Down sizing?

[CelticOaksFarm]

We are actually adding to our flocks right now. Extra Roo's hit the freezer, older hens too except for 4 hens who are our first, they get a pardon and live here till old age.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Quote:
I used to love the pellets, well... I guess I still do, for the convenience. But, that was before the last couple price hikes in feed. Pellets at $29 a hundred pounds for pellets has just pushed me over the edge. The layer mash is a touch more work. I fill a bucket with 3 big scoops of the mash. Stop by the outdoor spigot and put in water. I take a stick and stir. The result is very much like a stiff porridge and not unlike sticky crumbles. The birds love it.

At $19. versus $29. a hundred pounds? Yeah, I'll pour on a little water and stir. Absolutely.

 

[they'reHISchickens]

The second batch of this year's roos are going for processing next week ( 6-9 or so). At the same time, we will remove the two 3-4 yr old hens we know are not laying and possibly a third one who has stopped laying for the year. She had a 4 month layoff last year and it can only get worse as she gets older. The other two have not laid in a year and yes we do keep track on Steve's ChickenTracker! I tend to be too forgiving in them not laying.
Before we decide to compost them, I will ask the lady at work if she wants some old hens for soup base but either way it will be a humanely quick demise for them.
We have 5 Black Orps from Jody and Charlie Hinks and we do like them. However, we have decided that instead of hatching orp babies, we will go back to the breeders for new stock when we need them next year. That eliminates the need to house an Orpington roo. Goodbye Oliver.
We are trying to build up our marans and we may have enough to select the hens we want to keep for next year. We'd like to keep the number over winter to under 20. With the young ones growing up and then another batch of roos processed before Christmas, we just might make it!
Our only dilemma is our Aurcauna roo. Barney is one heck of a great protector rooster. We got him to produce blue egg layers with our two blue-egg EEs. Well, one hasn't laid in almost a year so i wasn't going to hatch hers anyway! We hatched a fair number of the other one's eggs but she seems to produce a lot of roos. I don't even know if we have any blue egg EE pullets coming. So do we need Barney for breeding? No. But we free range and he's a very very good protector, is nice to the girls, and he is nice to be around. Those three qualities will likely get him a home through the winter and into next year.
The Blue Copper Maran roo will likely spend the winter in his bachelor cage because altho he looks nice, I don't trust him, he is rough with the girls and he wants to fight Barney.
You never know. If I could find a nice young FBCM roo that could get along with Barney, that bad boy would be gone. <G> We have a few young ones yet to grow out. We shall see.
Right now we are getting 8-11 eggs a day from around 15 hens of all ages. We don't need this many at all, but DH loves his chickens.

 

[macdoogle2]

OMG! I pay 32 dollars for 50 lbs of organic pellets. I've got to re-thinkj what I feed my birds.

Fred's Hens :

Quote:
I used to love the pellets, well... I guess I still do, for the convenience. But, that was before the last couple price hikes in feed. Pellets at $29 a hundred pounds for pellets has just pushed me over the edge. The layer mash is a touch more work. I fill a bucket with 3 big scoops of the mash. Stop by the outdoor spigot and put in water. I take a stick and stir. The result is very much like a stiff porridge and not unlike sticky crumbles. The birds love it.

At $19. versus $29. a hundred pounds? Yeah, I'll pour on a little water and stir. Absolutely.​