BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[angry rooster]

I don't know how many of us have Netflix but there is a show on there called Ted talks a Sheff named Dan barber has a two episodes one on foie Gras in Spain and a farmer named Edward Susa
Edward grows most of his feed by olives and lupine's he says that he can make more selling jest the olives instead of the foie Gras but he makes the best foie Gras
Any way it is pretty interesting that his family setup all this info structure to make it so the animals get what they want and all Edward has to do is maintain it looks like it cuts back on work
Not the most efficient but it maintains it's self
Chek it out

 

[DesertChic]

For those of you in warm areas, how do you store your hatching eggs? I've read they need to be at 50-60F, but even at this time of year, no where in my house is near that - best I can do is 68-70. I have a wine fridge at 55, but am worried about humidity (and it would need to be thoroughly cleaned, had used it for a "root cellar" this past year).

(Sorry for the multiple sequential posts...)

- Ant Farm

First...I've been away from the BYC for a few days dealing with family issues, and I'm so sorry to hear about what happened to Dumbledore. What a beautiful rooster! And what a heart-wrenching tragedy for both of you to endure. I'm glad he's recovering well. Chickens really are amazing. When my favorite NN was stung by a Bark Scorpion I was convinced he would die, but with just a few hours of TLC he recovered full and told me when he was ready to be released from my care to return to his flock. We can learn a lot from our chickens.

Now...to your question...when I hatched this past summer I simply collected the eggs and left them in a basket on a shelf in my air conditioned house with room temps around 78 degrees. I had a 100% hatch rate after collecting eggs for five days. As long as you don't wait too many days I really don't think you're going to have any problems with keeping them at room temperature.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Any of you working with chickens that take a LONG time to reach Point Of Lay ever have your flock tested for sub-clinical diseases? If so, did you find anything? If so, did treating for it improve your POL statistics?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Interesting question. I'll be following.

I don't think many people do much testing. When they have a bird (or many) die unexplained, they almost never have a necropsy.

 

[AnthNDacula]

I don't know how many of us have Netflix but there is a show on there called Ted talks a Sheff named Dan barber has a two episodes one on foie Gras in Spain and a farmer named Edward Susa
Edward grows most of his feed by olives and lupine's he says that he can make more selling jest the olives instead of the foie Gras but he makes the best foie Gras
Any way it is pretty interesting that his family setup all this info structure to make it so the animals get what they want and all Edward has to do is maintain it looks like it cuts back on work
Not the most efficient but it maintains it's self
Chek it out

Thanks. I'll check it out. I always appreciate referrals to poultry/farming related programing/articles/etc.

I found it on Utube and watched it during supper. Now I want to totally change how I do things.

 

[ronott1]

Any of you working with chickens that take a LONG time to reach Point Of Lay ever have your flock tested for sub-clinical diseases? If so, did you find anything? If so, did treating for it improve your POL statistics?

Which diseases?

I have had hens sent in for Necropsy and they have not come back with anything.

 

[AnthNDacula]

Which diseases?

I have had hens sent in for Necropsy and they have not come back with anything.

Have you tried asking specifically what they checked for and what they were able to rule out? One of my ex-interns has had two deaths among a group of 20 Barred Rock pullets this week. They are about 6 weeks old. We've got her set up with a cooler, ice pack, address and instructions in case another dies, and she will go to the Georgia Poultry Laboratory if she finds another. Backyard growers who live instate get free necropsies there. Anybody have any experience to share or tips on how to approach this?
Anthony

 

[ronott1]

Have you tried asking specifically what they checked for and what they were able to rule out? One of my ex-interns has had two deaths among a group of 20 Barred Rock pullets this week. They are about 6 weeks old. We've got her set up with a cooler, ice pack, address and instructions in case another dies, and she will go to the Georgia Poultry Laboratory if she finds another. Backyard growers who live instate get free necropsies there. Anybody have any experience to share or tips on how to approach this?
Anthony

Here, they will try to find cause of death first. If is illness related, they will attempt to grow a culture to identify it. They do test for e coli and etc. every time. If there is a suspicion of something specific, they will do it on request.

Other tests have a fee associated with them but are not as much as the full cost of a Necropsy.

Be specific on the submission form is the tip I have.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Which diseases?

I have had hens sent in for Necropsy and they have not come back with anything.

I have no clue what the person who introduced me to this idea had in mind.

Long story short, I was sharing some info about my flock of Delawares (re-created line from preserved Standard Bred Barred Plymouth Rocks and German New Hampshires, currently at the F6 pullet/cockerel stage), with a Poultry Scientist at a research university who told me that if my pullets didn't start to lay in the summer this year then they are probably infected with a disease and I should send one in to get tested.

I've not done the NPIP testing thing, and know that testing is fairly limited to some specific things and that a necropsy can be more thorough. My birds "look healthy."

For whatever that's worth.

I treat for external parasites, and have recently started treating for internal parasites, too. But nothing else as I've not had a reason to suspect any problems.

These Delawares are my first experience with Standard Bred poultry, or birds not sourced from a feed store, and the hatchery birds (lots of "breeds") I have raised in the past do start laying a lot sooner than the Delawares. But it seems that is pretty expected. I hadn't thought twice about it except to start to plan to breed toward an early POL, if possible.

So, I thought I'd ask. And I thought this "breeding for production" thread would be a good place to have this conversation, as part of breeding toward any goal means getting a good grip on external environmental factors that impact the results.

I'm super eager to hear everyone's thoughts.

So far, I haven't had any pullets "volunteer" for necropsy. Meaning, I've not had any losses.

 

[Kassaundra]

Everything I have ever read about heritage (non hatchery) breeds have stated they mature a bit later (both male and female) then the hatchery type. That even the bigger meatier hatchery types have been more selected towards early and frequent egg laying. I think comparing onset of egg laying of heritage vs hatchery would be like comparing apples and oranges. I think to get a true idea of late onset of pol it would need to be in comparison to other (true) heritage breeds.

I also think that if there were underlying disease issues (like recovered carriers) there would be other s/sx like failure to thrive, poor feather condition, lack of appetite etc....

To answer your question, no I have never had any bird tested for late onset pol.