Hello

[CanadianGamefowl]

Here's one of his hens. They forage very early in the morning or later evening which is what crepuscular means.

Okay, yeah I believe some would have better night vision by genetics, Making then able to foradge earlier , later into evenings i imagine.

Have to be quick tho. Predators are out at those times. Normally only see them leave a roost at night , only if pressed off the perch by spooking them, coon climbs tree branch, they change branches.

Sun starts to rise at 4-5am everyday, sets 7pm or later in laying season, to keep the 12-14hrs of daylight to lay eggs. Even if dark, dusk at 9pm here. There headed for the roosts by 8pm. Everyday. Get the odd stragglers , think every flock does. Get the stubborn ones that go broody , never to be seen till 21-30days layer , she comes back with a brood behind her.

I let the hens pick the rooster, so chasing that peticular gene, in the genetics, isn't something I do. Nature kinda selects the ones that survive.

Diet, health, environment, time of feedings, amounts of feed all play a factor in every yard also.

If there not eating right, in dusty/moldy coops, on garbadge feed, baking in sun without proper shade, they don't stand a chance for proper eye health , period.

You could breed for that, you will eventually lack something else unfortunately. (People will breed a yellow Legged cock to a green Legged game hen. Get good birds. Eventually bred a green Legged stag out of the eggs,breed it to the green Legged hens , Over time they get shorter.. they cross the green hens back to a yellow rooster the egg hatched birds got taller again like they were.) Breeding toward one thing to much pulls from something else sometimes. Observations, along with theories.


There are birds that do seem to be adapted to off hours ,from the other fowl, is it daily, observed a couple times? Happen everyday, not sure. Some hens fight. You will get the early risers (dominant hen), then the rest will eat in a frenzy as fed. (Follow the leaders) , then there's the ones that eat when all are done, they roost watch. Then go eat.
Others won't touch the feed. They rather hunt there own food. Bugs, chase mice, seed , field grains. Many tiltpes of birds , even from the same strain. Bloodlines may throw more of one hen type then another also. I spent alot of time with the birds early am, 2 coffees, a cigar. Have a smoke , make a coffee for the road. Then again late evenings. Most are roosted up by 8pm. Unless bothered, hungry, headlights, fridge lights. They can be conditioned for night shift too.


Good question, neat subject not often thought of. Guess them being half wild I never really appreciated the fact some , more as nocturnal, then others.

Always figured I was waking them up at 4am. There always a few already up tho I guess. How long , daily, would only know if you had camera in each coop I guess.

 

[E flowers]

Okay, yeah I believe some would have better night vision by genetics, Making then able to foradge earlier , later into evenings i imagine.

Have to be quick tho. Predators are out at those times. Normally only see them leave a roost at night , only if pressed off the perch by spooking them, coon climbs tree branch, they change branches.

Sun starts to rise at 4-5am everyday, sets 7pm or later in laying season, to keep the 12-14hrs of daylight to lay eggs. Even if dark, dusk at 9pm here. There headed for the roosts by 8pm. Everyday. Get the odd stragglers , think every flock does. Get the stubborn ones that go broody , never to be seen till 21-30days layer , she comes back with a brood behind her.

I let the hens pick the rooster, so chasing that peticular gene, in the genetics, isn't something I do. Nature kinda selects the ones that survive.

Diet, health, environment, time of feedings, amounts of feed all play a factor in every yard also.

If there not eating right, in dusty/moldy coops, on garbadge feed, baking in sun without proper shade, they don't stand a chance for proper eye health , period.

You could breed for that, you will eventually lack something else unfortunately. (People will breed a yellow Legged cock to a green Legged game hen. Get good birds. Eventually bred a green Legged stag out of the eggs,breed it to the green Legged hens , Over time they get shorter.. they cross the green hens back to a yellow rooster the egg hatched birds got taller again like they were.) Breeding toward one thing to much pulls from something else sometimes. Observations, along with theories.


There are birds that do seem to be adapted to off hours ,from the other fowl, is it daily, observed a couple times? Happen everyday, not sure. Some hens fight. You will get the early risers (dominant hen), then the rest will eat in a frenzy as fed. (Follow the leaders) , then there's the ones that eat when all are done, they roost watch. Then go eat.
Others won't touch the feed. They rather hunt there own food. Bugs, chase mice, seed , field grains. Many tiltpes of birds , even from the same strain. Bloodlines may throw more of one hen type then another also. I spent alot of time with the birds early am, 2 coffees, a cigar. Have a smoke , make a coffee for the road. Then again late evenings. Most are roosted up by 8pm. Unless bothered, hungry, headlights, fridge lights. They can be conditioned for night shift too.


Good question, neat subject not often thought of. Guess them being half wild I never really appreciated the fact some , more as nocturnal, then others.

Always figured I was waking them up at 4am. There always a few already up tho I guess. How long , daily, would only know if you had camera in each coop I guess.

My boys tend to start crowing around 4:10-4:30am during the tail end of winter (right now) to the middle or late fall because of the revolving of the sun.

I'd be building an aviary for the breeding project and might not even build a proper coop for them. I had considered tall open shelters with the perches placed up high to encourage tree perching and nestboxes mounted on poles to encourage off the ground nesting.

I'd also be planting the aviary with mostly native edibles so they would know what to look for in the wild.

 

[E flowers]

My boys tend to start crowing around 4:10-4:30am during the tail end of winter (right now) to the middle or late fall because of the revolving of the sun.

I'd be building an aviary for the breeding project and might not even build a proper coop for them. I had considered tall open shelters with the perches placed up high to encourage tree perching and nestboxes mounted on poles to encourage off the ground nesting.

I'd also be planting the aviary with mostly native edibles so they would know what to look for in the wild.

Here's the link to my existing thread

Thread 'Deerhen Project' https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/deerhen-project.1624128/

 

[CanadianGamefowl]

Could airbag a leg tie cord , both hens/ roosters on tee-pees. Then they would record data. Would be another way. Stop anything like a watch size from being on there leg that lo g. Put it on the tiecord leg leash with hockey tape . Take off when battery's done. Would register some sort of data, to render your flock patterns.


For grow pens my favorite is the garadge in a box , (12'×20' long) echo, put 4 in a row. Metal zip-tie the (2"×4")corn crib wire to the garadge frames, without any tarps. Then put the (1/4"×1/4") wire to the corn crib wire, keeps small chick's in , weasels out. Both will go threw corn crib wire holes. Not the 1/4" wire.

Then put all your (4"x4") roosts every 3ft, 6ft hight. Should hold (approx. 320 poulets, stags. )@3sqr ft each. (There still young poulets mind you, let out daily. Just a large grow out enclosure to keep them safe at night. Without a $100,000 barn to do it in. The garadge in a boxes go on sale for $340-400, (×4) is way cheaper. ($400) in corn crib wire, 1/4" wire also. Then need a couple hundred metal zipties with the pliers for tightening them . It can handle 4ft of snow in a storm. Have ti anchor them down in wint with anchors they come with. I do anyway. No dust. Lots of air. Safe. Easy to disinfect frame wire between hatching seasons. Then all coopsninddors for winter for the movable breeder pens. Throw tarps back on them, then put an extra tarp over them , the insulated orange, brown work tarps. For hay bales. 80ft long tarps. Then drape down over sides. Place old tires, boards till spring. Spring, pile tires away, fold up all tarps. Pull breeder pens out. Then start the incubators.

(2) cabnet incubators, (2) cabnet hatchers. (+1) 4ft×4ft×1ft tall brooder rack, (4) 1ft tall brooders on it .

Then (2) 2ft×2ft×4ft long brooder, being 2ft tall, it allows them.to be inside brooder building till larger if winter drags on...

Alot of coons,weasels, hawks up north ,compared to where my buddy free ranged all his stags.

 

[E flowers]

Could airbag a leg tie cord , both hens/ roosters on tee-pees. Then they would record data. Would be another way. Stop anything like a watch size from being on there leg that lo g. Put it on the tiecord leg leash with hockey tape . Take off when battery's done. Would register some sort of data, to render your flock patterns.


For grow pens my favorite is the garadge in a box , (12'×20' long) echo, put 4 in a row. Metal zip-tie the (2"×4")corn crib wire to the garadge frames, without any tarps. Then put the (1/4"×1/4") wire to the corn crib wire, keeps small chick's in , weasels out. Both will go threw corn crib wire holes. Not the 1/4" wire.

Then put all your (4"x4") roosts every 3ft, 6ft hight. Should hold (approx. 320 poulets, stags. )@3sqr ft each. (There still young poulets mind you, let out daily. Just a large grow out enclosure to keep them safe at night. Without a $100,000 barn to do it in. The garadge in a boxes go on sale for $340-400, (×4) is way cheaper. ($400) in corn crib wire, 1/4" wire also. Then need a couple hundred metal zipties with the pliers for tightening them . It can handle 4ft of snow in a storm. Have ti anchor them down in wint with anchors they come with. I do anyway. No dust. Lots of air. Safe. Easy to disinfect frame wire between hatching seasons. Then all coopsninddors for winter for the movable breeder pens. Throw tarps back on them, then put an extra tarp over them , the insulated orange, brown work tarps. For hay bales. 80ft long tarps. Then drape down over sides. Place old tires, boards till spring. Spring, pile tires away, fold up all tarps. Pull breeder pens out. Then start the incubators.

(2) cabnet incubators, (2) cabnet hatchers. (+1) 4ft×4ft×1ft tall brooder rack, (4) 1ft tall brooders on it .

Then (2) 2ft×2ft×4ft long brooder, being 2ft tall, it allows them.to be inside brooder building till larger if winter drags on...

Alot of coons,weasels, hawks up north ,compared to where my buddy free ranged all his stags.

The reason why I was thinking about an aviary is because I'm only on 2&1/2 acres and have neighbors on 3 sides of the property (back side is sloaped down to marsh inlet). Also some of my neighbors have their own chickens and I'm sure they don't want their birds to get sick because of my birds roaming freely.

We've got foxes, opossums, raccoons, cats, bobcats, and loose dogs around here too on top of owls, Hawks, and eagles. My current flock's of common barnyard mixes are all in coops & runs. I've also got a pair of goats back there with the birds that roam the back fenced in half of the property.

 

[CanadianGamefowl]

Here's the link to my existing thread

Thread 'Deerhen Project' https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/deerhen-project.1624128/

I would think you would need to start with all wild stock. They would degrade in there instincts once contained anyway, you would loose the birds naturally selected. Along with the ones that learned from the others about Arial attacks also. Indoor birds don't learn that defense as well.

Thing you try to gain more of , sometimes withdraw from the actual goal. So have to be careful palying creator.

I know it can be a breed if vreayed with multiple fowl, also can be called a strain , if done with gamefowl, can't make a breed out of gamefowl subspecies creations. I guess. Forget where that was written. Why that rule was created.

Good topic.

 

[CanadianGamefowl]

Sorry you can vreate a chicken breed with gamefowl In it. You just can't create your own breed out of all gamefowl , it would be a strain... guess is the way I read the write up about the breed creation , probably for some bird association that doesn't show birds in 75% of the areas anyway. Blanket ruling a entire industry.

 

[CanadianGamefowl]

Here's the link to my existing thread

Thread 'Deerhen Project' https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/deerhen-project.1624128/

"Hatch City" is a 60 acre farm that let's all there birds live wild after 2weeks old. They have pens, for the ones ordered to be caught then banded, shipped forsale.

They believe the wild bird is the over all most versatile bird. They're only caught to be shipped. Bred, he has a pen with 100hens. Much more then that they fight. So they had the birds there 30yrs plus now, possibly 40yrs. All the Hatch stains , there Grey's there too. Many great birds. Alot of the breeders with several thousand birds. Even just hundreds, there best fowlnthey say runs free. Only caught up to preserve selected brood stock for next year. Changing roosters every three years also. Could be same line. Diffrent rooster. They may take then hen back three generations to something in the same line. Keeps them all the same. Every outcross gets a variance, "too tight line breeding" you loose everything you stived to also try keep.

Colour variance your looking into is almost a wheelaton hennwith white tales. Your looking to breed a spangled wheaton cock with white tale to a splash tailed wheaton hen. Eventually you will need to select offspring. Picking the hens with more white tales feathers. Then keep breeding them to white tail feather, heavy bred cocks. , eventually you will get white tailed offspring, yet still needed ingredients a back up rooster every three years approx. Then still not leaving that line bred family. So that leaves you needing a few roosters a few generations before. The original proposed whitetailed stud cock.

I think already mentioned also by someone else ,the ease of possible starting with white fowl then breeding in the wheaton coloring of hennies, gamefowl. Some may suggest keeping a strong line of pyles also for the white tail stock. Type of tail your looking for plays a factor also. In your breeding stock pics. Are you also looking for just hens this coloring, roosters also. If both, hennies along with wheaton lines may be the only options. Not many roosters throw hen coloring. The roosters are normally the brighter coloring. Black, all white. Not the camouflage coloring of hens. Hennie gamefowl cocks are similar in coloring. Without the white tails.

 

[E flowers]

"Hatch City" is a 60 acre farm that let's all there birds live wild after 2weeks old. They have pens, for the ones ordered to be caught then banded, shipped forsale.

They believe the wild bird is the over all most versatile bird. They're only caught to be shipped. Bred, he has a pen with 100hens. Much more then that they fight. So they had the birds there 30yrs plus now, possibly 40yrs. All the Hatch stains , there Grey's there too. Many great birds. Alot of the breeders with several thousand birds. Even just hundreds, there best fowlnthey say runs free. Only caught up to preserve selected brood stock for next year. Changing roosters every three years also. Could be same line. Diffrent rooster. They may take then hen back three generations to something in the same line. Keeps them all the same. Every outcross gets a variance, "too tight line breeding" you loose everything you stived to also try keep.

Colour variance your looking into is almost a wheelaton hennwith white tales. Your looking to breed a spangled wheaton cock with white tale to a splash tailed wheaton hen. Eventually you will need to select offspring. Picking the hens with more white tales feathers. Then keep breeding them to white tail feather, heavy bred cocks. , eventually you will get white tailed offspring, yet still needed ingredients a back up rooster every three years approx. Then still not leaving that line bred family. So that leaves you needing a few roosters a few generations before. The original proposed whitetailed stud cock.

I think already mentioned also by someone else ,the ease of possible starting with white fowl then breeding in the wheaton coloring of hennies, gamefowl. Some may suggest keeping a strong line of pyles also for the white tail stock. Type of tail your looking for plays a factor also. In your breeding stock pics. Are you also looking for just hens this coloring, roosters also. If both, hennies along with wheaton lines may be the only options. Not many roosters throw hen coloring. The roosters are normally the brighter coloring. Black, all white. Not the camouflage coloring of hens. Hennie gamefowl cocks are similar in coloring. Without the white tails.

I've decided I'll go with black tails. It just seems like too much work to get white tails while keeping the dull browns but maybe if I get the deerhen down I could split some off to try and get the white tail variant.

 

[E flowers]

I've decided I'll go with black tails. It just seems like too much work to get white tails while keeping the dull browns but maybe if I get the deerhen down I could split some off to try and get the white tail variant.

Though I could breed a wheaten standard old english roo to a white leghorn hen to get the white pattern gold wheaten. It might take a bit of work though.