Buckeye Breed Thread

[Pathfinders]

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Yes dear, no problem.

L

 

[cgmccary]

Who all is going to the Crossroads show this fall?

Since I live in IN, I hope to make the drive down, and look forward to seeing all of your birds. Maybe meeting some other Buckeye people for the first time. I must say, it's always hard to get an idea what personalities are like over the internet. I will count on some pleasant surprises!

Best - exop

I plan on being there & I hope to show. I'll bring birds to sell too.

Chris​

 

[Pathfinders]

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Me too. Am actually hatching some extras to bring with, just was speaking to DH about that today. It's a HUGE show, and the sale area is amazing. Chris, maybe you and I can take turns sitting in the sale area for each other, or we can just set up chairs and hang there.

 

[BuckeyeDave]

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I plan on being there & I hope to show. I'll bring birds to sell too.

Chris

Is it open air or a closed building?

 

[Quirky]

Well, I've searched for an hour now, and I can't find the answers to my questions, so I hope you lovely Buckeye lovers can help.

I am due to receive 12 Buckeye chicks, straight run, in mid June. I thought it'd be mid-May, so now I'm more concerned about giving medicated feed (which I'd much rather not do). I live in southern NH, so it's not terribly hot/humid. Any thoughts?

Also, I'd like to raise the extra roosters for meat. I should separate them from the pullets ASAP, right? How in the world do I sex the chicks myself? I've never even held a chicken. I worked for a midwife for years, so I'm not freaked out by heineys; I just don't think I can develop that particular skill in a day.

If I can't tell the roos from the pullets (and separate them), how can I properly feed the egg layers and the freezer-destined for their respective needs?

 

[PortageGirl]

Buckeyes won't develop as fast as Cornish X so you have time to separate them out, don't worry. I also believe there would time for any residual medication from chick starter, but if in doubt, I believe unmediated flock starter would work for all. Hopefully other smarter people will correct me and comment too. cheers!

 

[Pathfinders]

Quote:
I plan on being there & I hope to show. I'll bring birds to sell too.

Chris

Is it open air or a closed building?

It's a different one than last time, but I'm pretty sure it will be closed, ala the OH National. You could bring a face mask?

 

[Pathfinders]

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Medicated feed does not contain antibiotics, if that is your concern. What it has is a coccidiostate (a chemical) that blocks the uptake of thiamine by the cocci protazoa themselves, which allows the chicks to increase their natural immunity to them. I use it regularly and have for years. There will be no residue in the birds you eat, especially if you feed it only for the first ten weeks or so. (For broiler birds it's not worth using at all, with their short lifespans.)

Cocci are a very persistent bug. They cannot be eradicated. They will kill your birds. IMO, medicated feed is a very good thing.

And there's no reason to separate males from females until you can determine gender just by looking. Vent sexing is a highly specialized skill that takes at least a year to learn. Young birds can be kept together until about three months or so, then separate into different pens.

Good luck with your birds!

 

[jenjscott]

Separation is not a big issue initially. Everybody can start out for the first 8 weeks on a gamebird starter, then switch to a gamebird grower. You should be able to separate at this time, but really not yet necessary. These guys just do better on the higher protein. They will do ok on regular chick feed, but won't maximize their growth. By 16 weeks when you need to start feeding laying pellets to the pullets, you should have been able to separate the cockerels out, even a beginnier, lol. Medicated feed isn't required, but you should watch for any signs of coccidia closely and can medicate water if necessary. Most medicated chick feeds have amprollium, not an antibiotic. Medicated gamebird starters have bacitracin, and won't do much for coccidia anyway. Lol, laura, I see you beat me to it, but I'm going to post this anyway, since I already wrote it!

 

[gootziecat]

Cocci are a very persistent bug. They cannot be eradicated. They will kill your birds. IMO, medicated feed is a very good thing.

Can you elaborate on this? I am wondering if once a bird gets this if it can only be put in remission, to appear at times of stress, etc.

Thanks.​