Heritage Large Fowl - Phase II

[SallyinIndiana]

Quote: Do the above pictures apply to the RIR hens as well? If not would you happen to have the plates for the RIR available to post?
As soon as I start getting eggs regularly from my 3 RIR hens, I'll be setting up pens and I'm curious. If there is one for the roos that would be great too as I would prefer to match 1 roo with 2 hens maybe all three for the first month or so then change out to my #2 rooster for the next month.

 

[Yard full o' rocks]

I plan on weighing them soon, but I only meant massive w.r.t. my hatchery stock. Most of the LF at the show were massive compared to what I'm used to seeing. That was my first time to see SOP LF, and any sort of a bantam. They were kinda cute, but I still don't know if I'll ever do bantams.

Colburg.....I'm with you. As long as I can afford to feed 'em, I just can't see raising "chicken nuggets" (in all sincerity, no offense to those of you that do).....but I like my BIG birds

I have 2 Columbian rock Ks right now that are slightly over 10 lbs

 

[PA Farmer24]

The PA Farm Show? You might want to check on that. I got it from a 4H poultry leader last Fall that PA has changed the rules
and folk showing at the Farm Show need to vaccinate with that live vaccine. The one which sheds in your flock. I would just
check again with them and see if an uproar has caused them to change their mind. I don't want to vaccinate my birds and
don't want vaccine shedding in my flock if I decide to show birds therefore I will defer until I double check the news.
Best,
Karen

Here is the link to the entry form for the Farm Show. I did not see anything on it about live vaccines. But not sure where else to look. Still researching it as well. Ok I found it. in this link. http://www.farmshow.state.pa.us/page/premiumlist.aspx go to Poultry then once that opens look under 4c.

Hope this helps.




http://www.farmshow.state.pa.us/page/forms.aspx

 

[Arielle]

Here's a little know fact for you. From my house to Tucson and back is 1007.2 miles.

My wife and I with the 2 kiddos did that trip this last weekend in 28 hours through snow and rain storms. We're either nuts, or this chicken thing is growing on us.

Any way, here's why we made that trip. 8 White Rocks(4 cockerels, 4 pullets). Marvin is a great guy who spent quite a while talking to me about his chickens plus some others at the Tucson Poultry Show. They've been toe punched, but I'd like to get some leg bands on them for quick and easy identification.

He said they're not at POL yet, and that they'll get bigger. OMG, the smallest pullet is bigger than any hatchery cock we've ever had. Anyone thinking they got good DP birds from a hatchery needs to go to a show and look at the sheer size of SOP chickens. They're massive.

 

[Arielle]

Quote: I'm sure I have mentioned it before, I was in awe seeing a buff orpington on cham row At the BOston POultry Expo that was HUGE, so huge I kept staring at that bird; then at the NOrtheast Bantam SHow-- a silver speckeld hamburg ( not sure I have the name right here) that was a giant compared to my hatchery rooster. Again I stood staring at that bird in awe and amazement like a fool in love. My family is in love with the cute bantams, but since I"m the one doing the butchering I prefer a large bird.

 

[brahmabreeder]

Went outside today and found that my biggest Brahma hen made a nest in the nesting box. Looks like I'll be seeing eggs soon. We all know what that means! Seems like this year I'll be getting ahead of the game a bit and have chicks from this hatching season ready for fall shows. Plus I have my two new Aldrich roosters who are wider than wide which will add quit a bit of good type and color to my current females. Before they arrive does anyone use wing bands? I just got some in the mail today and am unsure exactly how to put them on. Do I just stab them through their webbing on their wings?

 

[centrarchid]

Parasite Management through Cultural Practices and Selective Breeding
I keep American Dominiques under the pretense they represent a heritage breed that was developed before the advent of de-wormers and coccidiostats. My management strategy employs keeping them on ground where they will be exposed to parasites but such exposure is gradual and not intense by rotating ground birds are on and when brooder reared chicks are involved, great care is to prevent the infections of particularly coccidia from being intensified by the intensive rearing conditions where ingesting of infected feces is too frequent. I also make so juvenile birds put out to free-range are not kept near concentrations of adults until after given a full month to develop their resistance to coccidia through gradual exposure. I will intervene with coccidostats when heavy infections attack a sizable percentage of a cohort but cull promptly when only a couple of juveniles have had problems and the balance do not. Roundworms are treated differently where free-range juveniles are culled when they perform poorly and some of that poor performance is assumed to be related to impacts of roundworm burden. Birds that make cut to get into breeding pens are very seldom wormed and every effort is made to keep pens (operated like tractors) moving periodically over freshly mowed ground. Birds in breeding pens found to have issues with roundworms are quarantined, treated for roundworms, then fed up to good weight before removed from flock. Logic followed is that over long-term resistance, to these parasites and those am not aware of but still operate, is being improved. Is anyone else using such as part of their selection criteria for heritage fowl?

 

[Piet]

A Wellie was Best of Show this weekend in Alberta. Absolutely gorgeous cockeral owned and bred by Piet on this site.

Walt

Congrats to Piet and sure hopes he posts a picture for us to admire!

Hello and thank you, here is the Cockerel and also a couple pics of one of my Barnevelder pullets, she got reserve Continental behind the Wellie. Also see a pic of the Barnevelders cockerels I brought to the show. Only I could not get the color to clearly at least you see the type somewhat.

 

[catdaddyfro]

 

[Delight in Dominiques]

PA farm show entries closed on Nov. 15. If you did enter your birds they will need to be tested AI and pullorum clean with in the last six months, and the Lt vaccine has to be given 30 days before the show date. Smith poultry carries the lt vaccine and it should be ordered on a Monday. If you have never been to the Farm.Show I would highly recommend. The only down side is there is usually so many people there that it is hard to stop in the isles to look, with out being swept away with the foot traffic!