BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[miss heny]

surprisingly enough my game hybrids were the night crowers, the silkies were the idiots awesome dog bait I should add ahem sorry.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

surprisingly enough my game hybrids were the night crowers, the silkies were the idiots

awesome dog bait I should add

ahem sorry.

Between that and the heavy hawk pressure here, I would likely keep any Silkies permanently under some sort of cover...

Good to know about the crowing.

Actually I have another question - my bedroom windows face the chicken yards, so I can hear all of my boys when they crow. I can also recognize their voices generally (though the three GNH boys sound the same to me so far - big body, deep voices). If you have a night time crower an you are trying to identify who it is (for culling), how do you tell? Sounds stupid, but just thought I'd ask if there was anything beyond a flashlight involved. My GNH boys all look so similar, even with that I'm not sure I could tell, for instance.

- Ant Farm

 

[miss heny]

Hmm mark each bird and then listen? Or invest in night camera is the second best thing.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Hmm mark each bird and then listen? Or invest in night camera is the second best thing.

Yeah... I just read these posts of folks talking about specific cockerels they culled for night time crowing, and I wondered how they knew - sounds like a real pain to wake up, get dressed, go into the coop and flashlight them... Or even mark them.

 

[miss heny]

Ahaha, I can tell my boys apart but then again I have a mix size flock with both bantams mad LF so there is a difference in voices. My Icbars sound so stoic compare to my oops bantam black Swedish hen

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Ahaha, I can tell my boys apart but then again I have a mix size flock with both bantams mad LF so there is a difference in voices. My Icbars sound so stoic compare to my oops bantam black Swedish hen

These are my only three boys from a breeder - the breeder does her work well, very consistent. I've kept all three, because they are so similar so far... I can tell them apart, barely, by looking carefully in full daylight. Hence the color leg bands...








- Ant Farm

 

[miss heny]

Hehe got a sex changing rooster? jk

Oh they are lovely, sadly my good Isbar gonna have to be put down thanks to a coon :/

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Hehe got a sex changing rooster?

jk

Oh they are lovely, sadly my good Isbar gonna have to be put down thanks to a coon

SO sorry...

 

[miss heny]

Thanks I have a backup but tbh his built is so bad I wish the coon got him. But mom won't let him go until we get a replacement boy *sigh*

 

[NanaKat]

surprisingly enough my game hybrids were the night crowers, the silkies were the idiots awesome dog bait I should add ahem sorry.

Between that and the heavy hawk pressure here, I would likely keep any Silkies permanently under some sort of cover...

Good to know about the crowing.

Actually I have another question - my bedroom windows face the chicken yards, so I can hear all of my boys when they crow. I can also recognize their voices generally (though the three GNH boys sound the same to me so far - big body, deep voices). If you have a night time crower an you are trying to identify who it is (for culling), how do you tell? Sounds stupid, but just thought I'd ask if there was anything beyond a flashlight involved. My GNH boys all look so similar, even with that I'm not sure I could tell, for instance.

- Ant Farm

Hmm mark each bird and then listen? Or invest in night camera is the second best thing.

Separate the three roosters into a cage within different coops. Each will crow in answer to their buddies as usual.
Also, the wrinkles in the wattles are signature for each rooster, just like the points on his comb. When birds are that close in appearance, I rely on a good photo of each head attached to a 5x7 index card and write down the strengths for the bird as well as his failures. Breeding and offspring.