Chickens for 10-20 years or more? Pull up a rockin' chair and lay some wisdom on us!

[Beekissed]

Welcome to BYC!

Try the Illinois discussion thread, someone there may be help you with the hens.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/37/illinois


What do OT's think about just feeling the keel bone, see if it is hard and sharp or if the area is covered with fat, blunting the feel of the bone?

I've butchered many a chicken but never found fat on the keel bone. The only thing that blunts the feel of a keel bone is good muscling on the breast. I think I win the teddy bear at the fair for having processed the fattest chicken in the world and even she didn't have fat on her keel.

 

[al6517]

The keel bone divides the breast so you may not find any there, the best places would be the areas the chicken uses the least on a day to day basis. like the back and side flanks where they are less likely to be effected by fat eating heat.

 

[al6517]

Lisa, I really like that!

Here's my Christmas card....just for you guys.

As a true wise man I did notice those cool looking coffee cups, and cool looking old lady shades their sporting LOL.

 

[delisha]

Lisa,
Thank you. That was a really nice poem.
Merry Christmas to you too

 

[fowlman01]

As a true wise man I did notice those cool looking coffee cups, and cool looking old lady shades their sporting LOL.

We let them vote and see what kind of humor they come up with?

w.

 

[Beekissed]

Let us wear the pants and we'll put your shoes on and walk all over ya....

 

[al6517]

Quote:

LOL I know Walt really,

 

[galanie]

As a true wise man I did notice those cool looking coffee cups, and cool looking old lady shades their sporting LOL.

We let them vote and see what kind of humor they come up with?

w.

LOL I know Walt really,

Ok well that's still only two wise men.

 

[Beekissed]

You forgot Fred!

Oh...sorry, Fred...didn't mean to wake you.

 

[TNBEARCHICK]

Chickens have been doing that for thousands of years. Chickens have worked out how to live together and raise new flock members. A lot of these ways depend on the weaker running away or avoiding the stronger, so they need room to run away and avoid. I think most of the horror stories told on this forum related to integration or a broody are because of a lack of space.
But a good broody mother is something to behold when her babies are threatened. She still needs some room to work, but a good broody takes care of her babies.
There is another great myth in this forum. That is the myth that the other adults lay in wait and actively try to kill all new chicks. What a load of rubbish. Not all broodies are good, not all hens are good, and not all roosters are good. They are living animals kept in different conditions, but I have never seen a mature rooster threaten chicks in any way. I have seen mature roosters help a broody take care of her chicks.
If a young chick gets in its personal space, a more mature chicken is likely to peck it to tell it who is dominant. But if that chick does not get into that hen's personal space, that generally does not happen. And usually when that happens the chick runs away and all is well.
It is possible that if a chick gets separated from the broody to where the broody cannot protect it, the others might kill it. But if the broody can get to it to protect it, that does not happen.
Let me tell about something I’ve seen several times. A two week old chick leaves the broody’s protection and stands beside the adult hens at the feeder, eating away with them. Sometimes those hens totally ignore that chick, but usually it doesn’t take too long for one to peck it to remind it that it does not rank high enough in the pecking order to eat with its betters. That chick runs as fast as its little legs can carry it with wings flapping and furious peeping to the broody. The broody ignores all this. That chick should not have left her protection and just learned a lesson. But if the hen that pecked the chick starts to follow, the broody gets all kinds of upset with that hen.
Can a broody raise chicks with the flock? It’s been done that way for thousands of years.

I have a Bantam Buff Brahma that is a great dad, he adopted 3 little ones when the momma died while raising them they were (lf) so it didn't take long before they were bigger than him.