Heffley Chicken Ranch

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My plan is to raise "eggers" & if I have a nasty too aggressive one it might hit the smoker. The place I'm getting them from doesn't sex them or vaccinate, I bought medicated chick starter crumbles. My question is, is it as easy to sex them as it looked on "dirty jobs".....flip them over, press on the abdomen just above their junk and see if it's M/F ???
Rhode Island Reds are my choice for now as we have 90+ summers & 15 or so winters (F).

Also, on this site I've seen the average suggested mix is 1 Roo to 10 Girls, is that about right ?
Thx Brad
 
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Got my chick feeders/wateres as well as the 6g food/waters in stainless. Also R250w bulb and lamp. Time to dig a hole and get going.my RIR supplier says beginning of march, April, & May. Aiming for April. Just a little too cold to dig here right now.
Bock Bock.....
 
Bradshev said:
on this site I've seen the average suggested mix is 1 Roo to 10 Girls, is that about right ?
Thx Brad
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X2 on the 1 rooster for every 10 hen ratio as too many roosters will become very hard physically on your hens as they mature; over-breeding them, biting and plucking the feathers from their necks and backs, battering them, and potentially, seriously injuring them. The only reason you really need a rooster is to fertilize eggs for hatching, and 1 rooster can easily handle 10-15 hens in that regard. Good luck with your flock.
 
My chick supplier doesn't sex them. If I want 15 hens, do I have to get 40+ and 'soup' half of them ? When I watched 'dirty jobs' they seemed to sex thousands of hatchlings per shift and vaccinate@ the same time. I have no aversion to culling a nasty hen or roo, but I mean to raise egg bearing pets....not dinners every day.
Thx
 
Bradshev said:
My chick supplier doesn't sex them. If I want 15 hens, do I have to get 40+ and 'soup' half of them ? When I watched 'dirty jobs' they seemed to sex thousands of hatchlings per shift and vaccinate@ the same time. I have no aversion to culling a nasty hen or roo, but I mean to raise egg bearing pets....not dinners every day.
Thx
Click to expand...

Have you ever considered changing chick suppliers to one that does sex. I always order chicks in "pullet" batches of at least 25. Even if I don't need that many, because I have the order form proving that I ordered pullets, I've never had any problem selling off the extras and recouping my money.
 
I can't find one (another supplier)unless it's 'Trios' . 1 roo/2hens. Multiple breeds. One even has Ring Necked Pheasants. I might consider 3 Pheasants, but is the cock/hen ratio like chickens: 2-1 m/f not a good idea?
Kamloops, B.C., Canada is where I am. Nobody seems to sex chickens.
 
Bradshev said:
I can't find one (another supplier)unless it's 'Trios' . 1 roo/2hens. Multiple breeds. One even has Ring Necked Pheasants. I might consider 3 Pheasants, but is the cock/hen ratio like chickens: 2-1 m/f not a good idea?
Kamloops, B.C., Canada is where I am. Nobody seems to sex chickens.
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It's too bad that no one there sexes chickens. I'm a chicken person and don't know much about pheasants (never had any), but I'm sure that someone on our Pheasant section at https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/50/pheasants-and-partridge-chukar could answer your question about the cock/hen ratio in Pheasants.
 
Thanks. I'll check it out. Really I'd just like a bunch of pullets. The ground is prepped for the coop and the weather is mainly above freezing and warming. My wife has even started to get into the idea of 'girls' around here too !!!!
 
Bradshev said:
Thanks. I'll check it out. Really I'd just like a bunch of pullets. The ground is prepped for the coop and the weather is mainly above freezing and warming. My wife has even started to get into the idea of 'girls' around here too !!!!
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You're welcome, and good luck getting your pullets.
 

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