BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[Beer can]

Lol!, I try to take good pics of my birds, pics usually suck, don't have the time. I'd like to get some good pics of mine IF they would set still....

People around here use alpacas with their sheep and goats to chase away coyotes, hear they kill them...I've heard donkeys work good also. We have big coyotes, biggest in US, they say somehow they have some timber wolf DNA.

 

[ronott1]

@ronott1 I haven't forgotten the pics of Dark Cornish. Life, time and circumstances have prevented me from getting them taken. Mostly the time and circumstances of those able to take reasonably good photos of chickens. They will be posted before I go on a long vacation and that will be fairly soon. I'm quite proud of these birds. While certainly not conformation quality, they are not awful, like so many I've seen from some hatcheries. They're a bit longer in leg than show birds but their overall conformation suits me.

Thanks for thinking of the pictures!

Are you off to Costa Rica again?

 

[hellbender]

Thanks for thinking of the pictures!

Are you off to Costa Rica again?

Won't be stopping there this time. I'll head straight to Porto Alegre and unless some dire emergency arises here, I plan to stay long enough to get a working knowledge of the common language of Brasileiro. I won't be so ramit this time...I'll just buy a cheap pc system to use there.

 

[HeritageGoose13]

Lol!, I try to take good pics of my birds, pics usually suck, don't have the time. I'd like to get some good pics of mine IF they would set still....

People around here use alpacas with their sheep and goats to chase away coyotes, hear they kill them...I've heard donkeys work good also. We have big coyotes, biggest in US, they say somehow they have some timber wolf DNA.

Alpacas are small and docile. Llamas are probably what you are thinking of. They are much larger and make good guardians. In fact llamas are often used to protect alpaca herds.
I've always heard alpacas are unsuitable for livestock guarding. I do not think they would be capable of killing a coyote. I know coyotes have no problem taking down an alpaca.

From the internet...



The difference in size and temperament is huge. It is also hard to appreciate until you see both species being kept together, side by side.

 

[bramblefir]

Alpacas are small and docile. Llamas are probably what you are thinking of. They are much larger and make good guardians. In fact llamas are often used to protect alpaca herds.
I've always heard alpacas are unsuitable for livestock guarding. I do not think they would be capable of killing a coyote. I know coyotes have no problem taking down an alpaca.

From the internet...



The difference in size and temperament is huge. It is also hard to appreciate until you see both species being kept together, side by side.

That's correct. We've actually had some people inquire about our alpacas for livestock guardians and we always tell them they aren't suitable for that. We had one person telling us they wanted the alpaca to guard against a cougar!

Now, they are great at alerting us (freaky screeching alert call, especially at 2am) and they will attempt to kill smaller scavengers/predators like skunks and foxes. A single, small-to-medium sized dog could probably be dealt with by the whole herd, but I'd honestly put more trust in good fencing.

 

[hellbender]

That's correct. We've actually had some people inquire about our alpacas for livestock guardians and we always tell them they aren't suitable for that. We had one person telling us they wanted the alpaca to guard against a cougar!

Now, they are great at alerting us (freaky screeching alert call, especially at 2am) and they will attempt to kill smaller scavengers/predators like skunks and foxes. A single, small-to-medium sized dog could probably be dealt with by the whole herd, but I'd honestly put more trust in good fencing.

And/or a good jackass or....good dogs! If I didn't love dogs so much, I'd have a few jackasses here...still might get them at some point.

 

[bramblefir]

And/or a good jackass or....good dogs! If I didn't love dogs so much, I'd have a few jackasses here...still might get them at some point.

I am so anxious to get a good farm dog. It's probably not going to happen any sooner than this spring though. Mu husband wants an Aussie and I would prefer either a Heeler or an English Shepherd.

I like donkeys a lot. I used to work at a horse barn that had quite a few, including a mini that had the temperament of a terrier. Very smart, tough animals.

 

[hellbender]

I am so anxious to get a good farm dog. It's probably not going to happen any sooner than this spring though. Mu husband wants an Aussie and I would prefer either a Heeler or an English Shepherd.

I like donkeys a lot. I used to work at a horse barn that had quite a few, including a mini that had the temperament of a terrier. Very smart, tough animals.

I lucked out with a pair of Heelers, (bought and brought in at different times, as puppies) that do a wonderful job but if I were choosing now...I'd opt for English Shepherds. Generally more tractable than most working dogs but I have the Heelers and they both still have more good years in them.

 

[Beer can]

Yeah I guess your right, the farms use llamas and donkeys for coyotes with their sheep and goats. One farm over the hill from us, middle eastern family lost a bunch of sheep or lambs until they got llama and donkeys, big fields probably few hundred open acres covering to top of a whole hill or mountain really. Kinda hard to protect the sheep at night with a rifle especially when they are over on the other side.
The alpacas I was thinking of my seventh grade English teacher raises http://www.google.com/url?q=http://...QRNCL4&usg=AFQjCNFMS9k_dhEU5g13PBz7uKXyURqOpQ

 

[gjensen]

Poultry when setting and brooding, are being productive. This can run counter when taken to extremes, and they are excessively broody. There is not a need for setting hens for much of the year. If an entire flock of hens is persistently broody throughout the growing seasons, no, these are not productive birds. Unless you are running a high priced "all natural" hatching service. If you are running your own, and only some are excessively broody, then so be it. It is when the entire flock has this characteristic that they can no longer be considered productive. I prefer thinking in terms of a single breed, and this is the glass that I look through. Hypothetically, I am always looking at a flock that performs uniformly.

"Clean" earth would be a reasonable nesting material. So is other things. They are not a problem for the northerners here, but fire ants can be a problem in the nest box. They will quickly infest a batch of wet hatching chicks and eggs. I am using seven dust etc. to protect the eggs and chicks until they are dry, and can get away.

It is difficult to beat a good farm dog or dogs. They come in many shapes and sizes. Mixed breeds and pure breeds. Much of what makes them good is management and training. Otherwise it is genetics. Like birds, they can have the potential and that potential not be realized. Regardless, a good one is priceless. I would take a pair over any other, but not to say that no other has value.

I believe in good fencing. Particularly when securing larger and more valuable animals. A fence should not only keep our animals in, but many others out. Much of our problems are eliminated with secure fencing. We tend to neglect this point and substitute poor fencing for good fencing. My view has been if I cannot afford to fence it, I cannot afford to own it. I realize that this cannot apply in all cases, but the principle (it is only a principle) has served me well.