Derperella, the (weird) Faverolles, & Friends

[artsyrobin]

I have never met a mean cochin roo- both sweet to the ladies and to people

 

[KayTee]

What breeds are they?? Despite my health problems with my cochin boys, I think I shall always like a cochin or brahma roo forevermore...!! I'm sold on them.

Two Light Sussex hybrids and a production red - all raised (at different times) from day old chicks in the flock by Rusty, my faithful broody. Each time they reached adolescence they would start to home in on one of my three girls - Cinders - the largest girl, but lowest on the pecking order. She would end up looking hideous - damaged and missing feathers, and would spend her day hiding from them in the bushes at the bottom of the garden. She would even refuse to come in and roost at night. When it got to that stage I knew that there was no option other than freezer camp for the roosters. Separating them in a run didn't help - they went crazy trying to get out and get to the girls. The last one (a Light Sussex) not only went mad for Cinders, but he also started to attack my husband whenever he went down to the coop.

I had read that Sussex were supposed to be a calm, gentle breed, which is why one of my original four girls was a Light Sussex. After 2 weeks she had to go - she was a psycopath! She would chase the other three girls around the run / coop - wherever they were was where she wanted to be. She would keep them away from the food and water, so they went into the coop, but she didn't want them in there, so she would go in and chase them out again. She would physically attack two of them, to the point that I feared for their lives. The day after we got rid of her (freezer camp again, I'm afraid) nothing but peace and harmony reigned in my coop! The other 3 sorted themselves out, no fighting, no terrorising, and were perfectly happy for the rest of their days!

I love the gentle nature of cochins and brahmas, but for some reason I can't explain, I can't abide feathered feet on a chicken! I don't know why, but I just don't like it! I think that Trousers was gorgeous, and so is Bubbles, but I just can't see me getting one like them. Bizarre, I know, but the thought of a chicken like that in my flock is like imagining someone running their fingernails down a blackboard!!!!

 

[artsyrobin]

Quote: i have discovered Jersey Giants, the personality of the cochin without feathered feet- i adore cochins, but my Jersey Giant girls are sweet too

 

[Nambroth]

i have discovered Jersey Giants, the personality of the cochin without feathered feet- i adore cochins, but my Jersey Giant girls are sweet too

How are the roos?

 

[KayTee]

i have discovered Jersey Giants, the personality of the cochin without feathered feet- i adore cochins, but my Jersey Giant girls are sweet too

Hmm, you've given me food for thought artsyrobin. I decided to have a look at Jersey Giants online.

Wikipedia says that it is the largest of all chicken breeds with hens weighing around 4.5kg (10lb). I now have a sneaky feeling that my grey girl - Cinders - may well have been more Jersey Giant than the Marans cross that thought she was. (I only really thought that she might be a Marans because BYC members helped me identify my original girls when I bought them - the local farm shop sells them by colour, not breed, so I got red, black, white and grey chickens!

)

However, I was never certain about the identification of her as a Marans, mostly because the eggs she laid were always very pale. Now I realise that her size was also wrong - as a fully grown bird she weighed just under 5kg! (People seeing her for the first time always joked that she was a turkey, not a chicken!) Her personality fits the Jersey Giant breed perfectly too - very gentle and docile - bottom of the pecking order even though she was far and away the biggest girl in the flock! She never laid particularly well - an average of around 4 eggs a week, but she was a lovely girl. (I very sadly lost her a few weeks ago to respiratory illness.)

 

[artsyrobin]

Quote: I haven't had roos yet, theoldchick had stan the man - and he was docile, might check with her- from what she said, he was a sweet boy

Quote: well, my girls are sweet, non aggressive, they've just started laying, dark tan eggs, they are the size of my brahama girls, 10 months- and will stand at the door to the coop calling for treats in the evening-




i'll get some current pics, they don't gain their full height and weight till 2 years

 

[katbriar]

artsyrobin- since they don't fully mature in size and weight until 2 years old do they maintain their laying longer too?

I have a mixed flock breed wise, but everyone is the same age. This was their first winter taking a egg-laying break and I've had to buy store bought eggs since October.

I'm thinking about how to plan a few additional birds each spring so we at least have a _few_ eggs during the winter months. (Without light in the coop.)

 

[artsyrobin]

i don't know as they are a new breed for me, oddly, my most consistent layers are my silkie girls

 

[katbriar]

i don't know as they are a new breed for me, oddly, my most consistent layers are my silkie girls

Thanks- I have Delawares, Welsummers, Barred Rocks, andEaster Eggers. The EEs have been my most consistent with BRs not far behind. They're also the most easy going.

I enjoyed the number of different colors in the egg basket, but the Welsummers are pretty rough on the sweet girls. I suspect one of them is not a reliable layer. If I can figure that out in the spring she's destined for the stew pot.

 

[artsyrobin]

oooooo Derppppp and family, are you all ok???