You (and DH too) have really been busy these past few weeks...Thank you Bama! Ya know I hear everyone working on new pens and coops all the time? I am wondering why. I am building a breeding pen to put my roo and hen into once a week if or when I want fertile eggs. I thought it might be less work than build separate coops for each breed. But I am new so what do ya think?
Good luck on your new coop and pen!
Thank you Chirp! I am so eggcited! At last! YEA!!!!
That is so beautiful!!!! Chickadoodles, The problem is that the hen can hold sperm for awhile..forget how long, maybe a week?, so you would have to look up just how long you need to wait before you know the eggs will be pure bred. But...with that said, that is what I plan on doing. I have a new chicken tractor that I plan to maybe use to house a trio for a month or two in the summer to get pure bred eggs/chicks. But, my other worry about doing that, is that with the trio in the tractor for a month or so, when I put them back into the main coop, there might be one horrid ruckus between different roosters reestablishing the pecking order. So......it might not actually work out in practice.DH and I got the door on the hen half of the chicken coop and wire over the windows and under the eves so the air can still flow thru the coop and help keep it cool! We will be working on the rooster side this weekend.The door has metal screen and welded wire on it. We will add the same screen to the windows. Our Brown leghorn rooster checked out the coop but only one hen came in and right back out! But they will get the hang of it. lol
Ok I understand. Thank you for explaining it to me. I do not intend on selling any chickens at this point. So the only breeding I will be doing would be to raise more birds for F.C. But that is what I am going to be doing with the J.G. So I guess I could just let a Roo in with my girls every now and then. lolYou (and DH too) have really been busy these past few weeks...
It just depends on the time you have to invest...your single breeding pen will work, but may take 1+ weeks to get them setltled down and increase fertility efforts on the roos parts....depends on the hen submitting, etc. as to how quickly he can "fertlize" the eggs...up to 3+ weeks giving her egg cycle....
Thank you Alaskan!
I hope you have lots of little chickies! Enjoy your new babies!I will have a sulmtaler pen, a cream legbar pen, and the silkies will be in the coop I already have. So i will keep my roos with their ladies and hatch more sulmtalers, cream legabrs and silkies to sell or for hatching eggs to sell. That is my plan anyhow
DH and I got the door on the hen half of the chicken coop and wire over the windows and under the eves so the air can still flow thru the coop and help keep it cool! We will be working on the rooster side this weekend.
The door has metal screen and welded wire on it. We will add the same screen to the windows.
Our Brown leghorn rooster checked out the coop but only one hen came in and right back out!
But they will get the hang of it. lol
Ive heard so many people say how they love their turkeys more than the chickens. Is it personality or what is up with all the turkey love? Are they a bigger mess than chickens, like ducks and geese are so very messy.Thank you Alaskan! I hope the chicken tractor works for you! I really do not need fertile eggs all the time! I am not going to let my girls sit on eggs. Maybe once or twice a year. I don't want chicks everywhere! I don't have room! lol And I don't want to be one that has to build another coop all the time! lol Now turkey! That is another story! I may have pens everywhere! lol
Thank you! Now we just have to get the rooster run done and all the turkey pens! Ha ha haNice.
Bama, they are so full of personality is is amazing! You just fall in love with them! Or at least I did and on the turkey for 2013 board everyone is in love with their turkey's also! They are not as much of a mess as ducks and geese! I do not want any ducks on my place! Turkey NEED to bond with humans and NEED our company! I think that is the difference! When ever I go out to check my birds the turkey are the first to fly to me and are right in front of the gate! I have one that still wants to sit on my shoulder even though she is never going to fit on my shoulder again! So she settles for my back when she gets the chance and I am bent over! lol She jumps on! lol
