Chick Sneezing Blood- 6 Week Old Delaware

[Livinwright Farm]

@ speckledhen: It sounds as though you really enjoy/enjoyed breeding the delewares. Couldn't you get some from one hatchery and a few from another hatchery and start all over with new unrelated lines?
I am just starting out with my little farm. I don't know much about genetics of the rare or critical breeds... but may potentially be starting up a breeding program of my own(if they send matching cockerel packing peanuts for the pullets I ordered) from McMurray.

 

[speckledhen]

I had McMurray Delawares. I hated them. They were mean and flighty, nothing like these I have now. I didn't even want them again till Janet talked me into doing a fertility test for an up and coming young cockerel and later on, I hatched again when she had different stock. I really don't want to start over with them. I'm going to leave it to others to pick up the torch from here.

 

[SeeMeShiny]

I'm sorry to rudely jump into this conversation, but came upon it because of the chick question... and I'm so excited to have found this little Delaware appreciation conversation! Is there a thread somewhere where you've been converting people to Delawares? I've just decided to try them, and was considering looking into breeders. I have 2 chicks, mail ordered... doing pretty well on day 8.

 

[kathyinmo]

Quote:
Here is the Delaware thread, where alot of us met each other in the beginning.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=249618

 

[schellie69]

Sorry about your chick,

 

[PepsNick]

Thank you all! Cyn, I am PMing you... Have some questions before I do this.

 

[Serrin]

Quote:
The smaller of our two local feed stores is going with Privet this year. I asked D if she was going to be ordering any Del's from Privet. She said she had seen them on the list, but, because she didn't know anything about the breed, she hadn't planned on it. That, of course, launched me into a 20 minute speech on the virtues of Delaware's!

I told her not to special order any for me as I'm pretty much full up here at the moment, but that if she did happen to get any in, to give me a call. I'd be happy to take three or four pullets off of her hands!

I've got the strong, sneaking suspicion that D will be ordering Del's from Privet this year. Her eyes really lit up when I told her about my own little half breed Delawegger Cosette. And, of course, I regaled her with another 20 minute dissertation on the wonderful Del's I know of like, Isaak, Oliver, Alexander, Cannonball, Floozy......oh the list just goes on and on, doesn't it?

D said that was just the kind of breed she's been looking for, for her customers, pretty much all of whom are small backyard flock owners, who in turn are looking for good natured, friendly birds. Part of me really hopes that I get a call from D next week. I think I can find room for 3 or 4 more chicks!

Nick, I am truly sorry to hear about Luna. I hope you can find the strength to do the right thing. It's never an easy task, but take some measure of comfort in knowing that you will be ending his suffering long before he must endure such. This dwarfing thing is a cruel twist of fate, and I know that Cyn would never have allowed Luna to go home with you if she had known, or even suspected, that this might be the case with the chick. You'll be in my thoughts. I know it's not easy, and if any one of us could lift the burden of the act from such young shoulders, we surely would.

 

[PepsNick]

Aww, thank you Amy. I didn't get it done today, and am disappointed. Geesh, you have the plyers sitting by the brooder but nope, can't yet.


Good job on the Delaware speech! I am obsessed with mine. Gosh, ya know Cyn, I really wouldn't mind taking your last batch of Ellie's...

Hopefully it's just Georgie and maybe Ellie doesn't carry the gene.

 

[speckledhen]

Nick, I can't take the chance. I'm fairly sure that Ellie has never produced a dwarf - both pullets I've kept here were chunky, nice Del girls with no hint of anything off-but I can't take the chance that Tasha or her mom would have the gene that has a possibility of being passed down. I read in a genetics book I gave you the link to that the chicks seem perfectly normal at hatch, but it's not till after three or four weeks, the signs show up. I never kept many that long other than Gracie and Tasha. I'm betting that the chicks with hock issues we culled were at least carriers of the gene, hence the leg issues, but they didn't live here long enough to see if they were actually visible dwarfs.

 

[PepsNick]

Quote:
Oh, that makes sense. I read it too. I remember you describing it as "Doesn't jump in your hand as fast as the others".