California - Northern

[CALI CHICK]

Does anyone on here have fertile eggs for hatching in the following breeds/colors?

Blue, black or splash silkies
White silkies
Partridge silkies
Plymouth barred rocks

I'm looking for good quality in the silkies and just backyard layers in the barred rocks.

My silkies are either broody or only laying once a week....so I really want more eggs to incubate rather than 4 at a time! I live in Rio Linda and would love to meet up to get more hatching eggs.

 

[HighNDryFarm]

Hey all interesting discussions (sorry to hear of the chicken illnesses, and that guinea hog looks interesting, I think I saw an ad on Craiglist for some!)
Got a newbie question here-- How does one submit a chicken for testing at UC Davis?
( I drive thru the area a couple times a week ) Is there a phone number or a website?
Am new to this chicken business! Basically we bought some books, grandpa built us a coop last summer when he was out here visiting, and just relied on random past experiences with baby birds and a parakeet... and so far our first year of chicken keeping is going OK.(We have our first broodies-- 2 hens are trading off on a clutch of eggs, but they wont move out of the nest box, and its day 18 which means its lockdown I think I know what that means)...
Anyways...Glad to have found this thread, we are up in the Grass Valley area....

I see Ron sent you the info. It's handy to have on hand since you don't usually plan for losing a chicken. Don't forget to post pics of the new chicks! I have three broodies right now and one nest should be hatching. I've been lifting the wings of mom to see if anything hatched but I'm resisting doing that now because I realized that it's just like opening the incubator during lockdown so I'm leaving mom until I see a head pop out to say hi! Lot's of peeps in your area....which can be good or bad as far as chicken math.

I had my first deformed chick from shipped eggs. It has cross beak and is missing an eye. It is under a mother hen so I will wait until it looks to be suffering to cull it. It looks shock only happy cuddling under momma and pecking at straw right now.

I'm sorry about your chick. I had FOUR cross beaks from one hatch a couple of months ago! I'm trying to figure out why. I think I know the hen they came from. Anyway, just a little FYI, it's much easier to cull when they're tiny.

 

[chiqita]

Ya. You are right and I'm sure this one with not be drinking much with that beak. I figure 4 days.
Calichick I have silkies in those colors but I have 5 broodies in the BBS pen. I'm only getting 1 egg a day myself from them. I have a showgirl pen and a silkie surprise pen that has all sorts of interesting stuff but at most its 2-3 eggs from those 2 pens and 2 SG eggs.

The SG are black roo over white and partridge hens. Ss has all those colors plus a lavender roo and a sizzle SG.

 

[tommysgirl]

no sorry. mine all got picked off from a hawk. they need space. they like to fly into the trees.
Deb , Mary and Molly do though.

I do like them though. Just figured my penedesenca needed more help

I am sorry yours were taken by hawks. The being able to fly well is a double edged sword isn't it? Keeps them safer from ground predators but opens up a new can of worms with the aerial ones.

I am going to let mine out to forage this pm for the first time so am a little nervous about it but I figure they will pretty much stay with the flock and at the same time I am inclined to let them be who they are and let the chips fall. They are both feathering in like this so I figure their coloring is good camo.



Quote:

This is the cockerel I'm raising to take over my flock from his dad (and uncle)

Is that your Icelandic?? Sign me up for some of his hen's eggs

Cute 4-H story. The little girls who cried or had the most trouble holding on to their lambs seemed to always rake in the big bucks when I was a 4-Her.

This is totally off topic, but maybe some will find it amusing. You all know how difficult it is to take a good picture of chickens. Try taking a portrait with hogs! I was recently elected to be a director for the American Guinea Hog Assn. They asked for my brief resume and a picture of me with my hogs for the website. So I talked DH into taking pictures and I was going to try to get my sow & boar to pose with me. DH was skeptical. He said no way was I going to get pigs to sit for a picture. Well... I couldn't get them both to hold still and face the same direction at the same time. But, I have to show what a sweetie pie my boar, Lucky, can be. Here he is, sitting just like I asked. He's even smiling.

Nothing is off topic here Kim. That's a darling picture and he looks so placid and content.

Anyone have experience with Russian Orloffs or Javas?

 

[Farmer 87]

good morning Northern California . just one quick question off topic when is a good age to stop feeding chick starter to your chicks. age or size what am I looking for

 

[tommysgirl]

some people switch at 16 weeks others wait until someone in their laying flock begins to lay. This is totally ON topic BTW

ETA if you only have hens get a layer, if you have cockerels in the mix a flock raiser with supplementary calcium on the side is best.

 

[chiqita]

Tommy, be ready to get those icelandics out of the tree tonight. Free range = tree beds.

Farmer, I feed my girls 20% and give free choice calcium, so in a sense they never go off chick starter! If you are feeding medicated chick starter, I would go off by 12 weeks once the danger of cocci has passed however. earlier if they go outside and seem OK earlier.

So, for those of you who have been having bad hatches, I really axed the humidity in my big bator the last 2-3 weeks. ( since the 30th to be exact) I would fill the trays to take it to 30, then wait till it was 12-15% before I refilled. So far no dead fully formed birds in eggs. Its a small sample size, however, at 1 quail hatch and 1 serama hatch.

I'm going to try something tricky for the turkeys if they don't pip on schedule and drill holes in the top of the eggs once they pip internally, and help if needed. They smother SOO easily and I have not softened the shells with high humidity. If they are a bust but the chickens remain good they may get their own incubator.

 

[lizanne]

Good news!! Penny came home yesterday morning. At 2:30 am we heard scratching and whining at the front door. DH went out to check, and there she was.



and, I think I got an egg from a Cornish X. It is double yolked (my first double yolk). How can I tell if it's fertile?

 

[Ali707]

Hey all interesting discussions (sorry to hear of the chicken illnesses, and that guinea hog looks interesting, I think I saw an ad on Craiglist for some!)
Got a newbie question here-- How does one submit a chicken for testing at UC Davis?
( I drive thru the area a couple times a week ) Is there a phone number or a website?
Am new to this chicken business! Basically we bought some books, grandpa built us a coop last summer when he was out here visiting, and just relied on random past experiences with baby birds and a parakeet... and so far our first year of chicken keeping is going OK.(We have our first broodies-- 2 hens are trading off on a clutch of eggs, but they wont move out of the nest box, and its day 18 which means its lockdown I think I know what that means)...
Anyways...Glad to have found this thread, we are up in the Grass Valley area....

Good news!! Penny came home yesterday morning. At 2:30 am we heard scratching and whining at the front door. DH went out to check, and there she was.



and, I think I got an egg from a Cornish X. It is double yolked (my first double yolk). How can I tell if it's fertile?

Awwww I am happy to hear she made it home. Where has she been this whole time????

I am waiting for a double yolker. Funny how I never get one in the store eggs. I think they are missing out on a hot product by not selling them. A whole carton of double yolk eggs!

 

[Ali707]

There is a website with a submission form. Make sure you use the one for small flocks. The Hours are posted on the site and there is an off hours drop off room with a refrigerator.

Here Is the information--save it for future reference:

UC DAVIS

http://www.cahfs.ucdavis.edu/index.cfm

UC DAVIS FEDEX INFO: Their account # is 364343981. If you use their account number you will get to use UC Davis's discount which is up to 70% off. They said that they will bill you for the shipment after you get the report (or at the same time.) Also, FedEx and UPS both ship to the actual lab every day... the Postal Service doesn't.

CAHFS - Davis Laboratory
University of California
West Health Sciences Drive
Davis, CA 95616
Phone: 530-752-8700
Fax: 530-752-6253
[email protected]
CAHFS - San Bernardino Laboratory
Branch Chief: Dr. Hailu Kinde
105 W. Central Avenue
San Bernardino, CA
92408-2113
Phone: (909) 383-4287
Fax: (909) 884-5980
[email protected]
CAHFS - Tulare Laboratory
Branch Chief: Dr. Patricia Blanchard
18830 Road 112
Tulare, CA
93274-9042
Phone: (559) 688-7543
Fax: (559) 686-4231
[email protected]
CAHFS - Turlock Laboratory
Branch Chief: Dr. Bruce Charlton
1550 Soderquist Rd.
Turlock, CA
95381-2204

Tell us more about yourself. We also love pictures!

Well since I can't get the drop box thing to "drop", I guess I have to do the good old fashioned print thing.