Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[capayvalleychick]

Also, a lady I'm working with says that with her Icelandics, if she rotated them in and out like that, her cockerels would get depressed and not eat. Will this only work with certain breeds that aren't so 'bonded' to their mates? Because, I had considered having a 'barracks' for breeding season, where I would remove my breeding cockerels to for a few weeks prior, then place C. A with hen set A, and C. B with hen set B, then collect eggs for a while, then remove the males for a few weeks, and swap C.A to hen set B.... etc.

I'm not Bob, but I use this coop. I put a hen in each separate pen. I take one cock bird and move him from pen to pen (hen to hen) each day. When I collect each egg, I write the leg band # of the hen, that laid the egg, on the egg.
My cock birds are quite happy with this method. They actually start looking forward to being picked up and moved to a new mate each day.

 

[gjensen]

I went through the vaccinating for Mareks subject, and decided not to.

There are several strains of Mareks. Some worse than others. There is also different vaccines.

One vaccine is based on the form that Turkeys carry. It is useful against some strains, but not against the most virulent strains. An advantage of this vaccine, is that though the virus is shed at a low rate by the vaccinated birds, it doesn't cause disease in the chickens.
Another vaccine is based on three (?) types and is more useful against some of the most virulent strains. The virus is shed by the vaccinated birds, and as a result you will always have to vaccinate your flock. Once the virus is on your property, you will always have to deal with it.
The conclusion that I came to is that the first vaccine, is not of interest to me. I can cull for susceptibility to the less virulent strains. The mortality would likely be low unless a strain/breed was particularly susceptible to the virus.
The second vaccine did not appeal to me because I did not like the idea of introducing the virus(s) to my property, and always having to vaccinate for them. This would give me no chance of building a resistant strain. Is it possible that a group of birds with a degree of resistance to the less virulent strains would suffer lower mortality from being infected by the more virulent strains?

I would however, consider vaccinating if a virulent strain became established in my flock and it was suffering high mortality from year to year. I do not know that I would care to spend a lifetime of resistance building to a particularly virulent strain of Mareks, if I continued to lose a lot of birds. I would re evaluate my decision if that was ever to happen. In the mean time, I will not vaccinate for it. I like the idea of birds that can stand on their own two feet.

I may be wrong on any point, but this is the opinion that I have formed.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Get away from backyard folk and newbies who don't know what they're doing and find some serious breeders.

Settle on a breed, depending on your space, maybe, two. If you have a huge infrastructure, maybe three--but this isn't commone, and too many breeds means little done well. Get the best stock you can. Then, close your flock, which means work with what you have. Keep multiple cocks. Get NPIP tested, and then don't bring birds onto your property. Don't attend swaps that aren't linked to APA/ABA shows---ever!!!!! Get involved with your APA/ABA state club. Attend the meetings, help set up and take down. The helping is actually when you get to know everyone, and they start to take you seriously. It's in these behind the scenes times that the stories are told, and casual conversation leads to the dropping of myriad hints. Just absorb it like a sponge, and then do what they say. Attend as many shows as you can.

There is a strange notion among beginners and would-be homesteaders that showing is somehow separate. This is utterly false, and it comes from a source of inexperience and assumption. True, not all breeders use their birds for food consumption, but what they know about birds is a lot. Taking that knowledge and combining it with some good ALBC/Hogan selection is a grand route to a good space. Think of shows as trade shows. It's where you learn who has what's worth having. As a beginner you can go to anyone's house, and they can serve you a line of bla-bla-bla, but at a show all cards are on deck, and you learn what's up.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

I'm not Bob, but I use this coop. I put a hen in each separate pen. I take one cock bird and move him from pen to pen (hen to hen) each day. When I collect each egg, I write the leg band # of the hen, that laid the egg, on the egg.
My cock birds are quite happy with this method. They actually start looking forward to being picked up and moved to a new mate each day.

Sweet set-up!

 

[gjensen]

I'm not Bob, but I use this coop. I put a hen in each separate pen. I take one cock bird and move him from pen to pen (hen to hen) each day. When I collect each egg, I write the leg band # of the hen, that laid the egg, on the egg.
My cock birds are quite happy with this method. They actually start looking forward to being picked up and moved to a new mate each day.

I have come to using a similar method. I like the idea of mating in pairs and trios, having an idea what came from who.

Those are nice pens.

 

[gjensen]

Chickens don't get depressed. Their brain is the size about one of their eyes, and, as I learned it, 80% of it's function is entangled in vision. They think with two little lobes each about the size of a piece of kosher salt, ergo: they don't love you, they don't love each other, and they don't get depressed. If a bird is "depressed" I'd say the diet is wrong, or they're unthrifty. Perhaps the environment is lacking something essential. Perhaps they need exercise. Some birds fail to thrive if held in close confinement.

I have read a lot about old "cockers" keeping their cocks stimulated. Some believed that otherwise they would not maintain the same level of condition. Some would do a lot of different things to keep them "up and active".

 

[Robert Blosl]

Bob, I was taught that a hen retains the seed of the cockerel for up to 40 days post cover... If that's true, how can you know who the 'father' of a chick is if you rotate cockerels so often? I'm still trying to understand that.

Also, a lady I'm working with says that with her Icelandics, if she rotated them in and out like that, her cockerels would get depressed and not eat. Will this only work with certain breeds that aren't so 'bonded' to their mates? Because, I had considered having a 'barracks' for breeding season, where I would remove my breeding cockerels to for a few weeks prior, then place C. A with hen set A, and C. B with hen set B, then collect eggs for a while, then remove the males for a few weeks, and swap C.A to hen set B.... etc.

Then, I'm STILL trying to understand how you know which eggs belong to which hens when you've got 3 or 4 running about in the same pen? I suppose over time I'll 'know' whose eggs are whose... like with my banties right now it's obvious by egg shape and time of day. But, that first season, all new hens, no 'feel' for who's who...

Okay, that's enough to give someone a headache, I'm sure Good thing I've got at least til late Winter before all this is gotta be set in stone.

40 days that would put me out of business. All the books I read from the old poultry teachers say about ten days. The hen has a clutch of egg yolks maybe three six eight what ever. The sperm fertilizes the clutch and that it till the next clutch shows up. If the male is out for ten days or two weeks you save the eggs for that male. Then if they don't hatch and are clear no harm done. Put next male in and when he breeds the female that clutch should be his.

That's how I understand it. Did you learn that on back yard chickens tread? Got to watch some of this stuff they are extremist in thinking. Get back to the basics of raising a chicken. Like Grand Ma use to do. Some of these people don't know what the heck they are talking about and people are mislead. Its like that any way in this go to the back woods live off the land kick. Study the folks who have done it for years the masters. People who have been doing it for twenty to forty years and when they go to a poultry show they kick butt. I would pump their brains out on how they did it. Then do what they did and you will have success. KISS

 

[capayvalleychick]

Sweet set-up!

Those are nice pens.

My thanks to Chris Herzog, for the inspiration. https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/731570/my-lg-fowl-breeding-pens

 

[BGMatt]

Settle on a breed, depending on your space, maybe, two. If you have a huge infrastructure, maybe three--but this isn't commone, and too many breeds means little done well. Get the best stock you can. Then, close your flock, which means work with what you have. Keep multiple cocks. Get NPIP tested, and then don't bring birds onto your property. Don't attend swaps that aren't linked to APA/ABA shows---ever!!!!! Get involved with your APA/ABA state club. Attend the meetings, help set up and take down. The helping is actually when you get to know everyone, and they start to take you seriously. It's in these behind the scenes times that the stories are told, and casual conversation leads to the dropping of myriad hints. Just absorb it like a sponge, and then do what they say. Attend as many shows as you can. There is a strange notion among beginners and would-be homesteaders that showing is somehow separate. This is utterly false, and it comes from a source of inexperience and assumption. True, not all breeders use their birds for food consumption, but what they know about birds is a lot. Taking that knowledge and combining it with some good ALBC/Hogan selection is a grand route to a good space. Think of shows as trade shows. It's where you learn who has what's worth having. As a beginner you can go to anyone's house, and they can serve you a line of bla-bla-bla, but at a show all cards are on deck, and you learn what's up.

This is fantastic advice. About the only thing I would add is when you first start going to shows, if you are a breed you like, pick up a pair or two, for the first couple years in poultry, try some different breeds if you think you want to (and can support it) because until you've had a breed for at least a short time you don't really know if its for you and you may find out the breed you thought you wanted doesn't work out so well and completely fall in love with one that you thought was just a passing interest. Then once you find the breed or two you really want to work on,well, refer to quoted post.

 

[finnfur]

I'm not Bob, but I use this coop. I put a hen in each separate pen. I take one cock bird and move him from pen to pen (hen to hen) each day. When I collect each egg, I write the leg band # of the hen, that laid the egg, on the egg.
My cock birds are quite happy with this method. They actually start looking forward to being picked up and moved to a new mate each day.

Kim Thats a great set up - is it not to hot in heat of CA- And thanks for creating another project for me- I would't want to run out. Do you have plans for that and would you have made any changes ? What is the footprint ?