Heritage Large Fowl - Phase II

[gjensen]

I could be wrong, and I am no vet, but I do not think that is cocci. I am not certain what that is. I have some guesses, but that is all it would be.

 

[NanaKat]

Matt, Thank you so much!
I've tried to work on building the barn since joining the Heritage threads with Bob and you other knowledgeable mentors.
I have learned that the paint and details can be bred once the type is set.

Yes, she is a lovely daughter of the original cock and one of the original hens. There are three that look just like her. Two are CW and one is BCW. All four are in a breed pen with their Columbian sire. Eggs are in the incubators now.

So the Second Cock it will be for the 2nd Columbian pen. He will get daughters of the original Columbian cock. I have 2 each: CW, Black and Blue daughters so should get some nice birds from which to choose. Hoping to set the yellow leg, We want Columbian, Blue Columbian and Birchen.

There are 4 BCW hens in with an older BCW Cock. Once I have 50 chicks on the ground from that pen, I will try the BCW cock
with two of them that have nice color and a tad lower tail...one is in the group photo on the left side of the photo across from the CW you like.

I really appreciate you taking the time to view and share your thoughts on my birds. Your advice most helpful.

 

[gjensen]

After getting a better look in these pictures I like the body type and tail angle especially on the second bird. Best. But his color is the worst of the three. The Blue Columbian I still like a lot but the tail angle is way too high. If your hens have low tails I personally would use the Blue Columbian, otherwise using the logic of "build the barn, then paint it" I would go with the second cockerel. That's just me and the way I read the standard.

I do like the Columbian female on the right side of that last picture standing next to and just behind the blue. She has a nice back line.

I prefer the second bird myself, then 3, and then 1.

Nanakat, we start with what we have. It looks like there is some variability there. If you hatch enough, you might get a couple you like. Quantity gives us the best shot, but that is what it takes for some of us.

 

[gjensen]

Ah, ok, my apologies for getting it wrong, just didn't have my book handy. I will check out their standard when I get home.

I'll have to invest in Dan's CD. Since I'm a big fan of both those things and that's not likely to change anytime soon. I might not ever add any more breeds, but I could definitely see adding a bunch of Leghorn colors.

Matt, I have been going back through the Buff Leghorn thread. There is a lot of good points and pictures to reference. Kind of surprised I have not went through it before.

 

[brahmabreeder]

I could be wrong, and I am no vet, but I do not think that is cocci. I am not certain what that is. I have some guesses, but that is all it would be.

I kind of have given up on diagnosing what kills my birds( which is why I asked for help this time ). I've tried to research things and there will be only a few minor things separating one disease from the next. Only time I worry is when multiple die or in this case my best bird. I am going to continue to monitor everyone else and see if anyone else starts acting up.

 

[Arielle]

Quote: Pediococcus acidilactici is also known to prevent colonization of the small intestine by pathogens like Shigella, Salmonella, Clostridium difficile and Escherichia coli among small animals.

Pediococcus acidilactici has not been stated in any literature to have toxic effects. Another potential benefit of using them as Probiotics is their use as alternative medicines against infectious parasitic pathogens like Eimeria* in broiler-chicken [6].



A healthy intestine is good for animal and human alike and is the very basic and most urgent place to start if one is going to improve overall flock health and protect them from disease transmission. Using meds is like putting a band aid on a wound that may occur again the next time one is near the dangerous object. It's best to build a guard against a dangerous object so that one never gets that wound in the first place.

So much better said than I ever could have. Thank you Bee!
x2

 

[BGMatt]

Matt, I have been going back through the Buff Leghorn thread. There is a lot of good points and pictures to reference. Kind of surprised I have not went through it before.

It's a decent read. I enjoyed it, it was actually one of the things that made me decide to give the Buff variety a try, I knew I wanted to do some variety of Leghorn. Learned quite a bit reading through. Just wish I would have got them earlier in the year, but have a local source that's getting me lots of hatching eggs to bring in a second line, and then will combine those with the ones I got last fall.

 

[3riverschick]

I kind of have given up on diagnosing what kills my birds( which is why I asked for help this time ). I've tried to research things and there will be only a few minor things separating one disease from the next. Only time I worry is when multiple die or in this case my best bird. I am going to continue to monitor everyone else and see if anyone else starts acting up.

Why don't you char some feed corn in your oven ( see charred corn post) and put the cobs out in the run for the birds to pick at. It won't hurt them and sounds like there are some kind of toxins which need attending. Yes, I know cocci is not a toxin but toxins get produced as a side effect of the sickness caused by it. Same with salmonella and eColi ( oh, I forgot Parvo). It can't hurt and might help. http://tinyurl.com/lavsr7g
Best,
Karen

 

[NanaKat]

Quote:
Sometimes it really helps to get advice from more knowledgeable breeders...helps us take the rose colored glasses off.

Yes, I agree. Last year we hatched over 400 Wyandotte from 6 pens...all told there are only 25 that have been kept either as breeders or layers.
As an example: In Pen 1, The two Columbian cockerels we were discussing are the ones that made the final cut out of 25 juveniles. Only 3 CW pullets out of 73 made it to the breed pens this year although several are in the layer room.
in Pen 6 out of 50 hatched, I kept only one Blue Birchen cockerel.
The pens were 1) Original CW, 2) Original CW sire over CW, Black and Blue daughters, 3) Original CW over Birchen daughters, 4) Blue CW F1 over mother, 5) Birchen F1 over Black F1, 6) Blue Birchen F1 over Blue mother and sister.
There was a lot of culling going on in stages as the chicks moved thru the grow out pens.

Toe punching, leg bands and paper records with photos have been essential.

 

[brahmabreeder]

Guess that wouldn't hurt anything. Will it turn them yellow?