Icelandic Chickens

[Jake Levi]

You were right on Kelly, thanks !

A mild fall day here in Wa, but winter is coming, it will be comparable to Mi with more snow and less extreme cold.

All things considered I like that better.

Life is good, and Better with Icelandic Chickens and Pack Goats!

 

[kathyinmo]

I did the last of my downsizing today. I could hardly bear to part with the 10 I did today. The rest are staying for the winter. Exception: I still have several I am taking with me to Crossroads, but the others are gonna be wintering in Missouri. Today the buyers wanted some of the Icelandics, too. Nope, couldn't do it. They were for a 77 year old man. Family had got rid of all his farm animals and are now allowing him to have a mixed flock of a dozen chickens.

I don't do downsizing well.

OH, by the way, my last hatch of the year is in progress. This doesn't count as upsizing. These are F2 projects that are hatching. I keep only the yellow chicks. So far I have 15 blacks, 3 yellow, 3 buffs hatched. Come on yellow chickies!

 

[Happy Chooks]

So what breeds did you end up parting with Kathy?

That's gotta be hard, but it will make a huge difference in your feed bill!

 

[tazcat70]

I am so sorry Kathy!

 

[Jake Levi]

and which breeds are you keeping?

It must be like parting with family. It would be to me.

 

[kathyinmo]

Well, I parted with all the Silkies. Many of the others I paired down to only a trio or quad of each, which will be my colorful layer coop for the winter. It will hold 50 comfortably. My 9 breeder barn pens are full of New Hampshires, Barred Rocks, 1 pen of Icelandics, 1 pen of Coronation Sussex, and 1 pen of Delawares. I might reduce more (Coronations and Delawares) and then move them into the Layers Coop, too. I still have one grow out coop-pen of Jersey Giants and English Orps. There are 20 in that pen (about 4-5 months old), and I need to get it down to 10 or 12, so I can move them out and close up that pen. Some of the Jersey Giants are going to Indiana with me for a friend. In the end I will likely only keep 4 Jersey Giant pullets and my rooster, Leggs. The English Orps are hard to let go of. I imagine I will let the smaller ones go and keep the bigger ones. Then, I will move them into my Orp coop. It will hold 16-18, and I have 12 in there (after I put a few Lavenders in with the English Orps).

In the end, for winter, I want to have open only the breeder barn pens, the Layers Coop, and the Orp coop. I can't accomplish that with all the babies (F2s, White Jersey Giants, and misc New Hamps and Barred Rocks) that are in the 2 hutch coops and ghetto coop though. That is about 40 chicks. I might just need to keep one more coop open for them, or sell them (except the F2 Projects). Well, that's still progress.

Oh, and then there is still the rooster coop.

It WILL be closed though............

 

[Chickielady]

Hi guys, wanted to report that my Icelandics tails seem to be better everyday, and some show no signs or wry at all...as I thought, they are growing into their large tails.
The hard part will be which to keep & which to let go...
I do not envy you at all Kathy!
It must be hard to part with your 'kids'.
I have parted with about 20 so far, mostly Ameraucanas...and 3 Buckeye, and 1 Java.
I also have discovered that my 2 Toms and 4 hens of Midget White Turkeys are really 3 toms & 2 hens..

Darn it!
Well, we will have 1 for Thanksgiving, and 1 for Christmas.
The toms fight, even now, and it is not breeding season!

I also wanted to let you all know that today, somehow, the Houdini Icelandics pulled off an escape~
So far 1 pullet and 1 cockeral escaped!
How I do not know, they escaped at different times.
I went all around searching and could find no holes....

You are right, they escape!
Then they go crazy trying to get back in...
Funny, beautiful birds!

Mary: the Isbars are so beautiful!!!

Jake: I will not trade TO Reimrra (sp?) but may sell her extra cockerals...I have no idea what her issues are on her post about dying from chick feed????????????
She sent a PM saying their wing bones would actually bend....and she was researching what deficiencies would cause such a thing plus what she called stunted growth.
She is a WSU ag college student, she should be able to figure it out.

 

[wyan_zen]

Quote:
ohhh...get some rest.

 

[NotAFarm]

Remember my "not even 6 month old pullet" who went broody?
I asked if I should let her keep her two eggs and Kelly said she would if it was her.


Well...................here's Kleo(patra) and her two chicks!!

Two eggs.......two chicks.......way to go Kleo and Audun!!

She's the only pullet I hatched with her particular coloring. I hope the brown one is a girl that looks like her Momma!

What'd ya think, Kelly??

 

[kathyinmo]

Quote:

GREAT ! ! ! She looks like a very happy mama!

Where have you been lately? I have been thinking about you and wondering if you fell of the face of the earth or something.