BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[LindaB220]

We raise all our own food for us and our livestock - except coffee ;-) The sweet potato vines and small sweet potatos are fed to the rabbits throughout the winter. The single most important feed for the poultry over the winter is BSF. Unlike all our other livestock, poultry are not herbivores, they require animal protein. While animal protein is very easy to acquire most of the year, this can be problematic in the winter. Raising BSF in the summer and freezing them for poultry feeding over the winter has assured us they continue to get their necessary animal protein, both for winter laying and ease of molt.
The ideal combination we've discovered is to hatch in Jan and Feb. For production purposes those who lay by 26 weeks are the keepers. They will lay right on through their first winter and provide a steady income when the older hens slow down post molt. Combine this timing with quality fermented grains and adequate animal protein and the egg frig stays full.

What a great post!!!!! I love your self sufficiency. The idea of sweet potato vines in the winter makes me wonder how you do it. A greenhouse? I'm in zone 8b and could grow a TON of them. I'm gonna try at least to grow a lot for canning and eating. Do you have the vines going all year round? Do chickens eat the leaves? For some reason I thought they couldn't. Hummm.

Well, I'm gonna be in and out for a while. The computer is going in the shop tomorrow and then my Dr's appt for knee surgery is on the 16th. They will do the procedure about the end of the month. Not looking forward to it but I'm so healthy except for this.

I've put off all buying of eggs and birds for the present. I'll just be a little later getting things started.

 

[LindaB220]

That is a good reason to have northern breeds down south--They will lay with less day light.

Both breeds are great!

But how much heat can they stand? I have my coops in the shade but it still will get over 100 on days. Of course, I run out ice and sprinkle. They seem to be okay but I wondered about the northern birds.

 

[chickadoodles]

@LindaB220 I am in SW AL. and my summers are like yours over 100 in the summer and my pens are in the shade. I do go out and spray my birds with the hose about 2-3 pm or give them a puddle or pan to cool their feet in and that is all I do. Mostly my Turkey love the water but they have showed the others to get in the water to cool off. Also the heat has not slowed their laying here in the summer.

 

[Arielle]

George, lost all my comments, heres the abridged version:

I can buy feed oats for $15/50#.

I'm willing to give amarathe a go-- you info is just a dose of reality. lol

 

[Arielle]

Quote:
WHile I understand your logic, a thought popped into my head.

If you have hens that are fighting off the males, would the temperament of future girls be improved by using a more docile male???? I can only ask this as I have no specific experience in chickens with this.

In horses I have learned to be careful about the stallions I use. All my girls are sweethearts but they can throw a different temperament if the stallion is a strong willed type. I like an easy temperament. lol

 

[southernmomma]

What breed gave you the speckled egg?

M

 

[Arielle]

Quote:
Good luck Linda with the surgery!!! Praying for a good recovery.. . . . do your PT, ok???

 

[bnjrob]

WHile I understand your logic, a thought popped into my head.

If you have hens that are fighting off the males, would the temperament of future girls be improved by using a more docile male???? I can only ask this as I have no specific experience in chickens with this.

In horses I have learned to be careful about the stallions I use. All my girls are sweethearts but they can throw a different temperament if the stallion is a strong willed type. I like an easy temperament. lol

Always a possibility. I have used a subordinate male to breed with because he is such a terrific rooster, but I haven't seen a difference in temperament that I can correlate with having a father that was not the alpha male in the hatch group. It's like all the other hatches, some females submit willingly, others don't. I've also used an aggressive cock to breed with - only one of his sons turned out with the snarky temperament, the rest of the sons were quite nice and we still have two of his best looking sons who are not aggressive, and no problems from his daughters either. You know chicken genetics - they can do their own crazy things.

 

[bnjrob]

if I understand.....the wider the egg the better the hen would be the correlation (not total weight of egg)

The hen won't be any better for being able to lay a wider egg. But if you're selling eggs, then having a wider, more aesthetically pleasing, *normal* egg shape would be preferred by most customers. The most important reason for having wide hipped hens is for their own health.

The wider the hen, the less chance of injury to the hen with stretched/torn tissues and less chance of becoming egg bound. And less chance of it being a somewhat deformed egg (long instead of normal width) if her body tries to compensate for having a narrow passage.

Same concept as women in childbirth. Women have a wider, more flexible pelvis to accommodate a baby through the birth canal. If the birth canal and other tissues don't stretch far enough, then mom's delicate parts can get torn and/or the baby can get stuck.

 

[ronott1]

I have Partridge Pendesencas. They are great and take the heat very well.

My pullets from last year are finally starting to lay. I crossed a Crele Penedesenca back to a Cream Legbar x Crele Penedesenca to see if I could get a darker green, closer to an Olive color.

It worked! The egg on the left is a Partridge Pene and the one on the right is the new OE