Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Ponypoor]

Good points. Cackle raises their own line of Buckeyes, and they are a huge hatchery so have big flocks. Does that help, or would theirs still be too inbred?
How do you order "barnyard mutts" - and have them vaccinated? Your Azurs are Blue Azurs, also called Sapphire Blues?

Well barnyard mutts would t be vaccinated unless you did it yourself.

I know at Hoovers they have many different hybrids on offer - I got Midnight Majesty Marans which are BCM Roo crossed on barred rock hens. My one surviving chick turned out to be a boy

The Azur Blue I have are a Leghorn and Auracana cross hybrid. They look very much like leghorns, but are actually paint or splash in colour as they have black spots. And Topsy has a crest!

There are so many nice crosses out there these days. Have you seen the Welbar cross Hoovers has? Welsummer and Barred Rock cross.

I would actually buy the Azur again they are super friendly and funny little birds - I was very happy at how friendly they are considering they were ‘factory’ Ready to Lay pullets when I got them at 20 weeks.

 

[Sylvester017]

I am bopping around when I have time, and also searching for information about breeders and hatcheries, and saw this again. I am thinking about a few more Buckeyes this year, and since Hazel is the only one of four Buckeyes from My Pet Chicken hatched in 2020 still alive, I was thinking I would not use MPC again, that the genetics were fairly bad for longevity. Also, the coloring on Butters and Popcorn was quite a bit lighter than I've seen SOP pictures, though that's much less important than their personalities, which were outstanding.

But what you're saying here is that the Buckeyes MPC gets and what gets shipped out from year to year might be from entirely different breeders or hatcheries, so you can't really tell? It's not a TSC = always Hoovers (or whoever it is they use) situation?

Here's my two cents

I've had such a mixed bag of experiences from all kinds of sources in 14 yrs.

MPC info I got 2nd hand about where they get their birds. My understanding is MPC takes the orders & private breeders provide the birds, exact details of which I know not. They are far from me so I never ordered from them. Most info seems positive. MPC must be a decent source to be in business for so many years.

I have ordered directly from out-of-state (VT, CO, KS, MO, CA) private breeders & some were flaky shipping wrong or sick birds while other private breeders were genuinely honest.

I've had feed stores that got their chicks from Privett Hatchery (New Mexico) ~ we lost 3 out of 4 ~ one chick death, a couple heatstroke adult deaths & one is still alive at over 7 years. Just never know how an individual bird or line of birds will survive.

At least reputable hatcheries guarantee alive chick delivery & if their policy is followed accurately by the customer they will refund any losses. However w/ most private breeders ~ once the bird is shipped they rarely refund $$$.

I'm not a fan of shipped chicks/birds but for a breed I really wanted I would go w/ a bigger reputable hatchery that refunds for losses. They refund the cost of the bird but I don't think they refund S&H fees.

Just note that day-old chicks are delicate & many die from different physical causes other than just shipping stress. If chicks survive shipping their ongoing longevity is good but not guaranteed. That goes for feed store chicks too that the store orders from a hatchery.

One thing I absolutely do ~ get the Mareck's vaccinated chicks. The extra $2+ for each chick is well worth it!

Go ahead w/ a hatchery that has your desired Buckeyes cuz there's no positive way to guarantee any chick health & order at least 3 minimum to allow for a chick loss. We got a single chick from a feed store & it lived only 23 days. We got 3 chicks of the same breed years later ~ lost a one-yr-old pullet later in a heatwave & a couple years later another sister to heatstroke but still have one left at 7 yrs old.
Glad we got the extra chicks.

Dana ~ our surviving Dominique.

Bird health issues is the nature of chicken-keeping. Try not to over-worry about a breeder source if it's reputable ~ & go for your desired Buckeyes. Big hatcheries have large breeding flocks so inbreeding is usually nothing to worry about. It's when there's only a 1/2 dozen or less birds where inbreeding would be unfavorable. Post pics for us. We love pics! Good luck!

 

[bgmathteach]

I am mad at him. So mad he had me in tears after what I did sunk in.

I am mad that for so long he showed such promising behaviors. I am mad he made me fall for him. I am mad he made me do something that I have only had to do once before. I am mad I miss him already.

Randy, Darn it. You were changing my views on game roosters in a mutli-rooster flock. I am so sorry about this evening.

 

[ChicoryBlue]

It may also be that they are setting themselves, like a person might shift around before picking up something heavy.

Yes, I picture that, it’s like the same shifting that weight lifters do. She’s gotta be ready to carry a roo heavier than she is! @TOMTE

 

[BY Bob]

Slips but not falls - yet!

And let me tell you the other day I really do not know how I didn’t fall, those brick pavers are slippery when wet, I skidded along a wet section I hadn’t swept yet and both feet were going every which way.

Can you imagine what I would have to say to the doctor in Emerg? How did you break your arm?

I would of course just tell him I slipped on ice! Hahaha

Slipped on the ice is the best thing to say. You don't want a surprise inspection by the government. They might take the chickens away for abusing you.

 

[Ponypoor]

Slipped on the ice is the best thing to say. You don't want a surprise inspection by the government. They might take the chickens away for abusing you.

Never fall down in the barn! They will be on you like those wee dinosaurs in Jurassic Park were on that little girl

Scary thought that!

 

[Sylvester017]

The laugh icon is for the vision I had of them playing hop-scotch!

The pavers are a great idea to keep your feet out off the dirt.

Canes here come with picks on the bottom for use on snow/ice. The safest thing though is using some sort of ice melt like salt or other substance, we also use sand and gravel as a surface texture to give some grip. I like to use wood shavings as it is non toxic to the grass and environment.

Snow and ice tax

My sister gave me this for Christmas.
View attachment 4015175

Anyone want to hazard a guess as to breeds?

TOP: Buff Brahma, a wanna-be White Leghorn, Cochin, Dark Cornish, Delaware.

BOTTOM: Vietnamese Dong Tao, Easter Egger but probably Faverolles, Buff Orpington, Silver Hamburg, a wanna-be Rhode Island Red.

 

[BY Bob]

Bird Flu in Cat Food.....More Info

Below you will find more info on the bird flu in cat food. It appears other cats have died from the bird flu. One seems to have contacted it from raw milk.

It would seem that fancy raw cat food could be quite dangerous to our cats and chickens.

https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/avian-in...-death-prompts-nationwide-raw-pet-food-recall

 

[BY Bob]

Fluffy Butt Friday
View attachment 4015127

Marvelous

 

[BY Bob]

The laugh icon is for the vision I had of them playing hop-scotch!

The pavers are a great idea to keep your feet out off the dirt.

Canes here come with picks on the bottom for use on snow/ice. The safest thing though is using some sort of ice melt like salt or other substance, we also use sand and gravel as a surface texture to give some grip. I like to use wood shavings as it is non toxic to the grass and environment.

Snow and ice tax

My sister gave me this for Christmas.
View attachment 4015175

Anyone want to hazard a guess as to breeds?

That seems to be from the same place I got my Christmas sweater.