The Roo is from JamesA formerly of this site. He has nice color I think, but is not filling out the way he promised to this summer. The 4 pullets are from Sand Hill Preservation. I would call the Sand Hills hatchery quality, They just are not up to the pics I see here.
Nothing against Sand Hill or JamesA, as they all looked great on pasture, it is probably something I have done. They never picked a feather while they were outside. Could they just be adjusting that badly to their winter quarters?
The roo is as pecked as the hens, around the base of the tail on all of them. Some have lost side neck feathers. It does not have the over-mating pattern.
The other pens are slightly more populated for the space, but this Buckeye pen is the most panicked when we go in to care for them. More flighty than I expected. They were quite friendly outside. It is almost like something is making them more nervous.
I have checked for mites. We have not put poison out for rodents, so they should not have gotten a poisoned mouse or anything.
They get scratch BOSS daily. I keep looking for ways to reduce boredom in all the pens. I think they are missing greens more than protein.
I can still use the roo in the sex-link project we plan this spring. At this point, I think I will skip hatching Buckeyes from these birds this year. Something is just not right, and until I can figure it out, i'd better hatch from the other breeds. I should be able to get some from Urch to give a comparison this spring.
