Cochin Thread!!!

[lilcrow]

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I would tend to agree, we all mess up from time to time and if we can't forgive then how are we to ask to be forgiven when we fail? We don't know the circumstances and have no grounds to pass harsh judgement on someone we do not know. Now to your birds; check the bird by placing your finger underneath the foot pad and push up against it, if the bird wraps its toes around your finger and grips then there is probably no nerve damage, if it cannot grip or grip well it will most likely have a slight limp but will survive and be productive.
Banding young birds requires close management or damage can occur, change bands regularly (about every two weeks) until they reach a point that the feet are large enough to band permanently with a large enough band that won't slip off and need not be changed anymore.

Bo

Well................OK..........I suppose you're right. Lord knows I've made my mistakes and beat myself up for it terribly. I see animals as helpless and dependent on us for their well being. I think it is my duty to do everything I can to take the best care of them that is possible, but that doesn't mean that every single animal gets exactly what it needs, it gets what I know to give it within my scope of knowledge, and unfortunately there have been a few birds that have paid the price for my ignorance. I just try really hard not to repeat a mistake.
okie, Bo and Msbear you have a naturally kind and forgiving heart, my apologies for being so quick to judge.
Nancy

 

[Coopa Cabana]

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Erin - Are you having a Chocolate craving???

 

[lilcrow]

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Hey Mandy this brings up an important point..............got any time on your schedule that we could have a wing banding "party?"

 

[thecochincoop]

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Hey Mandy this brings up an important point..............got any time on your schedule that we could have a wing banding "party?"

sure when I get a chance to make it up that way

probably next week sometime. I want to see those peeps anyways

 

[Bo Garrett]

The browns are still a work in progress and I only have hens of rather poor coloring, the hackle and breast are more buff than red. Crossing some partridge into them to see if this will improve the color in those two areas. The birds I raised last year all came out brown red colored however so I'm in a bit of a quandry as to which direction to go now. The partridge and buffs both carry the dark brown gene as do the brown reds but I just can't seem to find the right combination. Been working on this for 8 years now so I'm not giving up.
I have far too many chicks hatched out now, about 85 large mottled, 60 large blacks, 8 large whites, 2 buffs, a few barred rocks and now some fertile partridge and brown eggs going. With the price of feed I'm thinking I may go broke feeding these monstrous big rascals!!!
Yep, I have missed the occasional bird band and I have also checked them one day and the bands be OK and the next the bird be limping, dang they grow fast! I just go with the every two week thing and leave the band just loose enough where it won't slip over the foot, this will normally allow for two weeks of growth. After about 8-10 weeks the band can be left larger due to the foot size and it will allow for more time between changes. Wing bands are certainly a way to go but I have to identify 24 different families of birds from hatch to death and this is the way that works best for me. It is fairly labor intensive but you handle every bird and get to know them as they grow and develop. Long live the cochin!

Bo

 

[Fyrekitten]

I agree, and maybe I was a bit too harsh. I just felt so bad for those birds. We as their caretakers hold an immeasurable responsibility. Do I handle all my birds - no. Will they all let me handle them HECK NO!!!

Some just are not into alot of handling as is per the breed trait. I have seen some awful things in my day and I am sure that the lady is beating herself up about it - I just think more care should be taken to examine birds, furniture or anyting else for that matter. I actually witnessed a horrible horrible event last year. We were at a local dairy farm where we know the people and they would NEVER harm one of their animals. We were considering purchasing a couple heifers from them last year as we get our hay from them for our other calves and one of the heifers they were displaying looked funny. I asked what was on her throat and the grandmother sent her older grandson in to take a look. There was a piece of baling twine about 3-5 inches grown INTO the skin and flesh and just starting to cut into the windpipe. It was the most sickening thing I have seen in a very long time. The heifer who was almost six months to a year old healed up and is just fine but the Grandfather just about killed his Sons and Grandsons for not noticing that one of his prime heifers of which he has many had a piece of twine left around her neck from when she was a first born calf. So I agree accidents do happen, I have lost chicks just from thinking I was doing them good and doing the right thing when I first started out. Everyone deserves grace - it's just a shame it was several birds all at once that it happened to.

I recommend that once you find out if the feet are still okay that you definitely treat and use some antibiotics and wrap to keep dirt out of them for the first several hours. I would then clean again, salve and try to let dry out some somewhere that isn't too dirty. Anyone else's thoughts on this for making them better????

 

[Fyrekitten]

About the brown Cochins - that sounds very interesting by the way. I have never done a breeding progra and will hope to start one sometime next year when I decide which breeds along with the cochins I'm going to keep - I think I have about 15-20 breeds I have started - as we were saying some of them came out of hatching in onsey twosies and some had their siblings die either from respiratory probblems no matter what I did or just up and decided to call it quits with nothing wrong - that makes me beat myself immeasurably

I have the cutest little cochin guy that I am keeping hands off on right now that just looks like he has the funniest little pair of pantaloons on! He is a bluish gray and I think will just be adorable - of course it could be a she....

Anyway, I would like to see where I could get some books on crossbreeding for color? I have read some about banding and family banding and crossing in Backyard Poultry and some of my other books but was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction on this.

 

[Coopa Cabana]

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My favorite 3 books on Plumage Genetics:
1) "Genetics of Chicken Colours" (Sigrid van Dort & David Hancox)
2) "An Introduction to Color Forms of the Domestic Fowl" (Brian Reeder)
3) "21st Century Poultry Breeding" (Grant Brereton)

 

[Fyrekitten]

Thank you so much Coopa!

Already planning on ordering them and adding to my chicken library! With the Fibromyalgia and the bad arthritits all the things that used to bring joy to my life seem to mostly bring pain (gardening, no more cycling, walking, nothing over 4 lbs [seriously???

} etc and etc I think that chickens will become my next comfort "item" At least with them they are work but not as bad as gardening and many other things out there.

I have several cochin eggs in the incubator and I don't know what colours I have yet - very excited. They are in there first week in the incubator. Here's a question - if I were to take a blue Cochin (LF) and cross it with a Silver Cochin (LF) what generally would be the coloring for something like that? I personally prefer the warmer colours like the partridges,reds, golds and browns but I was very curious?

Thanks all!

 

[Groundhighchickenguy]

Does anyybody got any good lines of Black Cochins they like to sell eggs or chicks from? 2nd attemptt here.