First Run of Cornish Cross Meat Birds and Super Excited!

[nj2wv]

shood i ?

They should be fine in one pen together. I keep my extras in a pen together. I have 80 hens free range and just have 3 roosters out with them. You get more eggs because the roosters stress the hens if you have too many.

 

[Dandelioness]

Shood i seprate my roosters i have six of them im gest wondring if they will kill eachother

Hello, Maggypie -

I think it depends on how many hens you have per rooster. If I have as few as 6-8 hens per rooster, I don't see any more than the usual strutting around and crowing at each other, but I am able to safely free range my flock during the day. I think the standard recommendation is 1 roo per 12-13 hens.

So, in short, it really depends on how much room they have and how many hens you have. I would also say that providing "hiding places" for less dominant roos helps a great deal, too. Sometimes you'll see the dominant roo chase another roo and he will hide, then the dominant roo goes about his business.

The eagle kite is a great idea!! Hawks are the only predator I really worry about, but I don't think I've ever lost anyone to a hawk. I see them circling a lot, but so do the dogs and I think they must be at some kind of stalemate.

Best of luck on the hatching, Ralphie. Are the Nameless and the toms going to freezer camp?

Well, I ordered 100 CX chicks instead of my normal 50. I think I'll start selling the ones from this batch that I don't have existing customers/deposits for on Craigslist at a price commensurate with their age. There is a chart I have somewhere that gives feed conversions and estimated feed requirements for CX chicks at each week of development; I plan on using that as a guide.

And my Sweeter Heater is being delivered soon, so I'll have to get another pasture brooder & run built. After I separate out my breeders, make a few 5-gallon bucket feeders and revamp my roost area in the main coop. I'm not tilling or anything, but I am putting two of my breeding groups in portable meat bird pens and moving them along the garden to eat up any weeds that pop up this month. I am so happy it is nice enough to comfortably get some work done around here.

 

[duluthralphie]

I have lost birds to Eagles and Hawks.....

I have lost one bird to a weasel..

My dogs do a fair job on keeping 4 legged critters at bay, but Eagles re another thing, they are in and out so fast.

If it gets to 40 degrees today Nameless and 3 jakes are going to camp.

I am going to place my keepers in a covered pen today. I do not want to have to hunt for turkey eggs.

 

[holm25]

Ralph we culled some birds the other day well only one. It was a barred rock who was a giant egg eater.

I candled with a brighter light yesterday. Saw development in all eggs but one. Hope it starts to develop as its only on day 4. Do you guys think it will start or is it a goner. And one EE egg has a big black circle in it. Is it dead or just developed more???

 

[duluthralphie]

I am far from an expert but I wait 10 days before giving up on an egg.

I am not sure on the back circle I guess it depends on what exactly it is.


I have been getting 27-28 eggs a day so I assume I have no hidden nest or egg eaters....



I am thinking of giving Bert some women, I feel like a pimp.... I am thinking of moving him to a dog kennel with some Dixie rainbows, The kennel has a 8 ft high fence around it, I am hoping the rainbows cannot fly that high...

If I leave the eggs in the nest do you think it will force the hens to go broody?

 

[Double Kindness]

I finally did it!!! I got 10 cx this morning!!

Now I feel like I can really post here b/c ya'lls know I TRIED to get cx for 5 months last year!!

Top it off I'm adding 4 cream leggers (non breeding quality ccl ) to cross onto my bean line non Smithsonian ayam cemani cock especially AFTER seeing the cutest black skinned fluff butts hatch from my ee's. And how fast I can sell fibro sbel project chicks

And I will add a dozen ccl eggs from my vet's best improved line pen after she hatches her first batch April 4th.

Chicken math phd program is going well huh? Oh, and I just ordered 10 top show quality cayuga ducklings and a mated pair of adult black east indies ducks from Harolrreed waterfowl and I seem to have a mated pair of runner ducks as well as muscovy ducks. I am insane.

Plus still looking for turkeys. Help me... by egging me on and enabling me!!

 

[Turkeytruff]

Also, my daughter is about to have a birthday... is it reasonable to get her chickens?! Of course they would be "her" chickens...

Of course it's reasonable to get your daughter chickens for her birthday - and Easter and christmas and new year's day.... heck, like the Veuve Clicquot champagne quote:
"I drink it when I'm happy and when I'm sad. Sometimes, I drink it when I'm alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I'm not hungry and drink it if I am; Otherwise I never touch it - unless I'm thirsty."
Madame Bollinger, one of the "grande dames" of French champagne (1884 - 1977).
It's never NOT a good excuse to get her a chicken

Olive eggs are not even worth trying to see through! I candle many eggs for my egg biz and I found that the olive ones aren't worth even trying to candle! You just say a prayer and put them in the carton for sale.

Good luck on some good hatches Ralph!

Here is the temporary house for the pullets so that we could get them home fast! See all those pretty girls! They are so happy and more lay eggs each day.

Wow your tractor(s) are amazing! I want one (or several)

So glad to hear how you are improving all those hen's lives!

I have not been writing much because of the pneumonia, but I think it is finally going away. DW is back at work today, could be the day to make a trip to FleetFarm for a new incubator...


I sold 7 dozen eggs today a woman and her toddlers came to get them. She wanted to show the kids the birds. of course as soon as she pulled in the white rock came running to see who was here. She is the friendliest chicken I have ever seen. She can be 1/4 mile out in the pasture and if I come out the door, she comes running to say hi.

The kids wanted to pet the turkeys, so I picked up JJ and held him for the kids to pet, but they were too afraid of him, he is bigger than they were. When I was holding JJ, Ethel came over and started talking to the woman and myself. She talks, talks and talks. I asked if the kids wanted to pet Ethel, they said they did, So I picked up Ethel and held her for the kids to touch. They liked her.


My talking to and holding Ethel made JJ jealous. as soon as I set Ethel back on the ground JJ mounted her.... I hope the Mother can explain it, she seemed good natured about it and simply said " I guess we are going to get a show"

That could have been bad.... BUT on the good side Ethel squatted for JJ and let him on her. Which means I need pens fast. I hope I don't have any eggs out there yet.

Did you get a new incubator? I am very sad, my faithful old hovabator that I use to hatch seems to have developed dementia - it cooked 14 eggs (12 meaties, 2 BCMs) I feel sad that they got all that way to the end and then mechanical failure... I am going to have to rethink my strategy...

And my Sweeter Heater is being delivered soon, so I'll have to get another pasture brooder & run built. After I separate out my breeders, make a few 5-gallon bucket feeders and revamp my roost area in the main coop. I'm not tilling or anything, but I am putting two of my breeding groups in portable meat bird pens and moving them along the garden to eat up any weeds that pop up this month. I am so happy it is nice enough to comfortably get some work done around here.

Is your sweeter Heater like a Brinsea Ecoglow? I have 1 of those, but I have also made 2 similar heaters by buying 2 Sunbeam XpressHeat Kingsize heating pads. They are $40 Canadian so cheaper I'm sure in the US. They are wonderful - I cover them with a pillowcase, then plastic, and use wire to shape them into the same shape so the chicks can snuggle under or on top as they get older. You can even use them outside with an extension cord as people on other forums here have been doing.

If it gets to 40 degrees today Nameless and 3 jakes are going to camp.

I am going to place my keepers in a covered pen today. I do not want to have to hunt for turkey eggs.

I hear you on the turkey eggs. I have 6 hormonal turkey hens at the moment and they are pecking chickens out of their nests, then flouncing off, trilling in that high voice that sounds like PMT - I am finding 2 eggs most days but I know at least 5 are laying. Did you do the deed on the jakes and Nameless today?
I also have a MG meatie that has gone broody - I didn't think they would. Don't know if leaving lots of eggs in a nest makes them broody but I know that my 1 broody hen with the 6 2 week old chicks is getting a LOT of interest and I think another 2 are about to start brooding. That seems to happen every year, they hear all the little cheeps and .....

 

[duluthralphie]

I would like to report no progress on any of the fronts..



I did not get a new incubator, however, I got my DW's blessing. When I told her I wanted one she said " What the (expletive deleted good is it going to do for me to tell you no, anyways? You always do what you want no matter what I say so go buy your ( insert words that even hurt my virgin ears here) incubator."

I was truly surprised I expected her to be against the purchase. She is just so hard for me to read sometimes, I just really never, for the life of me, thought she would be this supportive.




Nameless and the 3 Jakes are still alive and well. We have a cold snap here with the possibility of snow even. I am going to try for next weekend now. I am planning with any luck in the weather front, to start segregating the keepers from the campers.

Ed and Ole will not be happy as their coop is going to become Turkey coop. It is real strange Ed and Ole run around al day with the other chickens they go into the other chickens coop. but they roost in what will be the turkey coop,


As you can see I made no headway on any of my goals, other than getting my DW's blessing for another incubator.

 

[mountain mom]

Hello Mountain Mom,
May I ask that you tell how the egg rehab job fares? I assume you intend to hatch ye olde rehab.
Sincerely,
Neal, the Zooman

Neal-
Do you mean the cracked egg? That was actually Ralphie, I was just commenting on it. I believe he intends on hatching it.
I too, am curious about what happens with it!

 

[mountain mom]

Of course it's reasonable to get your daughter chickens for her birthday - and Easter and christmas and new year's day.... heck, like the Veuve Clicquot champagne quote:
"I drink it when I'm happy and when I'm sad. Sometimes, I drink it when I'm alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I'm not hungry and drink it if I am; Otherwise I never touch it - unless I'm thirsty."
Madame Bollinger, one of the "grande dames" of French champagne (1884 - 1977).
It's never NOT a good excuse to get her a chicken

Here, here!
Excellent quote!