Developing My Own Breed Of Large Gamefowl For Free Range Survival (Junglefowl x Liege)

[Florida Bullfrog]

Just so you know, I normally try to pen my stags around 8-9 months. Thats when they will quit running. At that that age they may still run from the broodcock, just not each other. The liege will likely dilute this drive some. Just so you can plan.

The oldest of these was hatched in March, so they have a ways to go. They’re pretty impressive for being 3 months old.

 

[Bigtom Turkey]

Yes they are, they are also much thicker feathered than pure orientals.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

A group of the Sherman-gen terrorfowl are treeroosting tonight. That’s a first for any of my terrorfowl, not counting the farmyard-landrace mixes that have Cracker in them.

 

[troyer]

A group of the Sherman-gen terrorfowl are treeroosting tonight. That’s a first for any of my terrorfowl, not counting the farmyard-landrace mixes that have Cracker in them.View attachment 3887556

Awesome!
Almost two decades ago I had some hatchery Saipan that would roost in the trees. They were influenced by others in the yard.

 

[Appalachian homestead]

Bullfrog did you and your farm make it through the storm ok?

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Bullfrog did you and your farm make it through the storm ok?

Yes we’re fine. On generator power and likely will be for a few days. I have lots of chicken updates from both before and during the storm but its going to need to wait. Picture intensive and I need to be at my computer. My generator is small so we’re only using it for necessities, AC, and internet. I did make a Youtube short and got it uploaded.

BTW, Starlink has proven itself. Its nice having fast internet when utilities are otherwise out.

 

[Appalachian homestead]

I'm glad y'all are ok! I'm looking forward to the updates.

 

[Molpet]

Yes we’re fine. On generator power and likely will be for a few days. I have lots of chicken updates from both before and during the storm but its going to need to wait. Picture intensive and I need to be at my computer. My generator is small so we’re only using it for necessities, AC, and internet. I did make a Youtube short and got it uploaded.

BTW, Starlink has proven itself. Its nice having fast internet when utilities are otherwise out.

Looks like fun
Not
I'll stay in Illinois and deal with tornadoes I guess

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Looks like fun
Not
I'll stay in Illinois and deal with tornadoes I guess

I like it. The storms are just a normal part of Florida’s late summer and fall (practically summer here runs through October). They replenish the land and the water table. We’ve been in a 30 year hurricane drought. There’s a reason Florida was a frontier state until the 1980s. Florida’s population in 1980 was 9.7 million. Today its 23 million. A lot of people are about to find out their neighborhoods are built in historic flood plains that have simply been dry for a long time. Florida’s hurricane cycle runs by the decades not the year. Into my lifetime (80s and 90s) many people in rural Florida lived with either no electricity period or limited utilities so that it was nothing significant to go a week without power after a tropical system had passed. People generally stayed away from Florida except for the big coastal cities and Orlando. It was nicer that way.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

The terrowfowl are now divided into 2 groups, which roughly corresponds to the two groups I brooded in separate brooders. The older group were brooded and turned out on one side of the farmyard, while the younger group were brooded and turned out on the opposite side. Both groups eventually co-mingled, but stark behavioral and growth differences emerged.

The first group got much larger but depended on me for food. They stayed mostly isolated from the larger free range flock for weeks and apparently didn’t learn to forage well, or alternatively didn’t get what they needed nutritionally from the forage. Although they looked fine of feather, they were emaciated to the touch at the breast bone. They continued to coop roost at night and most roosted on the floor of the coop. I subsequently penned them about 2 weeks ago and have been fattening them up since on cat food. They are very large and growing. No sign of disease. Just thinness.

The second group quickly integrated with the free-range flock and learned to forage behind my cows and among the blueberry rows. They stay out of view of the farmyard much of the day. Their bodies remain smaller but also fuller figured. They roost high in the trees. They remain on free range.

The free rangers often follow my dogs and pick up their feces as soon as the dogs go. That’s what was happening in the above pic.

I culled one from the first group for stumbling and I lost one from the second group by leaving a coop roof open and it slamming on the pullet’s head and hanging the pullet. That’s my only confirmed losses. I’m sure some have disappeared that I haven’t counted. They all weathered the hurricane fine best I can tell. I had some mixed breed free range chicks not do so, for comparison.