Hello from Ohio!

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Imwiththepyr

Imwiththepyr

Hatching
5 Years
Sep 17, 2014
4
0
7
Hello! New member, long time lurker here.

My name is Leah. I live in rural Ohio on a big patch of land I call home. I have a small flock of chickens, 7 hens and 1 rooster.

My roo is some kind of Australorp mix and I am 99% sure he is the most pathetic rooster in the world. :) He has crowed maybe twice in his life and the hens pick on him big time. I suppose he is what most people would refer to as a "dream rooster" haha. He is a very sweet boy and tolerates being petted and picked up pretty well. I have never had an issue with him.

My hens are a mixture of Australorps and Buckeyes. They are older now and egg production has come to a stop, sadly. It has been a week since I gathered an egg.

Today, I culled my first bird. A Buckeye hen who wasn't doing so hot. I feel absolutely terrible about it. I have never killed an animal before in my life and I just can't get the picture out of my head. It was the worst thing I have ever seen in my 26 years of existence. My birds are the first chickens I have ever had. Everyone is telling me how it is part of raising them. Apparently, you are "supposed" to cull them when egg production has ceased. (though, this is not the reason I culled her). I guess they are no good to me since they are no longer laying. Sigh..

I would also love to get into raising turkeys and guineas. They are both something I know nothing about and I am eager to learn!!

Along with myself and the chickens, I have 4 dogs. Maxwell the Great Pyrenees who keeps watch over the birds. (knock on wood, haven't lost a single bird thanks to him!) Karma the Great Dane, Chunk the Chow mix and Cabela the Pit Bull. I also have 3 cats: Persephone, P Kitty and Piper.

I look forward to getting to know everyone and learning more about these wonderful birds!!!
 
You don't have to kill a hen that is no longer laying. How old was she? She may have been able to find a home as a pet. Some people allow them to live our their retirement years in peace for all the eggs they did provide.

The Great Pyrenees sounds fine. How are your other 3 dogs in regard to the chickens?. Most chickens are lost to the owners' dogs/cats who massacre all of them. I don't think your Pyr could hold off three big dogs if they tried to attack your chickens.

If you ever have the other kind of rooster - the Nightmare kind, that spurs humans, attacks kids, severely maims your hens, or crows day and night till animals control issues warnings, then you will truly appreciate your "pathetic"( great) rooster. He does sound like a dream rooster and I know loads of people that would want him and trade you their Horrible ones.

This is the time of year many chickens go through molting - when they do, egg laying stops. So maybe you don't have to get rid of your hens yet. Laying also slows down as the days shorten into winter. This is a natural occurrence .

Please do head for the Learning Center for basic information and then to the "Raising backyard chickens," forum you will be able to fine tune some of your lessons.

Welcome to Backyard chickens. Glad you joined the flock.
 
Welcome to BYC, Leah. Glad you decided to join our flock. I'm sorry you had such a hard time culling your Buckeye hen. I've been butchering chickens for 50 years and I still don't enjoy it. It is a rare blessing to have a dog that actually guards chickens instead of chasing and killing them. You have two very good breeds. Australorps are my favorite standard breed. I've raised them for years and they are extremely hardy, calm and gentle, and excellent layers of large, brown eggs. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. We are here to help in any way we can. Good luck with your flock.
 
Welcome to BYC!
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We're glad to have you.

Sorry to hear about the loss of your hen! It is always hard to cull. Fortunately, I've only had to do it once so far (and hope I never have to do it again!).

Good luck with your other birds!
 
Thank you everyone for the welcomes!!

Drumstick - I had to cull the poor hen because she was ill, not because she ceased to lay. She had been quarantined for 2 weeks now with no signs of improvement, as hard as it was for me to do, I suppose it was the right thing to do. She was given a proper burial.

As far as my pups go, my Chow mix is fine with the chickens. Shows absolutely no interest in them. My Pitty and my Dane... not so much. They go outside in a separate yard. They can't even see the birds.

My Australorps are two years old, my Buckeyes are three years old. My roo is approximately one year old. He was given to me a few months ago so I am not 100% on his age. He is a little guy with feathered feet and Austrolorp coloring. I absolutely adore him and wouldn't trade him for the world. I can say without hesitation that he is my favorite. (Don't tell the others, hehe)

I will definitely check out the Turkey and Guinea forums! Thank you, Kelsie!!

Michael - Australorps are my favorite breed as well. No matter what other breeds I get into in the future, they will always hold a special place in my heart. They have such wonderful personalities and antics.








Some pictures of my Flock






My handsome boy who makes it all possible.
 
Welcome to BYC! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

WOW!! Your flock is gorgeous and that dog is SO CUTE!!!!:)

Sorry you had to cull your bird! That is never easy!

Glad you joined us!
 
Hello there and welcome to BYC!
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Wow, your flock is just gorgeous! Pretty dogs too!

Sorry you had to cull your hen. It is never easy to put them down. But is a necessary thing to do when they are no longer living a quality life.

Make yourself at home here and we do welcome you to our flock!
 
Welcome to BYC!

You will find a lot of good information here. Keep on asking questions and you will get many good answers.

You may also want to read the FAQ below.

One day I will get a Great Pyrenees.
 

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