BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[DesertChic]

I just talked to Jason. It's 83*F there with 63% humidity and not even his heavies, nor the most cold tolerant birds have their lips open...they don't seem to be bothered by that heat at all. It's a tad bit hotter here in this area and while I can't see our birds, I suspect they are a bit uncomfortable. A friend is going by shortly and put a couple of 2 gallon sized chunks of ice into their water tubs, that are situated in the shade anyhow. I think he will turn on the exhaust fan on in the big coop...that will keep air moving up and out of there at a goodly clip.

Ugh! I'm jealous! We're at 102* with 54% humidity right now. I'm really hoping these clouds continue to build and drop a little rain on our heads to cool things off. I've got misters on, a/c on in the cabin where my broodies are living right now, and I'm rotating half-frozen water containers outside about every 2 hours.

I spoke to someone yesterday who just moved down here from WA and is mortified by how hard it is to keep chickens here. Um...yeah.

 

[DesertChic]

86 and 75% birds are hot and so am I
had the first rain in a few weeks and I see the cheap blue tarp over the hoop coop leaks like a sieve. 4 months old,,,

I had a cheap white one I put over the other this morning but wondering where @Beekissed got the blue and green one? I just find blue or green cheap ones locally. And no blue/green online.. I must be looking in the wrong places.
I have some good clear ones I bought for winter I bought online a while back.

Okay, that sounds awful. That's what the summers were like in Ohio where I grew up. I really don't miss them. Yeah, it's really hot here, but at least I know the humidity will diminish as soon as the rains pass.

 

[CanadianBuckeye]

I found out that if I soak the dog/cat kibble the chicks go nuts for it. I dropped the protein levels in the feed to quickly, I went from 28% to start then down to 24% at five weeks and then 17% at six weeks (all with meat protein in the blend). I thought they had pretty well feathered in, wrong! They are nine weeks old now. Anyhow my higher 24% protein is on back order, so I had to do something ASAP- and soaking the kibble has done the trick.
It's interesting, even my never- feather- picking breeds are eating the kibble with relish. I'd assumed that the birds that did not feather pick might be getting adequate protein, but apparently not.
Next time I will keep the chicks on 24% until they get their adult feathers, and only then drop the protein level down. I don't have a 20% feed with animal protein option, and I prefer to err on the side of too much protein rather than too little as it's clear the 17% isn't enough. They are free ranging so they are probably getting less than 24% protein anyway.

 

[ronott1]

I found out that if I soak the dog/cat kibble the chicks go nuts for it. I dropped the protein levels in the feed to quickly, I went from 28% to start then down to 24% at five weeks and then 17% at six weeks (all with meat protein in the blend). I thought they had pretty well feathered in, wrong! They are nine weeks old now. Anyhow my higher 24% protein is on back order, so I had to do something ASAP- and soaking the kibble has done the trick.
It's interesting, even my never- feather- picking breeds are eating the kibble with relish. I'd assumed that the birds that did not feather pick might be getting adequate protein, but apparently not.
Next time I will keep the chicks on 24% until they get their adult feathers, and only then drop the protein level down. I don't have a 20% feed with animal protein option, and I prefer to err on the side of too much protein rather than too little as it's clear the 17% isn't enough. They are free ranging so they are probably getting less than 24% protein anyway.

Total nutritional quality is much more important than high protein. We have had discussions before on this and other threads about what it takes to get good feathering--18 to 20% protein, good amino acid profile and cut out the treats.

Nutrena feather fixer will grow feathers faster than you can believe and it is 18% protein. It is formulated with what the chickens need to grow healthy feathers.

Look into what happens if chickens eat too much protein. The best case it that they poop it out and you are wasting money on expensive feed. The worst case it that you cause organ damage.

I feed my chicks flock raiser--They do fine on it and I do not have feather picking. If they are getting good nutrition and feather picking than it is either genetic(cull) or something else is going on--like too crowded or even bored--get them some toys or put them to work! If you give them a pile of leaves, they will work it down for you. They love to do stuff like that too.

 

[Turk Raphael]

Total nutritional quality is much more important than high protein. We have had discussions before on this and other threads about what it takes to get good feathering--18 to 20% protein, good amino acid profile and cut out the treats.

Nutrena feather fixer will grow feathers faster than you can believe and it is 18% protein. It is formulated with what the chickens need to grow healthy feathers.

Look into what happens if chickens eat too much protein. The best case it that they poop it out and you are wasting money on expensive feed. The worst case it that you cause organ damage.

I feed my chicks flock raiser--They do fine on it and I do not have feather picking. If they are getting good nutrition and feather picking than it is either genetic(cull) or something else is going on--like too crowded or even bored--get them some toys or put them to work! If you give them a pile of leaves, they will work it down for you. They love to do stuff like that too.

Sometimes you have to bang hell out of the drum very hard but if that doesn't cover it, bring in a troupe of Zildjian cymbals.

 

[Dave C]

The Sasso Gallic growers were 10 weeks yesterday.
The weight range is 2.24kg - 2.41kg that's from the 4 random birds I just cought.
With them being free range they are getting wiser each weigh in.

There faster than they look, ha.

 

[Turk Raphael]

The Sasso Gallic growers were 10 weeks yesterday.
The weight range is 2.24kg - 2.41kg that's from the 4 random birds I just cought.
With them being free range they are getting wiser each weigh in.

There faster than they look, ha.

Can you catch them where they sleep?

 

[CanadianBuckeye]

Total nutritional quality is much more important than high protein. We have had discussions before on this and other threads about what it takes to get good feathering--18 to 20% protein, good amino acid profile and cut out the treats.

Nutrena feather fixer will grow feathers faster than you can believe and it is 18% protein. It is formulated with what the chickens need to grow healthy feathers.

Look into what happens if chickens eat too much protein. The best case it that they poop it out and you are wasting money on expensive feed. The worst case it that you cause organ damage.

I feed my chicks flock raiser--They do fine on it and I do not have feather picking. If they are getting good nutrition and feather picking than it is either genetic(cull) or something else is going on--like too crowded or even bored--get them some toys or put them to work! If you give them a pile of leaves, they will work it down for you. They love to do stuff like that too.

It's a bit of a mystery, I think they should have been fine on the feed they were getting- I tried to source the best I could, they have a choice of two, a mash product and a pellet which has pork meal in it. I've culled the pickers, and all seems to be fine now. Probably a combination of factors, tricky to pin down exactly. The problem seems to have started when I dropped the protein level, might have been a factor, or coincidence.

 

[Mini Meat]

Has anyone experienced a cockerel crowing and picking fights at only 5wks old?

He is a DC and picking fights with 10 wk old's who are not yet crowing or misbehaving. He's even messing with the 8wk old turkeys (who will likely kill him if he doesn't cool his jets).

If he is going to turn into a walking nightmare I'd just as soon cull him now and feed him to the cats. He is just barely pinking up and about the size and density of a soft ball.

Is this some kind of hyper testosterone thing?

 

[ronott1]

It's a bit of a mystery, I think they should have been fine on the feed they were getting- I tried to source the best I could, they have a choice of two, a mash product and a pellet which has pork meal in it. I've culled the pickers, and all seems to be fine now. Probably a combination of factors, tricky to pin down exactly. The problem seems to have started when I dropped the protein level, might have been a factor, or coincidence.

Great!

It is an odd thing and not normal for the to feather pick when they are getting good nutrition. You did the right thing by culling them.