California - Northern

[ronott1]

Will anyone in this thread be selling Leghorns in the Spring?

What kind of Leghorns?

Ron

 

[zooweemama]

What kind of Leghorns?

Ron

Standard (coloring not very important to me). Can be hatchery strain but my primary purpose for them would be for eggs. So even if it is a heritage strain- it needs to be a very very good egg layer. (better than my 3 egg/week average for orp or marans for sure!) I won't be showing them but healthy good egg layers a must. I'd prefer to line up to buy from someone here than a hatchery. Supporting local and all.

 

[ronott1]

Quote: Ok, I could go pick up several dozen TJ's eggs and get you some commercial Leghorns. They lay the most of any chicken.

How many do you want?

Ron

 

[chiqita]

Ok, I could go pick up several dozen TJ's eggs and get you some commercial Leghorns. They lay the most of any chicken.

How many do you want?

Ron

My Marans and Orphies lay every day, or at least 6 days a week. I think that the 3 a week is after the pullet year. the ee's are more like 5 a week, but the Marans are older, closer to 2 years and lay at least 5 a week when they are not broody. in fact, maybe they are putting broody into it?? So 3/ week would mean they go broody and don't lay for 10 weeks? hrm....

mind you I have less heat then you do.

 

[ronott1]

Quote: Yes, they are putting in broody, molting and time off for the winter. Some of the rascals will lay three and then take three days off. The confusing thing is when commercial chickens are compared--they need light to get over 300 per year for any breed.

I do think that the life time laying of most Heritage breeds will be higher.

Ron

 

[zooweemama]

Ok, I could go pick up several dozen TJ's eggs and get you some commercial Leghorns. They lay the most of any chicken.

How many do you want?

Ron

Duh! I totally forgot about TJs! That's funny! In the early Spring I'd like to start with maybe 6 pullets (so straight run is a crap shoot so I'd need at least double that- and I wonder how many eggs you'd need to set for that hmmm.)

At least I don't think excess would be hard to sell off on CL if I ended up with more than I needed. Do people eat the scrawny little LH roos- I don't know what one would do with the extra little cockerels?

I think for egg laying of a straight breed (just referring to non hybrid breeds) the Leghorn is just a whole lotta bang for your buck. They are small, pretty good food conversion and lay like crazy. I just feel like I can't go wrong with them. Hopefully my thinking is not flawed in that.

I am keeping 2 of my marans roosters but if any of the marans pullets make it through the winter to Spring - I'll be surprised. I think it has to be climate/environment but they haven't been as hardy as the Orps so far. I am pretty sure I will not be breeding my marans hens but I do want to use my marans roos with my EEs hehe!

Sorry just chattering away...my kids are all occupied quietly and I got carried away.

...adult conversation.....

 

[zooweemama]

Yeah the marans (for me) have managed to deal with the heat but they def struggled more than the Orps have (again just true for me). Dealing with cocci and 110 degree heat in their coop has been hard on those guys. The Orps seemed to have bounced back quicker though. Plus black is just a hot color for a chicken to have here. We do have shade and they utilize it but we have dirt everywhere and 1 small patch of grass (which is in the sun). And when dirt is hot and dry...well you are hot and dry. At least soft green grass or a very shady backyard offers some help. But our yard is hot and dry- about as cool as kicking it under a cactus on the hot sand to cool off.

I do so love the marans roosters though. They are really so nice tempered. Hands down my kids love our 2 top marans cockerels more than ANY of our chickens. We have another marans (pullet this time) who is slight and not thriving like the other one we lost earlier this week. Good appetite but skinny - no respiratory, clear skin, no gaping, and she seems a little poofy. Seems like possible cocci again or at the least parasite issue. Those misters plus our heat really is excellent for anything creature that thrives in warm moist areas- the same areas they are foraging through. We call the little pullet Sleepy- we pulled her in today and gave her scrambled egg. She gobbled up half of it like she was starving and she really perked up after that. We put her back with the flock after feeding her.

We should know in a couple weeks (hope that is an accurate estimate) on the dead chicken we are sending off for a necropsy. I want to treat her and our Hope chicken (who also struggled and almost died from cocci several weeks ago)- she is acting like she has a cocci or parasite problem again too. We fed both Sleepy and Hope some scrambled egg and they both REALLY perked up! It's only been those 3 chickens for the past 2 weeks being off. No other chickens at ALL. The 24 weekers are THRIVING though. They are BIG and gorgeous and fluffy and beautiful!

 

[ronott1]

Quote: No Problem.

I seems like most people hatch up to three per dozen with the TJ's eggs. Four dozen should get you close to 6 pullets. If they were hatched now, they would be laying in Feb to March.

You can eat any chicken. All of them make great chicken stock--It just takes more of them if they are too little. I spent some time looking for white Leghorn hatching eggs--I found some out of Florida but the Feedback said the eggs were packed in wood chips!

Quick Question, do MF Leghorns lay enough for you?

Ron

 

[ronott1]

Yeah the marans (for me) have managed to deal with the heat but they def struggled more than the Orps have (again just true for me). Dealing with cocci and 110 degree heat in their coop has been hard on those guys. The Orps seemed to have bounced back quicker though. Plus black is just a hot color for a chicken to have here. We do have shade and they utilize it but we have dirt everywhere and 1 small patch of grass (which is in the sun). And when dirt is hot and dry...well you are hot and dry. At least soft green grass or a very shady backyard offers some help. But our yard is hot and dry- about as cool as kicking it under a cactus on the hot sand to cool off.

I do so love the marans roosters though. They are really so nice tempered. Hands down my kids love our 2 top marans cockerels more than ANY of our chickens. We have another marans (pullet this time) who is slight and not thriving like the other one we lost earlier this week. Good appetite but skinny - no respiratory, clear skin, no gaping, and she seems a little poofy. Seems like possible cocci again or at the least parasite issue. Those misters plus our heat really is excellent for anything creature that thrives in warm moist areas- the same areas they are foraging through. We call the little pullet Sleepy- we pulled her in today and gave her scrambled egg. She gobbled up half of it like she was starving and she really perked up after that. We put her back with the flock after feeding her.

We should know in a couple weeks (hope that is an accurate estimate) on the dead chicken we are sending off for a necropsy. I want to treat her and our Hope chicken (who also struggled and almost died from cocci several weeks ago)- she is acting like she has a cocci or parasite problem again too. We fed both Sleepy and Hope some scrambled egg and they both REALLY perked up! It's only been those 3 chickens for the past 2 weeks being off. No other chickens at ALL. The 24 weekers are THRIVING though. They are BIG and gorgeous and fluffy and beautiful!

It's kind of hart to keep up with you today! I love it.

You should go ahead and give them Ivomectin(or the generic version)

At 12 weeks that Parasites becomes more common than Cocci.

Ron

 

[zooweemama]

Yes, they are putting in broody, molting and time off for the winter. Some of the rascals will lay three and then take three days off. The confusing thing is when commercial chickens are compared--they need light to get over 300 per year for any breed.

I do think that the life time laying of most Heritage breeds will be higher.

Ron

I assumed the 3/week was an average using broody/molting times as I did purposefully pick 2 broody breeds so I had a breed that would sit on eggs for me. It's the less/non broody hens that have high numbers so I figured if I wanted a higher egg count - I needed to pick a rarely broody breed, that has a lower feed consumption and isn't very large. The leghorn seems to fit that perfectly. And white although a hawk magnet- would allow the hen to stay cooler in the hot months. With free ranging I assume I will run into predator problems from time to time. Par for the course.