Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Sylvester017]

Probably, after all, she Alex's daughter so that could run in the family

Maybe we shouldn't say "cheat" but "creative" as she helps him w/ taxes

 

[SimpleJenn]

Imagine a Cochin cross with Leghorn. What a perfect combo for a chicken. I’m imagining my Brown Leghorns with feathers on their feet!

They would be amazing! My mother in law is here today and she called dibs on if there's a girl one. She loves "hairy leg" chickens as much as I do.
Update, 7 eggs have not hatched yet. Incubator is crowded with 10 babies running around.
Tonight we'll pull them out as long as everyone is out and dry.

 

[rural mouse]

Another wrinkle in the puzzle! The white "leghorn" eggs (remember these were unlabeled!) Have fuzzy legs! So that means daddy was likely cochin or marans!

That's one of the good things about mixed breeds: 5 toes, feathered feet, beards/muffs, full crests all are readily apparent at hatch. Makes for easy ID of 1 parent.

Also means those 2 will likely lay brown eggs of some shade, and be black birds. The 12 week + moult is when leakage most likely will start showing. I'm curious about body shape: cochin bowling ball with leghorn sail tail?

 

[rural mouse]

I could not find any such data or report on grass fed poultry having a resistance to the virus in any UK studies (or Canada by extension).

Having said that, any animal (or human as we too are mammals), that is exposed to the natural environment will have an immune system which has been exposed to and stressed by any number of pathogens.

But the problem is if you are not exposed to a pathogen you can’t possible build up an immunity to it. Think North American aboriginal people and small pox - they were almost decimated by this disease they had never been exposed to.

This would also happen to any animal that is exposed to something they have not been exposed to. The die off could be extreme depending on what type of virus, what systems it affects, and how virulent it is.

It’s a catch 22 with AI, wild birds live with it and have done so for likely a millennia, gradually building up a resistance; domestic birds have not. So they are particularly prone to die off. Which is why it has an effective morbidity rate of 100%. And the survivors are usually physically affected so that they are not likely to survive long.

It’s pretty hard to build up stock that is resistant when you have a very small number to work with and those that are surviving are damaged, and likely would not survive long enough, or be able to, produce offspring that are in anyway resistant.

The best way to deal with this could possibly be with vaccinations. But there are detractors to that also. There are no easy answers to this, and there will be absolutely no consensus on how to deal with it, due to the ‘human nature’ having differing points of view on things.

The best answer I can give is to keep your own chooks if you can, or find a source for your eggs from a small flock holder.

It was an interesting rabbit hole to wander down

Thank you for going down it.

 

[SimpleJenn]

That's one of the good things about mixed breeds: 5 toes, feathered feet, beards/muffs, full crests all are readily apparent at hatch. Makes for easy ID of 1 parent.

Also means those 2 will likely lay brown eggs of some shade, and be black birds. The 12 week + moult is when leakage most likely will start showing. I'm curious about body shape: cochin bowling ball with leghorn sail tail?

That would be incredible to have, sail-ball birds!
I'm confident the mother is brown leghorn since the eggs are large and pure white.

 

[ILoveDaffy]

Well, days are going by fast, yet so slow! 25 days left till the chicks get to me! 24 until they hatch. So exciting! Congratulations @SimpleJenn ! The babies are absolutely adorable! It'll be fun seeing them grow and finding out what breeds they are!

 

[fuentemoon]

A rare sight, not only are there three eggs in the coop, but they are perfectly placed each in its own nest!

 

[SimpleJenn]

Did you know ayam cemani eggs are even pigmented on the inside? I sure didn't and had to ask the breeder. He reassured me that it's normal and a moldy egg wouldn't hatch a healthy chick. He just forgot to warn me in advance haha.

But yes, one of the cemanis is now free!
6 eggies still to hatch!

 

[SimpleJenn]

We have a polkie!


Had to get chicks out of the incubator, waited for most to be dry and pulled them out. My mother in law is so excited to be part of our big hatch day.

 

[rural mouse]

We have a polkie!
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Had to get chicks out of the incubator, waited for most to be dry and pulled them out. My mother in law is so excited to be part of our big hatch day.

Ooooh! A complete fluff ball! Crest, beard, feathered feet (and some of the golden laced chick coloring)! keep going eggs!