Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[Mi Ranchito]

Cock-a-doodle-do !!
The birds have been saying it since dirt.

That's funny!

 

[3riverschick]

Hi,
I need some advice from experienced breeders, please.
I am not quite sure the best approach to a developing situation. In 10 days, the 7 eggs hatch in the Brinsea. I have two choices:
1. Take the 7 chicks and set up the brooder in a warm room in the vacant apartment. Let them grow up there for 6 weeks until
it is time to put them in the grow-out pen. ( By then, March's chicks will be re-homed or moved to the big coop.
2. Move the chicks whom March is currently raising ( they will be 6 weeks by then) from the big coop to the grow out house
( 3x4 coop with 4x8 yard). Give the 7 new chicks to March to raise? Will she even accept them?
I am finding it difficult to get all the timing right on shifting all the birds around. It is harder than dogs because we never had
litters this close together and never had to make the transitions the incubator to brooder to grow-out pen to big coop
with overlapping groups of births.
Thanks for our help!
Karen

 

[Pozees]

Female dog would be real confusing since dog means male [in the canine world].

So right

 

[Zanna]

Hi,
I need some advice from experienced breeders, please.
I am not quite sure the best approach to a developing situation. In 10 days, the 7 eggs hatch in the Brinsea. I have two choices:
1. Take the 7 chicks and set up the brooder in a warm room in the vacant apartment. Let them grow up there for 6 weeks until
it is time to put them in the grow-out pen. ( By then, March's chicks will be re-homed or moved to the big coop.
2. Move the chicks whom March is currently raising ( they will be 6 weeks by then) from the big coop to the grow out house
( 3x4 coop with 4x8 yard). Give the 7 new chicks to March to raise? Will she even accept them?
I am finding it difficult to get all the timing right on shifting all the birds around. It is harder than dogs because we never had
litters this close together and never had to make the transitions the incubator to brooder to grow-out pen to big coop
with overlapping groups of births.
Thanks for our help!
Karen

Without addressing your questions exactly, I try to keep things as simple as possible and may not do things how others do but it has been working for me for several years. That being said, at the moment I am single mating 1 cock, 1 cockeral, 1 hen and 3 pullets. I am setting eggs in my incubator every 7 - 14 days depending on room and eggs to set. When the chicks hatch, anywhere from 10 - 20 chicks, they stay in a large tote for a few days in my house so I can toe punch, keep a close eye on them and cull any that are not thriving, have crooked toes, etc. Then, they go to the brooder, I have two large ones in a horse stall. Every hatch I do the same and end up with usually 3 batches of chicks in the same brooder. I always incorporate the new chicks at night, I use the 50 chick ecoglo heat plates (the 20 chick one in the house), slide them underneath and everyone wakes up in the morning one big happy family. My brooders have roosts and ladders in them so they get used to roosting. When the youngest group of the bunch is fully feathered and depending on climate outside (usually 5 - 6 weeks old) I take them out and set them on the roost at night in my main layer coop. Never had any incorporation issues. Main layer coop birds free-range all daylight hours so babies usually have the coop to themselves during the day until they start venturing out, usually takes a month or so. Again, is working for me and may give you some ideas.

 

[Pozees]

Hi,
I need some advice from experienced breeders, please.
I am not quite sure the best approach to a developing situation. In 10 days, the 7 eggs hatch in the Brinsea. I have two choices:
1. Take the 7 chicks and set up the brooder in a warm room in the vacant apartment. Let them grow up there for 6 weeks until
it is time to put them in the grow-out pen. ( By then, March's chicks will be re-homed or moved to the big coop.
2. Move the chicks whom March is currently raising ( they will be 6 weeks by then) from the big coop to the grow out house
( 3x4 coop with 4x8 yard). Give the 7 new chicks to March to raise? Will she even accept them?
I am finding it difficult to get all the timing right on shifting all the birds around. It is harder than dogs because we never had
litters this close together and never had to make the transitions the incubator to brooder to grow-out pen to big coop
with overlapping groups of births.
Thanks for our help!
Karen

My own recommendation is that only March can decide when she is done brooding the current chicks, at which point she will begin to lay again. At that time I think you really would want to re-introduce her to Junior unless you are not happy with the chicks she hatched and raised, assuming they are hers (and if you actually want to re-home them, we need to talk).

Also, here in CO at least, chicks should be out from under heat at 4 weeks, especially Sussex - I know PA weather can differ dramatically, and maybe it is just too soon for them there due to later warm-up and higher ambient humidity, but here if I don't have the heat lamp off by that time, I start to wonder if I have a weak group. I raise the lamp a few to several links of chain every 2-3 days as soon as they start spreading out or resting/sleeping away from the lamp. Hen raised chicks might still seek the Hen's warmth every so often at that age, but they have already been spending time outside and are overall hardier.

Your brooding plan for the Phoenix is genius but only works if they are all broody at the right time, which is the universal problem with using broodies to hatch. It is still a superior method, but the timing part is a drawback that you can't control, and you may wind up having to incubate some eggs. I'm not familiar enough with Phoenix to know how iffy that is, but from the sounds of it, it may be no problem at all, and they may be broody for days or weeks before you need them to be - time will tell. I am attempting a similar approach using Silkies in the coming year, and it will be interesting to see how our girls do No matter what else happens, we will learn learn and learn some more!

Sure am dying to see new pics of Pi, Ping and Pong

 

[Texasmja]

I think I remember a cock crowing twice before Peter denied Jesus-book of Mark if you'd like to look it up. That was quite awhile ago.

Yup Jesus even said the word cock.

 

[3riverschick]

My own recommendation is that only March can decide when she is done brooding the current chicks, at which point she will begin to lay again. At that time I think you really would want to re-introduce her to Junior unless you are not happy with the chicks she hatched and raised, assuming they are hers (and if you actually want to re-home them, we need to talk).

Also, here in CO at least, chicks should be out from under heat at 4 weeks, especially Sussex - I know PA weather can differ dramatically, and maybe it is just too soon for them there due to later warm-up and higher ambient humidity, but here if I don't have the heat lamp off by that time, I start to wonder if I have a weak group. I raise the lamp a few to several links of chain every 2-3 days as soon as they start spreading out or resting/sleeping away from the lamp. Hen raised chicks might still seek the Hen's warmth every so often at that age, but they have already been spending time outside and are overall hardier.

Your brooding plan for the Phoenix is genius but only works if they are all broody at the right time, which is the universal problem with using broodies to hatch. It is still a superior method, but the timing part is a drawback that you can't control, and you may wind up having to incubate some eggs. I'm not familiar enough with Phoenix to know how iffy that is, but from the sounds of it, it may be no problem at all, and they may be broody for days or weeks before you need them to be - time will tell. I am attempting a similar approach using Silkies in the coming year, and it will be interesting to see how our girls do No matter what else happens, we will learn learn and learn some more!

Sure am dying to see new pics of Pi, Ping and Pong

Hi Pozees,
Good to hear from you! I never had Marchs' chicks under brooder lights. They hatched under her Feb. 23,24 in the depth of winter out here. All I keep in the 4x6 coop is one 65 watt light. Just enough to keep combs from freezing. All their warmth came from March. It's been below freezing at night here almost every night. With snowstorms, severe windchill and lots of rain. March keeps them warm and now they are almost all feathered. I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it myself. March and the chicks have been inside since hatch. I know wind rain, and sun can really mess with feathers and coloring on Light Sussex. So work hard to protect them from it. Junior has stayed inside most all the winter except for sunny , calm days above freezing. You should see his tail. It is magnifcent!
Best,
Karen
( Incubators are good, but hens do it best!)

 

[3riverschick]

Thank you , Zanna! Lots to think about in your post.
Brains smoking,
Karen

 

[Lacy Blues]

Female dog would be real confusing since dog means male [in the canine world].

Really? I didn't know that... guess I'll add it to the list of things I didn't know. Thank you for clarifying that for me.

Hi,
I need some advice from experienced breeders, please.
I am not quite sure the best approach to a developing situation. In 10 days, the 7 eggs hatch in the Brinsea. I have two choices:
1. Take the 7 chicks and set up the brooder in a warm room in the vacant apartment. Let them grow up there for 6 weeks until
it is time to put them in the grow-out pen. ( By then, March's chicks will be re-homed or moved to the big coop.
2. Move the chicks whom March is currently raising ( they will be 6 weeks by then) from the big coop to the grow out house
( 3x4 coop with 4x8 yard). Give the 7 new chicks to March to raise? Will she even accept them?
I am finding it difficult to get all the timing right on shifting all the birds around. It is harder than dogs because we never had
litters this close together and never had to make the transitions the incubator to brooder to grow-out pen to big coop
with overlapping groups of births.
Thanks for our help!
Karen

I don't know the temperament of Sussex but I wouldn't dare give my girls replacement chicks. I am fairly positive that they would kill them.

Rotating birds to different pens is quite a challenge! "Lets see... I need to put this bird there but I can't do that until after I've moved that bird into that other pen but there are other birds still in that and 3 other pens that I should just combine into one big grow out pen... somewhere... Once those things are finished, I can finally move that bird into this pen!"

Frustrating! I don't think I can help with that. I have enough rotation issues of my own!

 

[3riverschick]

Really? I didn't know that... guess I'll add it to the list of things I didn't know. Thank you for clarifying that for me.
I don't know the temperament of Sussex but I wouldn't dare give my girls replacement chicks. I am fairly positive that they would kill them.

Rotating birds to different pens is quite a challenge! "Lets see... I need to put this bird there but I can't do that until after I've moved that bird into that other pen but there are other birds still in that and 3 other pens that I should just combine into one big grow out pen... somewhere... Once those things are finished, I can finally move that bird into this pen!"

Frustrating! I don't think I can help with that. I have enough rotation issues of my own!

Well, March's a first time mother. At least I am not the only one with "rotation issues".

Karen