California - Northern

[Papa Brooder]

I just figured I'd snap a dew pictures to document growth and stuff. These chicks were born on July 11th So their 'closing in on 6 weeks.

My BC Marans pullets...I feel so mean saying this...not very attractive at all. All the looks went to the roosters. LOL I know they will fill out some and they are going through the ugly feather phase but e-gah man poor things. One of biiiiig BO pullets (20 weeks) has a dark red comb and wattle now. I don't recall them being so dark before? I hope it's not a rooster in hiding!

eggs coming soon! exciting!

I have about 25 chickens. I go through about 50# feed every 2 weeks. Does that sound about right? Too much, too little? I cannot gauge by how much they 'don't eat' because the only way they don't eat it all is if I fill their feed bucket clean full. (10 pounds of feed fits into it) I do not put that much in their but I tried and what ended up happening is that although they didn't finish it all- I went through feed lightening fast. I have heritage dual purpose breeds so I know they consume more than the hatchery egg layer strains. I also go through the same amount of feed every 2 weeks with duck food as well (14 ducks and 2 geese). My food bill for them is about $120 a month. I honestly never realized how much it cost to feed birds for eggs. Definitely not a cost effective endeavor. LOL I hope they lay well so I can sell extras off and try to help off set the feed costs a bit. I know to some of you that's nothing- but it is a lot to us (like I had to skip groceries last week so I could buy the feed this week lol. good thing I keep a stocked pantry!). I hope I am not going through feed to fast and shooting myself in the foot but neither do I want to be underfeeding them.

Free ranging- does that help off-set the costs a bit?

agreed you could cut your bill in half. only reason more of mine aren't out is that I have to keep the breeds separate. so i rotate which breed is out in any given day and that's also how I introduce new birds is let them free range together for a couple of days before I force them into the same breeding pen.

You know you want some........................lovely sky blue eggs.....................

I just kicked mine out of the growout pen into a coop today. Here is my white girl (8 wks old), she's got some serious crest going on!



Deb

Nice pic, she's a beauty!

 

[Miss Molly]

Hi Everyone,
Our family is moments away from leaving on a long overdue vacation.  We will be going to South Dakota (Mt Rushmore,etc) and Wyoming (Yellowstone). I have a chicken sitter here and just handed him over a long list of instructions...........   I hope everything goes OK while we're away.  By the way, my house sitter is from Lincoln and has grown up with chickens and other animals. 

I am SO looking forward to sleeping in past 6:30.  What have all of you done with your chickens while you go away?  Or, do you just never get a vacation?

I haven't taken a vacation in years. I quess I'm afraid no one will take good enough care of them...my goal is to simplify my set up... Always a work in progress. I need to stop collecting breeds... LOL

 

[Meg2000000]

Deb - Sky blue eggs? Ahh don't tell me that! Such a beautiful pullet too!

 

[Miss Molly]

I spent summers working in our orchard and my Grand Parents. One summer I worked with him doing custom harvesting. I love prunes. We would pop them in our mouths and eat them around the pit and then spit them out.

I have an excellent Prune cake recipe if you want it. It is base on an Applesauce cake and was something my Grand Ma used to make.

Ron

I love dried fruit..We dry so much fruit ... We also make lot's of fruit leather...
Ron, might need that recipe..

 

[debs_flock]

Deb - Sky blue eggs? Ahh don't tell me that! Such a beautiful pullet too!

Yes, and auto-sexing at hatch to boot! The whites are basically a sport of the normal color, but still sexable at hatch.

Scroll down to the third set of pictures, you'll be sold!

http://feathersite.com/Poultry/CGA/Auto/BRKAutosex.html

Deb

ETA - the picture of the eggs does not match with the ones I've seen. The blue doesn't photograph very well, they are a true pale blue, not green like an EE.

 

[Miss Molly]

You know you want some........................lovely sky blue eggs.....................

I just kicked mine out of the growout pen into a coop today.  Here is my white girl (8 wks old), she's got some serious crest going on!



Deb

Deb,
She is so Beautiful... I just hatch my first WHITE Cream Legbar.... I hope it's a little girl..
Molly

 

[egg-lady]

I love dried fruit..We dry so much fruit ... We also make lot's of fruit leather...

Ron, might need that recipe..

@ Ron, Oh yes, i forgot. I would like the prune recipe.

 

[lawatt]

With the Basque, open up the wing feathers. look at the color pattern. I think the white to grey pattern would be the pullets and ones with a black pattern would be cockerels.

Very cute chicks!

Ron

thanks Ron -- they are all fast asleep right now, like drunks on a curb, but i will look closer at their wing feathers in the morning!
best,
laura

 

[Happy Chooks]

Hi Everyone,
Our family is moments away from leaving on a long overdue vacation. We will be going to South Dakota (Mt Rushmore,etc) and Wyoming (Yellowstone). I have a chicken sitter here and just handed him over a long list of instructions...........

I hope everything goes OK while we're away. By the way, my house sitter is from Lincoln and has grown up with chickens and other animals.

I am SO looking forward to sleeping in past 6:30.

What have all of you done with your chickens while you go away? Or, do you just never get a vacation?

Have a great time! I've been to both and they are beautiful. I LOVE the Black Hills of South Dakota, so beautiful. And Yellowstone is amazing as well. Hope you have some binoculars with you! Just remember to stay away from the Buffalo! (the rangers take bets every year on how many people will be gored)

We went away to New York/New Jersey this summer and I had my MIL check in on them and collect eggs. I have auto door openers, so I don't need to worry about them not getting closed up. I also have auto waterers, just in case.

 

[lawatt]

thanks Ron -- they are all fast asleep right now, like drunks on a curb, but i will look closer at their wing feathers in the morning!
best,
laura

looked at their teeny wings this morning -- one (with the darker dot on its head) has nice even-looking wing feathers with a clear white-and-grey pattern, the grey is a lot darker than the chick but doesn't look *black* to me -- and the other only has rather ragged feathers still, and the pattern isn't white grey OR black, it's more beige/tan/cream, quite similar to its overall coloring.

this one also is the only chick of the six with an untidy back end -- the vent is still working fine (i've seen it in action), but there's bits that have dried on to the feathers, & i've been able to clean some off but not all -- will give the chick a rest & then try again before i have to head out to campus today... and sure-fire ways of dissolving poop off of down? i don't want to torment the poor thing...

thanks!!
laura