California - Northern

[ronott1]

Quote: I hatched 7, 5 pullets and 2 cockerels. They were cottage Hill and Wade Jean lines.

 

[zooweemama]

welcome!
Sorry it is a sad reason you are joining us. If you are in South bay and are looking for people who can humanely process him because you are not sure how to do it yourself I may be able to help. Ron has good ideas too.

We raise chickens and take back roosters so we have some practice at the processing part.

Zoo, It started to rain again so I'm waiting for it to stop. Are you going to Stockton? I'm about 100% sure I will have some FCBM's that will be pullets by then. I'm convinced FCMB's hatch out more like 60/40. I have NEVER seen less then that in any persons hatch EVER. I know it goes per chicken, but I think Marans are skewed!

Happy Chooks, I'm sending you a PM, not sure if I should post or not.

I am positive we are going. I am dragging my entire family with me. LOL

 

[JerseyGiantfolk]

Most feedstores can take chickens for free. If that doesn't work, there are some ways you can humanely put down a bird. There are many threads on BYC about it. Good luck!

Hi fellow Norcal BYCers,
I need your wisdom on a pressing issue. We have a wrongly sexed Australorp that is 3.5 mo old that we must get rid of. Our city does not allow rooster and nor do our neighboring cities. Our neighbor HATES roosters and he has already filed a complaint. I cannot find any humane society to take it over, nor any nearby farms. I am at my wit's end, and even if I am willing to eat it, I cannot even find a slaughter house to do this. What should I do? Knock it out and bury in my backyard? Thanks!

 

[chiqita]

ok, ONE person. And you are a chicken mutant ron!

 

[ronott1]

ok, ONE person. And you are a chicken mutant ron!

I was going to say that I am not normal LOL!

I am pretty sure the 2 OEs I hatched from the Hatching eggs you gave me are both pullets too

 

[Happy Chooks]

I think ideally he should be a bit stouter in the chest. Tail is good ( tail is a big deal in Marans, they tend to be wrong, or at least they talk about it A LOT) Not sure about the color if his is in the right places or he has too much or its too yellow.Eyes look good, not too dark ( another hated and cursed thing in a good rooster) feet feathering is light ( some people love that some don't, not really sure on judging) No extra color on the chest, that's good.

I don't breed Marans, but I agree with chiqita's critique. His eye color looks good, his shank feathering appears a tad bit light.

As for the chest width, it does change with age. When he gets older he will get deeper through the chest. How much? You really can't tell until he grows more. I'll put some welsummer pictures up in a minute so you can see what I'm talking about.

Are they too lean? Time to worm? Side effect of free ranging = active birds burning off calories?

If you watch your flock, you will know when it's time. They will lose the plump look and start looking really skinny. I had worms a year after I got my flock and didn't even know it. I posted that they were looking really thin, and I was advised to worm them. You won't see anything in their poop until they are completely overloaded with them. Once I wormed them, they started putting on weight again and looking good. I now worm once a year, in the fall.

Hi fellow Norcal BYCers,

I need your wisdom on a pressing issue. We have a wrongly sexed Australorp that is 3.5 mo old that we must get rid of. Our city does not allow rooster and nor do our neighboring cities. Our neighbor HATES roosters and he has already filed a complaint. I cannot find any humane society to take it over, nor any nearby farms. I am at my wit's end, and even if I am willing to eat it, I cannot even find a slaughter house to do this. What should I do? Knock it out and bury in my backyard? Thanks!

Sorry you can't keep him. You can list it here in the Free Rehoming section.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/16182/animals-in-need-of-free-re-homing

Happy Chooks, I'm sending you a PM, not sure if I should post or not.

I didn't receive a PM.

 

[Happy Chooks]

Alright, here's my welsummer rooster at 6 months. He has some depth to his chest, but hasn't filled in yet.

And here he is at 2 1/2 years old. See how much deeper (stockier) his chest is?

 

[chiqita]

Alright, here's my welsummer rooster at 6 months. He has some depth to his chest, but hasn't filled in yet.

And here he is at 2 1/2 years old. See how much deeper (stockier) his chest is?

I see them getting wider, but the curve of the chest seems similar? like you would see in the sideways sillohoutte. Seems like they are either shaped like a D and broaden or shaped like a ] and broaden...

Or am I just married to my idea?
And oops, I sent to happychooks all one word... I'll resend, ty!

 

[chiqita]

ok, lets see If I can figure my own pictures out. The juvie boys all hang out together, so its hard to get single pics.
s.

Dustbathing. These boys are young, but combs and colors are not great. Boy in the middle I think his back is too long, tail actualy low ( unusual when I have a bunch of boys with high tails, must be from mum)


This is Rons roo. He has a nice curve (more d shaped but not an orphie) and a good angle on the back. tail could be at a better angle, but its acceptable. Color is dark ( some say too dark, but that line is all dark iirc) Eye is also dark but acceptable comb is good but could ahve more space behind it ( out from the head) leg feathering is light, I'd personally like a lot more, it gets dirty, but it discourages them from digging up the garden. Feathering is all on ouside of leg, no sneaky feathers trying to appear on 3d toe or inside. I think his wing placement is also good, but Im unclear on that, been studying that more for silkies.

Yard is still trashed from rain, i'm a bad homeowner!

 

[ronott1]

ok, lets see If I can figure my own pictures out. The juvie boys all hang out together, so its hard to get single pics.
s.

Dustbathing. These boys are young, but combs and colors are not great. Boy in the middle I think his back is too long, tail actualy low ( unusual when I have a bunch of boys with high tails, must be from mum)


This is Rons roo. He has a nice curve (more d shaped but not an orphie) and a good angle on the back. tail could be at a better angle, but its acceptable. Color is dark ( some say too dark, but that line is all dark iirc) Eye is also dark but acceptable comb is good but could ahve more space behind it ( out from the head) leg feathering is light, I'd personally like a lot more, it gets dirty, but it discourages them from digging up the garden. Feathering is all on ouside of leg, no sneaky feathers trying to appear on 3d toe or inside. I think his wing placement is also good, but Im unclear on that, been studying that more for silkies.

Yard is still trashed from rain, i'm a bad homeowner!

I am going to try hatching more from Linda Hammid.