Consolidated Kansas

[Hawkeye95]

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I agree- Revolutionmama has bantams and they are tiny little things with teeny eggs. My SL Polish is about the same size as my Buttercup...smaller than my EEs. She lays a large egg, but never a jumbo. They were a medium for the first six months, but she picked it up. She lays 4-5 eggs a week, even at 3 years. She is one of my favorite birds, always wanting to be held. I have noticed that if the crest and muffs aren't trimmed they birds do get very wild because they're always being surprised by everything.

I'm not up on the lingo here.. what is an SLPolish? Is that a 'standard' Polish? Where did you get them??? I want to be sure I get the larger polish (but I want the white crested, black body) because I do want them to pull their weight. We raised them when I was a kid, and I'm pretty sure they were not the tiny kind- because they seemed nearly as large as our other chickens. I'm hoping that the description Meyers Hatchery says- when they explain they have the larger ones- is really true. Is there an in-between sized kind? That seems like a stupid question- but I have no idea! I just want to make sure I buy the largest Polish I can. That is AWESOME, BTW, that you are getting medium eggs! That is what several people said, but then other people wrote in and said 'no-way- NEVER does that happen'.

 

[chicken danz]

A standard polish is the larger ones. If you get an in between size they are probably not purebred. You are looking for a standard white crested black polish. An SL polish is a silver laced polish. It is black and white normally with a black head. There are also gold laced polish, splash, buff, and white. The newest is black over white.

 

[msjfrizzle]

Hey ChooksChick, thanks for the tips on keeping the birds cool! My kids really enjoyed watermelon this afternoon. These are my 5 1/2-week-olds. The black one (Merry- after the Hobbit) is a black copper Marans, and the others are ' barnyard mix' chicks that I bought to keep Merry company. Merry was the only one of 6 eggs to hatch in my first-ever use of an incubator.

She had been peeping pitifully late into the evenings, but within a few hours of bringing the new babies in, they were all snuggled together contentedly, sleeping---Quietly! They seem to be about the same age as Merry, based on their development, but I'm guessing they're bantams, being so much smaller. Does anyone have any idea what sorts of breeds might be mixed in here? As I understand it, the frizzle gene can be bred into any kind of chicken, right? I'm also wondering about gender, if anyone has any idea.


My 11-week-olds came from a garden center, which got them from McMurray's. I figured out fairly quickly that Lucy and Ethel are silver spangled Hamburgs, but I had to contact the hatchery to find out what Harriet was. Apparently they send a 'rare breed' chick with big orders, but the packing slip didn't say what kind it was. The prominent white ears hadn't developed at the time I contacted them, so I didn't realize I had bought a Blue Andalusian. A few days after I found out what breed I had, Harriet started crowing. Make that HARRY. I live in Wichita, and we're not supposed to have roosters, but several of my neighbors love hearing him crow, and the rest have dogs that are much louder than Harry, so I guess I won't change his name to Stew just yet. (Kidding! I couldn't eat my baby!!)

 

[KansasBoy]

I just got a few of these SS Hamburgs myself... Can't wait to see them grown out! Gorgeous birds!

 

[HEChicken]

msjfrizzle, I hate to say it but your BCM is looking rather roo-ish to me. Strangely enough I have a similar story to yours in that I also hatched BCM eggs and only had one hatch so had to get it some companions. I was fortunate that it was chick days at the time and I was able to get a cuckoo marans and a sultan from Atwoods. My BCM has turned out to be a girl but at 11 weeks, her comb is tiny compared to that of your 5 1/2 week old and much less red too.

 

[tntblake]

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I'm pretty sure your BCM is a roo. That is a huge red comb on a 5 week old. I love your mixes and I think I have the same type of frizzle only s/he is only about a week and a half old. I ended up going to the stable to get a couple chicks for my broody and I ended up with a frizzle and a smooth that are cream colored fuzz with a red fuzz face and they are feathering out the same colors as yours. I wonder if they are from the same parents?? I think I see a pea comb on the white and black one so I'm thinking maybe an ee. Your frizzle looks like a girl to me and I'm not sure on the other. I am leaning towards roo because the comb is pinking up already.

 

[Hawkeye95]

where are you all getting baby chicks at right now? Atwoods hasnt' had them in weeks, and even Craigslist is really pitiful right now. I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to order mine. But I'm going to wait for a bit cooler weather now. Plus... I have a couple of specific breeds I am wanting. But I looked all over for a companion for my baby turkey there about 3 weeks ago and didnt see anything. I did call one person on Craigslist, but he didn't want to just sell me one or two chicks. He wanted to sell a bunch, and I just needed the one or two. Ah well, my turkey seems okay, he has really bonded with us and follows us everywhere and sits down at our feet so we can pick him (her??) up.

BTW- SUPER excited to see so many people in the Wichita area!!!!!

 

[Ivywoods]

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What specific breeds are you looking for?

This isn't the best time to find chicks. There are, however, a few swap meets that continue through the summer. Sometimes you can find some really nice birds at them, and sometimes you find stuff you wouldn't really want to bring home. There are 4-H clubs and poultry clubs that host swap meets now and then. I don't know about your area, but keep an eye on craigslist. They do come up now and then.

I was looking for some nice royal palm turkeys. I found a number of different people that have them, but they were all farther away than I wanted to drive. I decided it would be better for me to wait until I'm a little farther along on my poultry building projects. Frankly, right now with our heat and humidity things are moving really slow.

 

[ChooksChick]

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I haven't been able to turn off my incubators in years...so I have chicks. Not to mention the chicks under the 10 broodies...wait, 12- because 2 have yet to hatch theirs.

I have Blue Orps, Black Orps, banty Cochins, Black Copper Marans, EEs, and more...let me know if you need any of those! I don't have any turkeys, though.

 

[msjfrizzle]

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I got my latest chicks at C Arrow stables in Maize. After the spring incubator season, they just let their broodies hatch when the urge strikes them. They said there are usually chicks running around. They have a very interesting assortment of chickens, ducks, small pigs, goats, and other critters, not to mention the horses.
Thanks for the input on my potential roos. The BCM has been acting like a rooster, too. Dang!