Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[rural mouse]

Sheee's back..... And pecking me on the back of the head when I ignore her. I am gonna need to get something for the back of my office chair. I am turning into a crazy chicken lady for sure!

OK so back to this SASSO chicken stuff - has anyone ever even heard of this chicken? Apparently SASSO stands for Sélection Avicole de la Sarthe et du Sud Ouest or Poultry Selection from Sarthe and South West.

@ManueB may have some information on this to supply.

Anyways I am quite interested in this bird, if I get some chicks for Sophia I just might get a SASSO Ivory (very pretty bird); I wish they put down what coloured eggs they produce. Day old chicks are feather sexable - what does that even mean? how do you tell? and is it only with the SASSO or if I had chicks from Mr P would they be sexable?

https://northamerica.sasso-poultry.com/en/sasso-products/colored-layers/ivory/

It means the roos hatch in one color of down, the ladies in another, just like the sex link birds.

 

[ManueB]

Sheee's back..... And pecking me on the back of the head when I ignore her. I am gonna need to get something for the back of my office chair. I am turning into a crazy chicken lady for sure!

OK so back to this SASSO chicken stuff - has anyone ever even heard of this chicken? Apparently SASSO stands for Sélection Avicole de la Sarthe et du Sud Ouest or Poultry Selection from Sarthe and South West.

@ManueB may have some information on this to supply.

Anyways I am quite interested in this bird, if I get some chicks for Sophia I just might get a SASSO Ivory (very pretty bird); I wish they put down what coloured eggs they produce. Day old chicks are feather sexable - what does that even mean? how do you tell? and is it only with the SASSO or if I had chicks from Mr P would they be sexable?

https://northamerica.sasso-poultry.com/en/sasso-products/colored-layers/ivory/

I never heard of those before. Reading about them I can tell you this. Sasso was breeding slow growth meat poultry from the 1950s, and specialized in chickens intended to get what we call "label rouge", a quality label for meat chicken. In 2016 they were bought by Hendrick's genetics, the international group that also owns ISA. They introduced these colour layers in 2021. So I think what you are getting is in fact a Hendricks hybrid developped for a specific market : more rustic, possibly dual chickens compared to the other industrial sex link types. A sort of modern version of the Harco I mentioned. As a hybrid it's characteristics will not be reproductible, and I don't think they are designed to hatch chicks.

 

[knoturavggrl]

Rodent Control

Came across this surfing the web

https://www.ontario.ca/page/rodent-control-livestock-and-poultry-facilities

Great article, thank you for the link.

 

[ChicoryBlue]

I tried. Not sure if they came out good enough to really see - it just wouldn't hold still when it's head was up so you could see the beak.

This one is blurry, but you can see the cross beak here, even though it is a fuzzy pic.
View attachment 3538318


This one is just because - it is the cross beak girl, but you can't really see it in this photo. (@RoyalChick : See the green legs on the bottom one! ) And @Ponypoor notice the little round bump on the inside of it's leg? That is where the spur will be if it grows one.
View attachment 3538320

This is another one of the cross beak girl. Out of 15 photos of her - this is really the only decent one of her face/beak.
View attachment 3538323

My understanding of cross-beaks is it can have 3 causes: genetics, positioning in the shell, and feed ( some nutritional deficit)

I am sure it is not feed, otherwise more than one would have at least a little cross beak. So, that leaves genetics or positioning in the shell. I'm hoping it is not genetics. I haven't had any chickens with cross beaks - I had one chick from a set of ordered chicks that had it, but I did not keep her. I had to hand feed her multiple times a day as hers was bad enough she couldn't really eat on her own. It was really hard to let her go, as with all the handling for feeding, she became very friendly...and when I would go out to check on the chicks (or because I was going to get her for feeding), she would fly up onto my arm or shoulder while I was bending over filling he waterer or feeder. I tried to see if I could get it to be aligned better - at night I would put an elastic on her beak (think retainers). However, she wouldn't keep it on - so that was a real bust. When I finally gave up, she was less than half the size of her hatch mates, and she was the same size as them when she arrived.


It is looking more and more like she is the only pullet - and her beak is bad enough that she can't eat grass, etc. She tries, but she never gets anything - she can only eat the crumbles when it is in a dish (i.e. not spilled on the ground - darn scratching chickens!) so she can push her beak far enough in that she can get the food.

I recall Shad tried slow filing with some success, does anyone else remember that? It would depend on the severity of the cross of course.

 

[RebeccaBoyd]

Hmmmm, are you sure you didn't work for one of those ghost hunting shows? Sure looks like an attempted mirage to me!

'Do you believe? I will make you believe!'

No I don't, but I admit I love to watch "A Haunting" and "Dead Files".
Butter got into the action as well. Here she is trying out for a part on "The Exorcist : Chicken Addition"

You get the leading role girly.

 

[Ponypoor]

I never heard of those before. Reading about them I can tell you this. Sasso was breeding slow growth meat poultry from the 1950s, and specialized in chickens intended to get what we call "label rouge", a quality label for meat chicken. In 2016 they were bought by Hendrick's genetics, the international group that also owns ISA. They introduced these colour layers in 2021. So I think what you are getting is in fact a Hendricks hybrid developped for a specific market : more rustic, possibly dual chickens compared to the other industrial sex link types. A sort of modern version of the Harco I mentioned. As a hybrid it's characteristics will not be reproductible, and I don't think they are designed to hatch chicks.

I downloaded their 'guide', and when I get a chance I will see about reading it. I would be interested in the Ivory which is very pretty, I found out that they lay a cream or light brown egg.

The other thing I am wondering about it is this claim to be able to be 'crossed with local Roosters'. That made me wonder about the feather sexing. Which I also found out was actually distinguishing the feather length on the wings as day olds. I already do that with my birds here with some success.

I guess I will need to read up on it.

 

[LhickenChicken]

I found if I can get them to sleep on my lap I can get some photos - just took a few of Petunia (I think she's a she).

Hey! (straw!) I have a pullet called Petunia!

 

[LhickenChicken]

It means the roos hatch in one color of down, the ladies in another, just like the sex link birds.

sex link / auto sexing birds

 

[Sally PB]

Not a mug... This is Sunny (the brave one) sitting on my lap.

 

[ValarieF]

Rodent Control

Came across this surfing the web

https://www.ontario.ca/page/rodent-control-livestock-and-poultry-facilities

Great info I needed that knowledge