How is your flock today?

[BlueBaby]

@Newyorkrita I have a thread going here at BYC, and will be updating it when I have more going on these Aloha's, if you want to watch my thread.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/aloha-from-manoas-roost.1430252/

 

[416bigbore]

My chickens are outside. It's 16 degrees. First time they've all been out since the big chill last week. Maybe they're not wusses after all!

How many chickens you have? Thankfully we don't have the extreme cold like you up North, the few chilly mornings we have had ours move around much slower until it warms up later in the day.

Our frisky Drakes also have no interest in chasing the girls around either when it's cold. The first nice sunny days in the high 50's low 60's, totally different story. LOL

 

[416bigbore]

I'm hoping that that comb was just an oddity, and that it won't pop up again down the line. Some people would have tried to breed it anyways if it would have been a hen, but not me. I have even culled for thing's like curled toes in hatched chick's before when I had the Australorp's, or if they seem to be too weak compared to the other's. It's easier to cull when they are young because they can't fight you and you can make it quick.

Out of curiosity, when you cull from your young flock of future breeders are they big enough to eat at the time?

 

[BlueBaby]

Out of curiosity, when you cull from your young flock of future breeders are they big enough to eat at the time?

I normally just keep the cockerel that I like best as long as it isn't an aggressive one. Then I try to rehome the rest of the boy's either for breeding or eating. Once someone takes the boy, it then belongs to them to do what they want with him. I don't like to keep the extra boy's, and get rid of them before they get to breeding age.

I sell any girl's that I don't want to keep, and those are usually in demand because they will lay egg's.

 

[Sally PB]

Do they generally all molt at the same time? So if I am understand the whole molting process correctly, they only molt once a year do to the shorter day light hours in the fall/winter. Correct?

That's mostly how it goes. Usually the first real molt (not the ones where they lose their baby feathers) isn't until the winter after they're a year old. But my 9 month old pullets did a partial molt in November-December, losing feathers around their head and neck, and the "flag" part of their tail.

How many chickens you have?

I have 4 chickens: 3 Black Australorp pullets, and 1 Buff Orpington cockerel. BAs will often lay through their first winter, but not if they're molting. They can't make feathers and eggs at the same time, since both are made of lots of protein.

It was 3 degrees here this morning. When it got up to 9 or 10, the chickens went outside. They aren't as wussy as they have been. Or maybe they like the bright sunshine. I sure do!

 

[BlueBaby]

@Sally PB It's warmer out in the sunshine then it is in the shade in the coop. Some of mine were sun and dirt bathing yesterday.

 

[Sally PB]

Warmer and just... brighter and nicer. Sunshine makes everything better. They're all hanging out by the dust bath. Maybe they get coop fever like I get cabin fever. I'm glad to see them outside.

I'm making them butternut squash guts-and-seeds for chickie snack today. They like that.

 

[thanai]

@truchickendiva Here is a few pics from their first experience with the white stuff. There really wasn't that much of it and it was real heavy and wet and was melting away quite quickly for them. They didn't seem to really mind it and just nibbled away at the stuff. I think 10"-12" of the white stuff and much colder weather will be a real game changer for them. LOL

Oh sorry, for some reason I don't think I got an alert for this! My birds do the same thing, they eat away at the snow

 

[416bigbore]

Oh sorry, for some reason I don't think I got an alert for this! My birds do the same thing, they eat away at the snow

No worries, it's my understanding that they have been making a few changes to the Forum to correct issues while it is making new ones! LOL

Yes it is fun to watch the flock react to their first taste of the cold, I am just like them and don't like it at first either! LOL

 

[416bigbore]

Warmer and just... brighter and nicer. Sunshine makes everything better. They're all hanging out by the dust bath. Maybe they get coop fever like I get cabin fever. I'm glad to see them outside.

I'm making them butternut squash guts-and-seeds for chickie snack today. They like that.

They should all like that! I have been starting to see more smaller feathers from our ducks more so then our chickens at this time and the ducks have been laying less each day but hasn't stopped completely.

Chewy our young Roo has been leaving a few feather around the coop and run area also, but I am thinking that its from the older hens that are still not all that happy with him being around yet! LOL