Cream Legbars

[ncharriere]

Two of my four chicks have yellow legs the other two are more orange. Is there a preferred leg color for chicks or will that change as they grow anyway? Thank you

 

[lonnyandrinda]

I will save this information, thanks. It seems do-able. Do you feed live chicks to Stinky or does he need them dead since vultures are usually carrion eaters? I wouldn't feel so bad if I knew my culled chicks were going to a use like that. I will kill chickens to eat, but killing just to kill.... that's more difficult.



Hmmm... I think I could do this option, too. Still hard, though.

Usually I take him a live box of chicks and he wrings their necks and freezes them until it's feeding time. I am of the same opinion- I am glad their life has a use, not just to be put in the trash.

R and A, how are you deciding which boys to cull?

I've been thinking that there are only so many boys we can keep...but I was planning on raising them with freezer camp in mind. Not sure it's cost effective though...or I could just populate the forest with CLB Roosters! Just kidding, but my pen 1 backup boy ran off during green/forage time today. He has become very anti-pen. After two hours we gave up trying to catch him, but I hope he'll come back for water at least.

whoops I spoke too soon...just checked and he was waiting at the door to his pen looking sheepish lol.

I think we've established the dark boys are not going to do us any good for breeding. I cull those. I try to keep and sell only medium and light, I have a lot more mediums than lights but I do still get usually one light boy per hatch. As I already have a few medium boys in the brooder from the last few weeks and lots of boys lately I culled more heavily than normal from the last two hatches. Talk with Curtis, I know he grows out and eats his CL boys, mostly to avoid wasting them. I don't have the room or the patience of neighbors to grow out roosters (2/3 acre in a neighborhood). I do know a lady nearby that caponizes her boys, she loves it. She says they get bigger, have more tender meat, don't crow, don't fight, and are lots of fun to watch. I have contemplated asking her to teach me how to do it this summer (she's a high school English teacher so she's been super busy).

Glad your boy came back!

 

[lonnyandrinda]

Two of my four chicks have yellow legs the other two are more orange. Is there a preferred leg color for chicks or will that change as they grow anyway? Thank you

I'd wait and see. Most likely the color will even out as they grow to yellow. Yellow is the goal for the adults.

 

[ncharriere]

 

[KPenley]

I love baby pics!

 

[lonnyandrinda]

If you believe in prayer, pray for Oklahoma tonight. The tornado that went through Moore was devastating. They are still searching for children in the remains of an elementary school. You can see an arial view of a neighborhood and watch a clip of the tornado below.

<iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/video/embed?video_id=10201276528582106" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0"></iframe>

 

[normanack]

Absolutely, Rinda. My heart goes out to them.

 

[CibolaChooks]

You have a friend with a vulture? Now that's at least one breed of bird I don't think I'll ever get into!

I've been thinking about culling a lot lately. I breed ducks and I am able to sell all the ducklings I do not keep.

For those who do it, how do you put down culled chicks? I'm sure I will have to do it eventually and I'd like to learn how to do it humanely.
Quote:
Originally Posted by normanack


Well, with only one culling under my belt, I'm no expert. I did a lot of reading, though, and it's fresh in my mind. I considered Rinda's carbon dioxide method as well as ether, and went with the second because we had some ether. (As it turns out I couldn't find it, so I used starter fluid, which is supposed to be ether. I'd go with the real stuff, though.) Small disposable Tupperware-type container with a nest of cotton balls, hold the chick, cry, put chick in container with several ether-soaked cotton balls. Chick peeps, then sleeps. Cry. Wait 20 minutes or so just to be sure, then bury chick under some leaves back in the woods.

I didn't find much consensus on what's best for the chick. As Rinda noted, one must also consider what you are willing to do.

the ether will suffocate them. if you ever watch a chick die this way you will turn to chopping the head off. It is the fastest way and you know the chick only has a sec of pain. the lil one i tried with ether suffered for several minutes terribly before i yanked it out and snapped its neck. the ether is a nasty way to die. its not like the movies where you drop in a second. The carbon dioxide way may be a good one, i have not seen a chick die that way. If you want the chick to have the quickest most painless time you chop their heads off. If you are only worried about yourself and want it to be easy for you you drop them in a box or tupperware and walk away as they gasp and flop around trying to suck up as much air as possible that just isnt there.

 

[dretd]

the ether will suffocate them. if you ever watch a chick die this way you will turn to chopping the head off. It is the fastest way and you know the chick only has a sec of pain. the lil one i tried with ether suffered for several minutes terribly before i yanked it out and snapped its neck. the ether is a nasty way to die. its not like the movies where you drop in a second. The carbon dioxide way may be a good one, i have not seen a chick die that way. If you want the chick to have the quickest most painless time you chop their heads off. If you are only worried about yourself and want it to be easy for you you drop them in a box or tupperware and walk away as they gasp and flop around trying to suck up as much air as possible that just isnt there.

Good advice.

My admonition to my son when we were getting rid of the prairie dog that had taken up in our pasture was "be sure your blow is swift and hard--you don't want to hurt it, you want to kill it" The most humane thing for the animal is sometimes the hardest on human.

 

[harriedhomemaker]

Good advice.

My admonition to my son when we were getting rid of the prairie dog that had taken up in our pasture was "be sure your blow is swift and hard--you don't want to hurt it, you want to kill it" The most humane thing for the animal is sometimes the hardest on human.

Food for thought here.