Delawares from kathyinmo

[LeslieDJoyce]

Here is a little family video of PapaDel, some of his chicks, and a couple foster broodies having a snack in the yard. It's too far away to see much about the chicks, but you can sure see PapaDel's extra fancy tail.

I've read the streaming sickle feathers are do to the feathers being too narrow, so they coil & droop instead of arc. I think Mr. Fatty has somewhat wider feathers, and though his tail is extra bushy, it has fewer streamers (and also no black). Just another "little" thing to work on, but in general I prefer the bushy tails to pinched tails.

I do love PapaDels demeanor and his super wide back.

 

[caychris]

Here is a little family video of PapaDel, some of his chicks, and a couple foster broodies having a snack in the yard. It's too far away to see much about the chicks, but you can sure see PapaDel's extra fancy tail.

I've read the streaming sickle feathers are do to the feathers being too narrow, so they coil & droop instead of arc. I think Mr. Fatty has somewhat wider feathers, and though his tail is extra bushy, it has fewer streamers (and also no black). Just another "little" thing to work on, but in general I prefer the bushy tails to pinched tails.

I do love PapaDels demeanor and his super wide back.

Those chicks seem very comfortable ranging all over.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Those chicks seem very comfortable ranging all over.

They tend to stay in the area under the trees and close to the coop. We've had some losses from the mutt clutch, because that broody takes them out into the open pasture area. So I'm trying to figure out the best way to put in some overhead protection down at that end.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

They tend to stay in the area under the trees and close to the coop. We've had some losses from the mutt clutch, because that broody takes them out into the open pasture area. So I'm trying to figure out the best way to put in some overhead protection down at that end.

I literally just saw a hawk fly off with one of the mutts.

This is the first year we've had chick loses. I don't like it.

 

[finnfur]

I literally just saw a hawk fly off with one of the mutts.

This is the first year we've had chick loses. I don't like it.

Oh No ! Sorry . Is that one of the black ones in the background video or the yellow fluff balls ?
Every Hawk attack we had was black birds . When there was lots of color choice.
Unless it just left on its migratory pattern it will be back - the food bank is open .

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Oh No ! Sorry . Is that one of the black ones in the background video or the yellow fluff balls ?
Every Hawk attack  we had was black birds . When there was lots of color choice.
Unless it just left on its migratory pattern it will be back - the food bank is open .

It WAS one of the black chicks. That clutch was a combination of 3 green/blue egg chicks, and 2 culls from Zanna's Black Copper Marans breeding program. There was one chipmunk chick, and three black ones with white of gray bellies (2 of Zanna's, two of my mutts). I'm down to just one of the black chicks and the chipmunk.

Little Mutant Freedom Mutt Penguin is turning out to be a poor mother. She also lays tiny eggs, doesn't mix well with the crowd, and has a perpetually drippy bum. A case of "hybrid vigor" fail. I thought maybe being a mom would break her out of her little bit role, but it hasn't. She gets distressed over her chicks, but let's them range too far from the coop.

 

[finnfur]

It WAS one of the black chicks. That clutch was a combination of 3 green/blue egg chicks, and 2 culls from Zanna's Black Copper Marans breeding program. There was one chipmunk chick, and three black ones with white of gray bellies (2 of Zanna's, two of my mutts). I'm down to just one of the black chicks and the chipmunk.

Little Mutant Freedom Mutt Penguin is turning out to be a poor mother. She also lays tiny eggs, doesn't mix well with the crowd, and has a perpetually drippy bum. A case of "hybrid vigor" fail. I thought maybe being a mom would break her out of her little bit role, but it hasn't. She gets distressed over her chicks, but let's them range too far from the coop.

I think the broody hen has more spunk and increases her rung up the pecking ladder.
You know how it is with youngsters now a days . They don't pay attention to Momma and get eaten by the big bad Hawk.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

I think the broody hen has more spunk and increases her rung up the pecking ladder.
You know how it is with youngsters now a days . They don't pay attention to Momma and get eaten by the big bad Hawk.

In other bad news ... the final PapaDel clutch due to hatch today looks like a bust. I was really hoping to get 10 chicks, so I'd have hatched the same number of PapaDel chicks this year as last. There is one living chick than I can see ... that means I've only got about 30 PapaDel chicks total instead of about 40. I've pulled a couple stinky dead-chick messes out of the nests, lots of unhatched eggs still ... I think it has just been too hot out here.

The temperatures are completely unseasonal, by the way. Summer never starts in Oregon until July 7th. Meaning we should be in the mildest part of the year right now.

I'm not sure what this means for next year in terms of setting broodies up to do our hatching. I'm pretty committed to that plan, and we had great luck with the first couple hatches. But this is clearly not going to work. Maybe I'll try again in September? If I get a broody.

 

[finnfur]

Maybe try only earlier in the season. I think thats why the low broody hatch here - by mid June the temps were soaring.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Maybe try only earlier in the season. I think thats why the low broody hatch here - by mid June the temps were soaring.

It is all timed to the broodies. I did have a couple early broodies, and then nothing for a while ... plus we had some human complications in keeping the ball rolling. I did better earlier this year than all of last year and that's fantastic and seems to be showing up well in the Mr. Fatty chicks. Next year I suppose I'll do even better earlier as I've learned a few more things.

There are so many details, no matter what way you decide to manage the breeding & hatching. Luckily, I really enjoy working out procedure & process.

I moved the cockerels from the first hatch of Mr. Fatty chicks into the Cockerel Colony last night. I didn't weigh them as promised. My excuse is I'll weigh them at 14 weeks, which is soon enough. There were 15 chicks in that clutch, two of which are a different breed. There are at total of 5 cockerels, and only 4 of those are Delawares.