Colorado

[maggiemo]

So I've heard and read that chickens can just up and die, for no apparent reason and leaving little to no clues as to the "why?" I can now attest to that as fact.

I went out this morning toting a full to the top 5 gallon bucket of FF (since the weather has been warm enough to do FF), and opened the coop door to see a shadow in a pile in a corner. Turns out I lost one of the biggest New Hampshire pullets

just over 10 mos old. No pulled feathers, no indication of cannibalism or pecking, no discharges from either end. She was a good weight (heavy) so had obviously been eating well. Her feathers were in good shape except the few spots from being mounted by the roo. Just no explanation at all... Really bummed about it as they are my best layers. Today was trash day and I had no time to do an autopsy before work so I just bagged her and added her to the trash can. I didn't think highly of the idea of eating her as I had no idea how long she had been dead or what she died from. Everyone else is just fine today when I got home from work.

What a waste really. It's kinda bothered me all day wondering if it was something I did or didn't do... or could have done differently, or should have seen coming... I'm out there with them at least twice a day and didn't notice anything suspicious at all... <sigh> oh well... tomorrow's another day. Vent over. thanks for listening.

Sorry LS,
I have had this happen twice.
So sad.

 

[Ashdoes]

So I've heard and read that chickens can just up and die, for no apparent reason and leaving little to no clues as to the "why?" I can now attest to that as fact. I went out this morning toting a full to the top 5 gallon bucket of FF (since the weather has been warm enough to do FF), and opened the coop door to see a shadow in a pile in a corner. Turns out I lost one of the biggest New Hampshire pullets just over 10 mos old. No pulled feathers, no indication of cannibalism or pecking, no discharges from either end. She was a good weight (heavy) so had obviously been eating well. Her feathers were in good shape except the few spots from being mounted by the roo. Just no explanation at all... Really bummed about it as they are my best layers. Today was trash day and I had no time to do an autopsy before work so I just bagged her and added her to the trash can. I didn't think highly of the idea of eating her as I had no idea how long she had been dead or what she died from. Everyone else is just fine today when I got home from work. What a waste really. It's kinda bothered me all day wondering if it was something I did or didn't do... or could have done differently, or should have seen coming... I'm out there with them at least twice a day and didn't notice anything suspicious at all... oh well... tomorrow's another day. Vent over. thanks for listening.

This exact thing happened with a gorgeous white Silkie rooster. I went out in the morning, and he was clucking at our Silkie hen, and dancing and happy...just a few hours later, he was dead, in a heap for no reason. His mate was perfectly fine, as were the chicks she was brooding. Craziest thing.

 

[Ashdoes]

You guys go, DK and Ash!!
Hope you both have great hatches! Keep us posted!
I have 7 3 week old chicks now. I will try to get some pictures this weekend. 

I have 30 chicks coming the week of the 23rd. Blah, talk about chicken math...I don't even know what I was thinking. I ordered 6 pullet bantams from My Pet Chicken (3 barred rock and 3 EE bantams), so that was reasonable, and for some reason I added 9 cinnamon queens to the order.
Then I had a $25 credit from last year from Meyer Hatchery. They don't sex bantams so I was just going to let the credit laps....but no....I ordered a 15 pullet rainbow mix....oy....chicken fricassee anyone? 

The barred rock we got from MPC was my husbands favorite chicken, and was in our very first flock. Very sweet chicken, and also head hen, but never mean. Same thing just happened to me with those cinnamon queens we ordered, wasn't until I was "browsing" that I decided I needed them. lol.
SFH is currently out, and chirping like crazy, I think it's sad being alone. Bunch of pips though, so hopefully another joins her soon. Oh, and I'm sending my own good juju and just calling them all "she".

 

[Latestarter]

Thanks all. Congrats to all you hatching fanatics

May you be over-run with pullets!

And to others experiencing (just learning?) chicken mathematics... well, all I can say is... twelve!

 

[Ashdoes]

Omg! You guys have got to see the cutest chick photo contest...I swear I could look at baby chicks and ducklings all day.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...st-baby-fowl-6th-annual-byc-easter-hatchalong

 

[bbqnmama]

Small world.  I lived at the corner of Isabelle and 95th when I moved to CO 22 years ago.

One safe and easy way to go with meat birds is just buy straight run dual purpose chickens.  Keep the hens, process the boys.  It also gives you the option of processing them at your own pace, not all of them in a very small window.

I have not done meat birds but I am surprised at the price of Freedom ranger chicks.  I figured since they were THE red ranger bird, they would be pricey.  I'm sure you could find some people to split an order.  Even solicit or sell them on CL.

Lol! Well now if that's not a small world...!!

So, I may have made my decision for me. I have had turkeys arriving at the end of this month and a set of hens arriving in may. But a group camping trip has popped up that we Want to go on with pals that just so happens to coincide perfectly with the arrival of the chickens soooo. I've moved them up to arrive at the same time as the turkeys, in a cpl weeks. (Exciting!)

That said, by moving them up I had to increase my order from 16 to 25 to meet the requirement (hehe, my other half isn't aware of this fact yet - lol!) So.... I now have 25 hens arriving in a cpl weeks on top of the 18 baby turkeys. Lol.

So I'm thinking, given my somewhat spontaneous increase in hens, I may have no choice but to do the meat birds for their somewhat shorter time span for simple fact that I'll be a bit more limited in terms of coop space. (Was thinking some of the meat chickens could hang with the hens in the chicken coop but now that is going to be full! They're joining my current 18).

I'm telling ya, I now truly see how this whole chicken thing can become addicting.

 

[bbqnmama]

I have raised the Red Broilers from Stromburgs and also hatched out my mixed dual purpose.
RB pros
More uniform and there is an ideal 2 week window for processing, 10 to 12 weeks old, fairly feed efficient
Cons  - there is a cost for the chicks, 25 minimum usually

Dual pros
You can process as they reach weight, usually (12?)  14 weeks earliest, 16 to 18 , 20 the smaller birds
Might be cheaper, , great flavor
Cons  less feed efficient, more fighting between the boys because they are older, more crowing

This has been my experience so far.  I have grown 25 and 50 chicks at one time.  I personally like just getting the processing over with in one or two days, so depending on what you raise, the DP will have a wider range of carcass weights.

Thanks mtn margie! I'm thinking I might feel the same way about getting the processing done at once. I'll admit, not the part of this whole experience that I'm looking forward to.

I have raised lots of meat birds. I usually split an order of meat birds with a friend of mine. We get between 25 and 40. I work at a farm and we have raised 100 meat birds 2 X at the Farm for the Farmers Market, just to see how they sold and if it is worth doing (it isn't, you can't make money raising organic meat birds for profit, or we can't at least). 
I have only raised Freedom Rangers and red broilers. They are about the same growing out and size wise. Pretty much what Margie said. 

Long Shadow Farm processes birds for $3 a bird if you stay and help, $5 a bird if you have them do all the work. They have a plucker and a scalder and killing cones and everything you need. You just show up with birds. Oh, and they deal with the mess too. 
I know some people think that is a lot of $$. I think it is a deal. I can take 30 birds up and with the two of the people at Long Shadow Farm and me and my friend slaughtering and cleaning and plucking, we can be done in about 2 hours. The $3 a bird includes the shrink wrap bags too. 

I have done the slaughtering here too. Setting up equipment, slaughtering, cleaning, breaking down the equipment would take all of one day and some of the next day to clean up and put everything away. Certainly doable. 

I'm sure others will have more to add.

3 degrees here right now....

Oh wow. Now that sounds like a deal really... and they clean up the mess! Suhweet!

I don't have any equipment as this is my first round for meat birds... so the fact I could help for a reduced charge and not have to invest in all the equipment, well that's cool.

I'm gonna give them a call about schedule.... I bet they can get busy!

Thanks a bunch!

 

[BlackFrogHollow]

Hello all! We are in the Colorado Springs area and have 13 assorted hens and 1 roo! I also have 2 guineas and some quail. I am trying to find some Olive Eggers.

 

[oshun55555]

So I've heard and read that chickens can just up and die, for no apparent reason and leaving little to no clues as to the "why?" I can now attest to that as fact.

I went out this morning toting a full to the top 5 gallon bucket of FF (since the weather has been warm enough to do FF), and opened the coop door to see a shadow in a pile in a corner. Turns out I lost one of the biggest New Hampshire pullets

just over 10 mos old. No pulled feathers, no indication of cannibalism or pecking, no discharges from either end. She was a good weight (heavy) so had obviously been eating well. Her feathers were in good shape except the few spots from being mounted by the roo. Just no explanation at all... Really bummed about it as they are my best layers. Today was trash day and I had no time to do an autopsy before work so I just bagged her and added her to the trash can. I didn't think highly of the idea of eating her as I had no idea how long she had been dead or what she died from. Everyone else is just fine today when I got home from work.

What a waste really. It's kinda bothered me all day wondering if it was something I did or didn't do... or could have done differently, or should have seen coming... I'm out there with them at least twice a day and didn't notice anything suspicious at all... <sigh> oh well... tomorrow's another day. Vent over. thanks for listening.

Latestarter over the last 50 years I have had more birds that were otherwise healthy drop dead than I can count, it just happens sometimes, granddad always told me they died of heart attacks, don't know if that is true or not cause I never could afford to do no autopsy on them. But don't feel bad, I bet my bottom dollar you didn't do nothing wrong. I won't eat a bird that just drops dead either, the meats probably good, but I don't like the idea of it.

 

[Mtn Margie]

Hello all! We are in the Colorado Springs area and have 13 assorted hens and 1 roo! I also have 2 guineas and some quail. I am trying to find some Olive Eggers.

and this CO thread!