Chicken Breed Focus - Swedish Flower Hen

[BrahmaMom1797]

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I'm excited to see what these little stinkers will look like.

They’re so pretty! Keep us updated I always love seeing new babies grow up!

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Very nice, I also enjoy my SFH!








Really is cool that no two look exactly the same.

 

[Ashdoes]

We had a flock of Flower Hens, and really loved them. They have a goofy, friendly personality, and even the Roo was good around our kids. The Hens gave eggs almost every day, even doing well in the winter. The flock was the best foragers we've ever had, so their feed bill was pretty low. They spent sun up, to sun down outside of the barn looking for their own food.
We had a pretty good variety of colors, my favorite being the grey and orange mixes, and I really loved the crested ones. It's a breed I would highly recommend for people with kids, or someone just wanting friendly, colorful birds running around.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I have 3, a roo, a crested & uncrested hen. They are completely free range and I love them! They are so sweet but on the flip side so ornery..lol! I have had many breeds and up to 18 at a time...having 3 of this breed is like having 12 easy...they are like cats, curious & into everything

I actually have a predicament with my rooster, his hocks have been swollen in different places for a few weeks. It's not bumblefoot cause there are no lesions, cuts, or scabs.

Hi, welcome to BYC!

Handsome fellow you got there. How old is he?

It's possible he hurt himself jumping down off of something. Though that seems like a long time to recover. Maybe recurring injury? How high is the roost? What kind of landing when coming off roost? Have they been swollen in the same place the whole time or is it moving around. Because I think of hocks as being the part behind the knees...

Beautiful yellow legs, hope he feels better.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Oh that works We make back our feed (the chickens pay for the goats too LOL) our goats I switched to orchard/alfalfa so their hay is costing like $80 a month plus I provide coastal all the time. Our feed is about $200 a month which isn't much considering how many I have (we go to a local feed mill which is nice) I try not to figure in my other costs LOL. My friend keeps a record of everything but I'm horrible about that I say if I know how much they really cost I dunno if I'd want them so much.

Yes, I keep track to... But it's still cheaper than going to the gym, and a therapist. So the effects it has on my mental and physical health, plus the connection it brought with the kid far out way my expenses!

That could change if I had major flock issues, I would imagine.

Plus the dog feed is what we spend on security after being burglarized once! More benefit than those alarm companies that send cops after the fact.

Oh, and I got a quote to clear brush... was $50/hr per man.

Made it easy to decide to get goats to help with the chores. So when you add my time saved on yard work and instead I get watch animal antics which is free entertainment... oh I don't pay for cable TV either... So many ways to justify my expenses!

 

[Merrymouse]

Here is my Swedish flower I just got today. I am praying it's a hen. Can anyone take a guess to what color she will be when feathered out?

The one on the left. The chick on right is a cream legbar pullet

Thanks

 

[minihorse927]

Here is my Swedish flower I just got today. I am praying it's a hen. Can anyone take a guess to what color she will be when feathered out?

The one on the left. The chick on right is a cream legbar pullet

Thanks

this chick looked like yours at hatch. Yours is a little lighter though so may be the blue version

 

[milleralexis94]

Here's some pictures of my only SFH, Sylvia. She is super inquisitive and kinda bossy! I love her personality and would definitely get more. I actually got her from Meyer Hatchery and was pretty pleased with how she looked even compared to those from a breeder.

 

[minihorse927]

At what age/methods do you sex your Swedish Flower chicks?

6 weeks I can accurately sex 99% of mine. Boys are bigger. Have pinkish combs and have thicker legs and coarser heads

 

[EggSighted4Life]

At what age/methods do you sex your Swedish Flower chicks?

At 5 1/2 weeks I can tell 7/9 are boys. They have bigger pinker combs and they participate more in the pecking order as well as often being larger in size. I have had a late bloomer in the past. But by 6 weeks, usually have a VERY good idea. Also can tell who will be crested by this point.

Of course some you can identify as boys much sooner than that by relative size and behavior.