Cubalaya Thread For Sharing Pics and Discussing Our Birds

[Jungleexplorer]

Got some pictures today. Very windy so they are not the best. The birds were kept in a cages and boxes during transport for a couple days and then in cages for another five days while I finished their pens, so they are not in perfect form. Lot of messed up tail feathers.

Here is my new pen. Built it mostly out of re-purposed oil field junk that was given to me, some old barn tin I had from another project and some old concrete form 2X4s. Only had to buy some chicken wire and OSB sheathing.





Here is a cockerel that I believe is from Saladin's line.






Here is another Zook rooster. It was really hard to take pictures of this guy because he is very aggressive and keeps charging me. I did not think he was serious the firs time he did it yesterday and I have a hole in my leg that showed me otherwise. Had to use my hat as a shield to take this picture. The other rooster is also a Zook and has a similar attitude. It may just be the new environment, because the the cockerel I got straight from Zook is as docile as a baby. Pretty Boy (my AG bbr rooster), was just like this when I first got him, but he is now totally tame. I hope these guys tame down, because don't I like my animals to attack me, because I run a rehab camp and always have Lot's of new people around.





Here is the other Zook Rooster.




And for good measure, the Dominique I bought from Mr. Brush for my wife. Poor guy has no hens of his own.

 

[troyer]

Well you have a diverse line of wheatens, and it looks like they have a nice person to care for them. Happy 2013 breeding season.

 

[RachaelS]

Got some pictures today. Very windy so they are not the best. The birds were kept in a cages and boxes during transport for a couple days and then in cages for another five days while I finished their pens, so they are not in perfect form. Lot of messed up tail feathers.

Here is my new pen. Built it mostly out of re-purposed oil field junk that was given to me, some old barn tin I had from another project and some old concrete form 2X4s. Only had to buy some chicken wire and OSB sheathing.







And for good measure, the Dominique I bought from Mr. Brush for my wife. Poor guy has no hens of his own.

Wow, they look GREAT! Perfect use of reused items. The one and only thing I can think of, is they look hot. It just reminds me of the heat where I live. I use shading cloths here

, they work but do not collect rain like a tarp.

 

[wood&feathers]

Artificial insemination for cubalayas? It might get the desired results for show, but I can't imagine it is healthy for the long term viability of a breed. Hens will decide whether a rooster is fit or not, and I accept that their decision is probably based on important survival traits - health, vigor, and the ability of the rooster to be a flock protector, not whether his tail is on just so. Yes I will pen the breeding birds according to my desires and hopes, but if a cock bird can't even accomplish that job what good is he?

AI for meat birds, I understand. But a breed trying to recover from scarcity or a genetic bottleneck? hmmm, not my thing.

 

[Jungleexplorer]

Wow, they look GREAT! Perfect use of reused items. The one and only thing I can think of, is they look hot. It just reminds me of the heat where I live. I use shading cloths here

, they work but do not collect rain like a tarp.

Thanks. I fully intend to install shade cloth before the weather turns hot. Each pen is 8x10 feet and has a 6 foot roof over it. Due to the extreme southern position of the sun this time of year it cast shade outside the pen. But it will cast shade in the pen during the summer. The roof is there more for hail protection then anything else though.

My next order of business is to install lights in the little coops so the hens will start laying, and of course I need nest, which I will make out 5 gal buckets. I have drink cups on order from Cutler Supply and will install them with a pressure reducer to my water system. I am using little chick waterers right now. The 5 gal buckets in the picture are free flow feeders I designed. I designed the little coops with chicken wire floors, but also so I can slide in a solid insert floor in case of extremely cold weather. I have some junk greenhouse polycarbonate sheets that I am planning on making the inserts out of.

So I still have some work to do before I will be completely finished.

 

[fowlsessed]

Got some pictures today. Very windy so they are not the best. The birds were kept in a cages and boxes during transport for a couple days and then in cages for another five days while I finished their pens, so they are not in perfect form. Lot of messed up tail feathers.

Here is my new pen. Built it mostly out of re-purposed oil field junk that was given to me, some old barn tin I had from another project and some old concrete form 2X4s. Only had to buy some chicken wire and OSB sheathing.





Here is a cockerel that I believe is from Saladin's line.






Here is another Zook rooster. It was really hard to take pictures of this guy because he is very aggressive and keeps charging me. I did not think he was serious the firs time he did it yesterday and I have a hole in my leg that showed me otherwise. Had to use my hat as a shield to take this picture. The other rooster is also a Zook and has a similar attitude. It may just be the new environment, because the the cockerel I got straight from Zook is as docile as a baby. Pretty Boy (my AG bbr rooster), was just like this when I first got him, but he is now totally tame. I hope these guys tame down, because don't I like my animals to attack me, because I run a rehab camp and always have Lot's of new people around.





Here is the other Zook Rooster.




And for good measure, the Dominique I bought from Mr. Brush for my wife. Poor guy has no hens of his own.

Nice birds, it looks like the bird in the top two pics has a lot of Asil influence. Not that it matters any, and I like them; but it just looked that way to me and I'm trying to learn a little bit, so checking to see if I'm right or not?

Thanks,

 

[fowlsessed]

Artificial insemination for cubalayas? It might get the desired results for show, but I can't imagine it is healthy for the long term viability of a breed. Hens will decide whether a rooster is fit or not, and I accept that their decision is probably based on important survival traits - health, vigor, and the ability of the rooster to be a flock protector, not whether his tail is on just so. Yes I will pen the breeding birds according to my desires and hopes, but if a cock bird can't even accomplish that job what good is he?

AI for meat birds, I understand. But a breed trying to recover from scarcity or a genetic bottleneck? hmmm, not my thing.

 

[cubalaya]

i like the design of your coops. the chicken wire will keep them in but won't keep predators out. i use welded and chicken wire. a roof all the way across the top would give them shade and shelter.

as far as that ai thing, a cubalaya cock can stay with 2 hens year round and not really mess the feathers up on the hens. i like keeping my breeders in trios. the delaware roosters need more hens and tend to mess up the back feathers. so i try to keep more hens in the delaware pen. i want to go more natural with my cubalayas; letting the young stags freerange and rustle their own food until i catch up the culls and put them in my freezer, letting the hens do more of the egg hatching, and finding even more ways to feed them without buying more and more chicken feed. we are halfway through december and i am still feeding them greens from the garden. the asils that i will be using in my grading are in a tractor and turn down pellets to eat grass and bugs. they tear up a new piece of ground everyday so must be moved daily. the cubalayas tolerate the tractor but would rather be freerange.

 

[saladin]

Thanks. I fully intend to install shade cloth before the weather turns hot. Each pen is 8x10 feet and has a 6 foot roof over it. Due to the extreme southern position of the sun this time of year it cast shade outside the pen. But it will cast shade in the pen during the summer. The roof is there more for hail protection then anything else though.

My next order of business is to install lights in the little coops so the hens will start laying, and of course I need nest, which I will make out 5 gal buckets. I have drink cups on order from Cutler Supply and will install them with a pressure reducer to my water system. I am using little chick waterers right now. The 5 gal buckets in the picture are free flow feeders I designed. I designed the little coops with chicken wire floors, but also so I can slide in a solid insert floor in case of extremely cold weather. I have some junk greenhouse polycarbonate sheets that I am planning on making the inserts out of.

So I still have some work to do before I will be completely finished.

Cubalayas are winter layers no need for lights.

 

[Jungleexplorer]

i like the design of your coops. the chicken wire will keep them in but won't keep predators out. i use welded and chicken wire. a roof all the way across the top would give them shade and shelter.

as far as that ai thing, a cubalaya cock can stay with 2 hens year round and not really mess the feathers up on the hens. i like keeping my breeders in trios. the delaware roosters need more hens and tend to mess up the back feathers. so i try to keep more hens in the delaware pen. i want to go more natural with my cubalayas; letting the young stags freerange and rustle their own food until i catch up the culls and put them in my freezer, letting the hens do more of the egg hatching, and finding even more ways to feed them without buying more and more chicken feed. we are halfway through december and i am still feeding them greens from the garden. the asils that i will be using in my grading are in a tractor and turn down pellets to eat grass and bugs. they tear up a new piece of ground everyday so must be moved daily. the cubalayas tolerate the tractor but would rather be freerange.

My dog pen with two large dogs is only 50 feet away from this chicken pen. They bark at anything so I am hoping that will keep predators away. Honestly, my biggest predator problem here is with owls. They are the only ones that have caused problems at night. I have lost some of my free ranging AGs during the day to a fox, but that is about it.

Once I get some offspring from these guys, I will let the offspring free range. That has always been my intention. But I can't let these adult birds out because it would be all out war with my AG roosters. Heck I had to stand there for hours with a water hose keeping them from fighting through the fence when I first put them in the pen. Believe it or not, it was the Dominique that wanted to fight the most. When he wasn't fighting with my AGs on the outside, he was fighting with the Cubalaya next door. I think it is because I have no hens to put with him. They are all good now. Everyone has settled in.