BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[pioneerchick816]

Yep, here's my "worst" NN molter right now. This is Rizzo, and despite looking so haggard, this girl is still giving me 6 X-LG eggs per week! She's been looking like this for nearly 2 months now. I have a feeling she'll just start feathering out all over her body at one time like her mother did, and completely stop laying during that process. THAT'S when I start feeding the extra protein, at least once daily, along with extra greens and black oil sunflower seeds. They seem to feather out much more quickly that way and resume laying sooner.

You need to enter her into the worst molt contest on here! She'd win hands down poor baby

 

[Beer can]

You need to enter her into the worst molt contest on here! She'd win hands down poor baby

X2! DesertChick, there is a worst molt contest.

 

[DesertChic]

You need to enter her into the worst molt contest on here! She'd win hands down poor baby

I did...along with my frizzled EE:

 

[bnjrob]

Quote:
Originally Posted by DesertChic


I did...along with my frizzled EE:


Wow. Those are some sad looking birds. LOL. My Javas are slow molters. If there wasn't suddenly an increase in feathers blowing around the pens and the pasture, half the time I wouldn't even know they were molting. I can't imagine having birds that get flat out naked for molting.

 

[DesertChic]

Wow. Those are some sad looking birds. LOL. My Javas are slow molters. If there wasn't suddenly an increase in feathers blowing around the pens and the pasture, half the time I wouldn't even know they were molting. I can't imagine having birds that get flat out naked for molting.

About half of my birds are slow molters, losing a few feathers here and there, growing in new ones sporadically on their bodies, and laying pretty regularly the whole way through. The other half look like someone attacked them with a weed wacker or something. The molt HARD, continue laying abundantly while nearly bald, and then suddenly overnight sprout pin feathers and look more like porcupines than chickens, and stop laying completely until they've feathered out. It's been interesting to observe.

 

[Kev]

Hard molters are supposedly the better layers. It does seem that way here but not rock solid as a consistent trait. any one notice that?

other factors can make a not exactly productive hens enter hard molt... if she went broody late in the year and especially forced to stop w/o chicks she can enter a hard molt despite being a fair layer.

edited to add.. just remembered something else- the hard molters are supposedly the hens that keep on laying right up until they enter a hard full molt(and stop laying) then enter back into lay faster because the new feathers all grew out at the "same time". Slow molters supposedly take weeks on end to start laying again as the molt takes them out of production= slow molt, slow to come back into lay.

 

[bnjrob]

Hard molters are supposedly the better layers. It does seem that way here but not rock solid as a consistent trait. any one notice that?

other factors can make a not exactly productive hens enter hard molt... if she went broody late in the year and especially forced to stop w/o chicks she can enter a hard molt despite being a fair layer.

edited to add.. just remembered something else- the hard molters are supposedly the hens that keep on laying right up until they enter a hard full molt(and stop laying) then enter back into lay faster because the new feathers all grew out at the "same time". Slow molters supposedly take weeks on end to start laying again as the molt takes them out of production= slow molt, slow to come back into lay.

Yes, I can attest to the slow molting/laying issue. And most that I've talked to over the years about it, have found the same issue with their Javas as well. The heat of our Texas summers tends to put them into molt, usually late July through mid/end August to start molt, but occasionally I've seen it start in June of extra-hot years. And then in October/November they want to start getting back to laying, but then the lower light situation becomes the problem.

 

[ocap]

opinions? I am having fun with a mixed flock and want to bring in a rooster from a productive non-white egg breed (large eggs), meat production is not a factor in my mixed flock. I am trying to pick a breed with most eggs and fewest problems. Right now I have an easter-egger and a 1/2 australorp-1/2 easter-egger to get me through hatching season 2017.

 

[DesertChic]

Hard molters are supposedly the better layers. It does seem that way here but not rock solid as a consistent trait. any one notice that?

other factors can make a not exactly productive hens enter hard molt... if she went broody late in the year and especially forced to stop w/o chicks she can enter a hard molt despite being a fair layer.

edited to add.. just remembered something else- the hard molters are supposedly the hens that keep on laying right up until they enter a hard full molt(and stop laying) then enter back into lay faster because the new feathers all grew out at the "same time". Slow molters supposedly take weeks on end to start laying again as the molt takes them out of production= slow molt, slow to come back into lay.

Well, my beloved buff barred NN hen, Cocoa Puffs went through an extremely hard molt. She'd been laying 4-6 jumbo blue eggs per week with barely the hint of a single feather on her body for months. When her body finally said "enough" all of her feathers grew in at once and less than 4 weeks later she resumed laying 4-6 jumbo blue eggs per week and hasn't even slowed with the shorter days (and no artificial lighting). And she's nearly 2 years old!

I realize this is only one hen and therefore anecdotal at best, but she's got me convinced. And her flockmate, Zen, is finally growing all of her feathers back and has also been an exceptional layer. I'm tracking her progress as well.

 

[DesertChic]

opinions? I am having fun with a mixed flock and want to bring in a rooster from a productive non-white egg breed (large eggs), meat production is not a factor in my mixed flock. I am trying to pick a breed with most eggs and fewest problems. Right now I have an easter-egger and a 1/2 australorp-1/2 easter-egger to get me through hatching season 2017.

I'll first confess to being completely biased, but my Naked Neck Turkens outperform most of my other birds, hands-down, and through some of the most trying weather conditions. My birds lay varying shades of brown and tan eggs, blue/green eggs, olive green eggs, and pink eggs. For me they're a perfect breed and truly meat the definition of "dual purpose".