BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[Arielle]

Having raised a few rotties ( my favorite dog) be sure to start socializing immediately and not keep puppy home; and have friends come to visit so they understand visitors are ok.

I still blanche when I remember I had my ANgel in the kitchen with me whent he dorr bell rang-- a delivery I needed to sign for, and totally for got ANgie was not in his room. Well, my hands are full with signing and ANgies slides up next to my leg in silent Rottie mode and looks at this guy, who THEN puts his hand out to the dog!!!! I"m praying. I dont say anything or make a move that might insitgate a defensive action by the dog . . . ANgie leans forward , sniffs the back of the hand, then relaxes back to original position. WHEW!!! All the years of traininga nd socializing had paid off--- it is a continual process--- one summer it was puppy camp at a doggie day care, and lots of group obedience classes and then practice with my ouwn group of dogs. We go to the point where I could give a dog a command and the others didn't move, for the most part lol . YOu know when you have reached good training control is when the dog is offf leash and you call come and the dog comes. 3 out of 4 of my dogs were that good; Mr 4 I would have to go get him to prove that yes I am the boss not you. Rotties can really challenge who is boss ANd Barron challeneged me often--and I always won.

I didn't give my dogs rawhides as they had it gone in a matter of hours so I always gave them real cow leg bones, and stuffed insides with peanut butter . . . .I"m sure anything stuffed inside whould be yummy.

 

[seventreesfarm]

Having raised a few rotties ( my favorite dog) be sure to start socializing immediately and not keep puppy home; and have friends come to visit so they understand visitors are ok.

I still blanche when I remember I had my ANgel in the kitchen with me whent he dorr bell rang-- a delivery I needed to sign for, and totally for got ANgie was not in his room. Well, my hands are full with signing and ANgies slides up next to my leg in silent Rottie mode and looks at this guy, who THEN puts his hand out to the dog!!!! I"m praying. I dont say anything or make a move that might insitgate a defensive action by the dog . . . ANgie leans forward , sniffs the back of the hand, then relaxes back to original position. WHEW!!! All the years of traininga nd socializing had paid off--- it is a continual process--- one summer it was puppy camp at a doggie day care, and lots of group obedience classes and then practice with my ouwn group of dogs. We go to the point where I could give a dog a command and the others didn't move, for the most part lol . YOu know when you have reached good training control is when the dog is offf leash and you call come and the dog comes. 3 out of 4 of my dogs were that good; Mr 4 I would have to go get him to prove that yes I am the boss not you. Rotties can really challenge who is boss ANd Barron challeneged me often--and I always won.

I didn't give my dogs rawhides as they had it gone in a matter of hours so I always gave them real cow leg bones, and stuffed insides with peanut butter . . . .I"m sure anything stuffed inside whould be yummy.

Yeah, our current big dog is a rott/shepherd cross, and I previously had a wolf hybrid, so we know the socialization thing is a top priority. She went to work the other day and met 50 or so people and did really well. She's getting the hang of no kitties and no chickens, and not biting the big dogs....much. As soon as she's got enough shots she'll go to puppy class, even though she already knows some basic commands. We have a 35 x 150 ft fenced dog yard so it's easy to get off leash recall figured out.

But boy is she smart. When we tell her something or when she finds a new thing to chew on, she looks us right in the eye to see if we mean it or if we're going to stop her from playing with whatever it is. Luckily our yard is full of things puppies can play with, so she gets a lot of positive reinforcement.

 

[Arielle]

Quote: She is off to a good start!!! NOthing like an owner that has been there- done that!!

I can remember my girl running up to the woods and taking the 2 puppies. SHe ignored the command to come and took her kids on a jaunt thru the woods on our property. Rather than reinforce the behavior we did't call her once she was off, then the day came that the perfect solution to nip that behavior presented it self. She was headed to the wood again , only this time DH was already in the area, and he dogged her until he could put a finger under her collar. Not a word spoken, but dog trotted her back to the house with 2 puppies in tow. THe next time she took off I yelled " come" she stopped and turned around and came right to me. Never a problem since.

Rotties are brilliant dogs-- my girl was a problem solver-- even if it meant traveling in a big circle, thru numerous gates to get to me-- oneof her sons was that brilliant too.

Sounds like you have a great dog!!

 

[seventreesfarm]

My current hatch is only at a 72% hatch rate. I've been getting 80 to 95% this season. The roo I used was only 8 months when I set the pen, so that could be it. The eggs were mostly viable, only a few early quitters, but out of 40 in lockdown I'm only at 29 chicks in the brooder. One had pipped the wrong end and died. One more is partially hatched, the rest weren't showing any action. So a lot of late deaths, assuming these don't hatch.

What about a young roo would contribute to that?
The food, pen, hens were all the same. My incubator is amazingly stable, so no humidity or temp fluctuations, same settings I used for the other hatches.

 

[Turk Raphael]

Ok, so I've been having computer problems. What excuse do the rest of you have for not posting? I thought I'd miss dozens of posts. Glad to be back. So the 20 CX that were supposed to be delivered from a group order did not happen. The lady that was going down to Baton Rouge to pick them up fizzled out, then the chicks came in. Dead. 51 out of 125 are barely hanging on. Christina in Baton Rouge said she will get a full refund on all but she is out some bucks. I paid up front too. Bummer.

Sorry about the problems..I hope you do get your money back.

I've been to an adjacent state for a quick pick-up. We picked up the puppy and was happy to see a couple breeds of chicks that I had never seen before. These were all hatchery stock and they were very healthy and really enjoyable to watch. There were three breeds in the brooder...Buckeyes, RIRs and Austra-Whites. I learned quite a lot from seeing these chicks. They were about 2 weeks old and so different in personalities. The AWs were FLYING all about and was the reason for the cover on the brooder. I was told they were trying to get out at a week old and they were not really 'skittish' but neither were they the least bit interested in being touched. On the other hand, the Buckeyes were like puppies! We had to walk in a solution of something and were sprayed with what we were told was a mild solution of bleach and water but I think the person handling the bleach was a bit heavy-handed.

In any event, I was allowed to put my hand into the brooder and the Buckeyes startled for a short time them came over and almost demanded to be touched and rubbed on their fat little necks...even the cockerels, which were so obvious because they had their little faces dyed green. The RIR's were not quite as friendly but were very curious too. Again..the AW's just didn't pay any attention to us and went about their business.Another surprise about the AWs is the fact that they were so BIG. They may eventually be 7 pounds at maturity but I'd bet they will wind up larger than that, based upon the comparison to the Buckeye chicks. I think we got some not-so-good phone pics of them and I will try to post a couple of them later, after I get unwound from that ride. We also brought back some other stow-aways that I really didn't want yet. two different breeds of rabbits. More later. Please excuse the grammar flaws, my eyes are almost crossed from such a trip. Oh, I'm reminded that the RIR's were picked up for a friend of our host and were being kept for a few weeks as a courtesy.

 

[Arielle]

 

[ronniewayne]

Ok, so I've been having computer problems. What excuse do the rest of you have for not posting? I thought I'd miss dozens of posts. Glad to be back. So the 20 CX that were supposed to be delivered from a group order did not happen. The lady that was going down to Baton Rouge to pick them up fizzled out, then the chicks came in. Dead. 51 out of 125 are barely hanging on. Christina in Baton Rouge said she will get a full refund on all but she is out some bucks. I paid up front too. Bummer.

hey Linda I am thinking about ordering some cornishx for processing I am just north of Shreveport . were you planning to get 125 for yourself? would you be interested in splitting an order and then sharing the processing ie I come help you and you come help me ..and I have an electric plucker and propane scalder...I have raised a few batches of 100 a200nd 200 it takes about 5 or 6 people 10 hours to process put in bags and on ice 200 birds dressing 6-8 lbs I will check on prices but last time I ordered from central hatchery in ks ..I ordered 300 and the shipping was a lot less. let me know if you would have any interest ...

 

[LindaB220]

hey Linda I am thinking about ordering some cornishx for processing I am just north of Shreveport . were you planning to get 125 for yourself? would you be interested in splitting an order and then sharing the processing ie I come help you and you come help me ..and I have an electric plucker and propane scalder...I have raised a few batches of 100 a200nd 200 it takes about 5 or 6 people 10 hours to process put in bags and on ice 200 birds dressing 6-8 lbs I will check on prices but last time I ordered from central hatchery in ks ..I ordered 300 and the shipping was a lot less. let me know if you would have any interest ...

Oh Lordie, Ronnie, my days of 10 hr processing are over.

Nice to know you have a plucker. Thanks for the offer. I was only going to get 20 and others were making up the rest. I think Christina saved about 30 something and will be reimbursed for all of them. So she is raising them for her freezer. Others are being delivered tomorrow for her. From a different source.
@Turk Raphael Yes, I had her shred my check. I wouldn't have been out much but now I have a little more to play with. Next investment, other than a small temp fence is a freezer. Although I don't know why, my garden was a no go and the CX's fell through.

I do plan to order them again but I think I'll wait until late August. or so.

 

[bmvf]

My shipment of 15 Cornish X's and 10 Pioneer's came in this morning from McMurray. The free chick appears to be a top hat breed. I now have 5 different stages of birds. The CX's, my new hampshire chicks at 3 weeks old, male sex link that need to be processed soon, my rainbow layer assortment at 15 weeks old, and my RIR's which are still laying strong at a year and a half.

 

[LindaB220]

My shipment of 15 Cornish X's and 10 Pioneer's came in this morning from McMurray. The free chick appears to be a top hat breed. I now have 5 different stages of birds. The CX's, my new hampshire chicks at 3 weeks old, male sex link that need to be processed soon, my rainbow layer assortment at 15 weeks old, and my RIR's which are still laying strong at a year and a half.

It sounds like you're in a good place. Eggs pretty soon.