just a little nervous. They sit on me and want to be near me. Also, two of my three Cochin Bantams have gotten very very cuddly. I'm hoping with time they will all be cuddlers. My cockerels are all really sweet but my D'Uccle boys are very nervous birds. I guess one of them is braver, but it does surprise me since the girls are so lovey. I have a tiny Dutch cockerel who is very tame and cuddly. He tried to die the first three weeks of his life, so I think all the extra attention really paid off.

 

[Arbutus Peregrine]

Oh, boy, I think I'd seen them mentioned in other posts, but haven't tried them out. Is this their website? http://eaglenestohio.com/ And if so, am I reading correctly that they only sell bantams as assortments, or do they offer them individually? 'Cause if I have to get an assortment of a bunch of different bantams, I'll be in even more trouble!

Precious Blue Red girls, and soooo beautiful! I guess I'll have to share my Fawn SDWs now. Achernar is the first cockerel (hubba hubba, right? View attachment 1943672 ) and he's hopefully going to make some gorgeous babies next spring, either more FSDWs or F1 crosses with one of the other varieties I mentioned if I'm able to find them.

View attachment 1943666


My two pullets, Altair and Vega. You can probably tell by her picture, but Altair's a bit sassier than her sister. She also likes to pull Vega's tail feathers, hence the broken feathers in poor Vega's picture.

View attachment 1943667 View attachment 1943670


And Rigel, who is a Khaki sport out of my Fawns, but boy is he pretty! He and his other brother (not Achernar) got into a fight a short while ago and his face has been blotchy with white like this since, so I'm assuming that's scarring.

View attachment 1943668

Holy Moly! Those birds are GORGEOUS!!!

 

[Arbutus Peregrine]

Here are my babies

WOW! Really beautiful birds! Love the babies under the mamas!

 

[Arbutus Peregrine]

Just in case you needed more justification to get moderns...


I mean they even sleep cute!!
View attachment 1943990 View attachment 1943991 View attachment 1944012 View attachment 1943992 The babies are so tinnyyyy. And look at their proud little stance!!View attachment 1943994
And man are they noisseyyy!View attachment 1943996 View attachment 1943997
look at his stride!!!View attachment 1943998 View attachment 1943999 View attachment 1944000 View attachment 1944001 Boys from this year ^View attachment 1944003 View attachment 1944004
And of course my gals at their show

and this random English boy, I’m in love with him!!

View attachment 1944014
Case closed. You need moderns

These birds are SOOOO fancy and pretty!!!
I think it's so fantastic there are so many varieties! Everyone can have favorites and they can all be the best!

 

[Arbutus Peregrine]

Coop plans have changed big time. I'm now considering getting a 4x8 ft shed kit and adding a middle wall and floor to divide it into four 4x4 coop sections. I should mention this may have been spurred along by discovering Silver Crele OEGBs a couple days ago while thinking about your SDW x Crele babies. Add Crele to the list of my must-have varieties. I'm absolutely hopeless.

Ah, I see. I love my li'l Cochin bantams, such sassy little round munchkins.

We'll see on the pictures. I have a tendency to go WAAAAY overboard. My own thread has pages of just me replying to myself with pictures around baby season, I take so many of them. It's a serious problem.







I have never actually had that happen with my bantams, it was one of my LF Barred Rocks and my crazy Campine, Ihi, who disappeared into the woods to lay eggs every day when they were younger. When I finally found Ihi's hiding place, she had found an opening in the fence along the road and was laying eggs in the ditch. That bird truly wanted to give me gray hairs in her youth.

The bantams are experts at getting out of the chicken yard before free-range time, though, or at least the teeny-tiny ones (not so much the Cochins or Silkies). Vega and Altair, the two FSDW OEGB pullets, just love to find the weak points in the fence, and then they come walking up to me like nothing's wrong, halos at full power, when I go out to open the gate for the other birds. Little stinkers!

View attachment 1946273


Vampire is so pretty! Is she a Buckeye bantam?

What pretty girls! I see they have little leg bands. I'd like to put leg bands on my Sebrights and Blue Rosecombs because it takes me FOREVER to tell them apart... and THEY HAVE NAMES!! I have to call them their correct names! But the others are a lot easier to tell apart! I've looked at leg bands and unsure about sizes and if it would attract pecking from other chickens. What advice do you have?