BDutch's bantam flock & natural breeding projects #5 🪺 🪺 and #6

[BDutch]

That light colored chick, what is it?

A light coloured Dutch bantam.
I think its Pile, also called Red shouldered. But I’m not sure because the egg with the R didn’t hatch. And and egg with the letter G for Geelkoekoek - (buffcuckoo) did. But looking at the colour of the chick I think that the young men who sold them to me made a mistake with marking the eggs.

Site pages with these two Dutch colours:

https://www.hollandsekriel.nl/hollandsekriel/kleurslagen/witpatrijs

https://www.hollandsekriel.nl/hollandsekriel/niet-erkende-kleurslagen/geelkoekoek

 

[Grandmas Coop]

Left the premises this morning for a short vacation. Its all up to the broodies and my dear neighbour now the following days. So probably no updates until next week.

did any of your other hens or rooster pester/ chase the broody hens when they took a time off the nest?

 

[BDutch]

did any of your other hens or rooster pester/ chase the broody hens when they took a time off the nest?

Yes they did sometimes. I suppose a broody gets real low in the pecking order for being broody. Or the other hens are jealous or agry with the ‘other’ behaviour.

After the chicks hatch the broody gets a whole other kind of chicken. On of the hens (Janice) gets ferocious when another hen or person is coming too near to a chick.

 

[BDutch]

Some recent pictures and pics of today.
on a branche in the run.

Silver Dutch male

Pile (red shouldered) male /female? And a bantam Vorwerk.

The bunch on the grass.

And on the luxury seat.

 

[fluffycrow]

View attachment 3534187Some recent pictures and pics of today.
on a branche in the run.

Silver Dutch male
View attachment 3534130

Pile (red shouldered) male /female? And a bantam Vorwerk.
View attachment 3534136

The bunch on the grass.
View attachment 3534185

And on the luxury seat.
View attachment 3534186

Lovely little birds

 

[Grandmas Coop]

Yes they did sometimes. I suppose a broody gets real low in the pecking order for being broody. Or the other hens are jealous or agry with the ‘other’ behaviour.

After the chicks hatch the broody gets a whole other kind of chicken. On of the hens (Janice) gets ferocious when another hen or person is coming too near to a chick.

I'll tag you in my thread

 

[BDutch]

Yesterday I contacted the seller of some of the hatching eggs.

He’s not sure but suspects the 2 red Sussex are a boy and a girl.

Yesterday I gave the mama’s and chicks chopped grasses. Scattered some very small stones in the run too to digest the grass in case they need it.

Two of the Vorwerks.

 

[BDutch]

Almost a week later. The broodies wonder of more often and leave the chicks by themself.

The chicks get an hour on the grass each day and enjoy a few more meters behind the run. One or two of the broodies immediately jumps over the rabbit fence to free range. The first days the escaped broody clucked to the chicks that she found some food but they don’t do that anymore so often now.
We have to stay near to avoid that the chicks jump out of the run. Some regularly try or do so.

When I open the door to let the hens free range, one or two of the broodies come along too nowadays. And its not always the same broody that stays with the chicks. About the same is happening now if they roost. There are two broodies that stay with the chicks and a third broody sleeps on the roost with the hens in the larger extension of the coop.

A few chicks started to roost in the little coop for the night. Because its so warm they don’t need the mama’s anymore for the warmth.

We still don’t trust the big wide world outside for the little ones. This week I found a dead blackbird 2 meters from the cage with feathers scattered around. And my husband found a young blackbird between the terrace and the coop. The chicks are 6 weeks now, but the soze of them is still comparable with a blackbird. The Dutch chicks even a bit smaller .

Katrientje on the swing :

Apple time:

Kraai:

Kraai was broody for a few days. She claimed a nestbox but the mama’s got annoyed and there was a lot of fuss with the chicks. Glad she stopped after 2 attempts to sleep in there.

The chicks are happy with the shade in the run. Last week is was warm and sunny. Each day about 30 C.

 

[MaryJanet]

Kraai has wonderful colouring.

 

[BDutch]

yikes, I just found a few large and a number of small blood lice in the control roll for lice detection. In the nest where the chicks sleep.

So today a big cleaning action.
And after that a big layer of sand with diatomaceous earth and just a little layer of shavings on top in the nestboxes. DE paint everywere were the chickens can touch the walls.

Kraai has wonderful colouring.

It is a porcelain colouring, lacking the white. The link goes to the page of porcelain Dutch on a site for standards (breeds and colouring). http://www.kippenencyclopedie.nl/php/index.php?title=Bestand:Hollandsekriel_Porselein_hen.jpg