INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[SallyinIndiana]

Sure I can add a few to the order, just send a message once you pick them out. The thing to watch for is the shipping date. The chicks are coming from the 9/23 hatch so your chicks need to be available that date too.

As for the hatchery birds some chickens lay very very poorly so even when crossed with a great layer the result is only average laying. But some of the hatcheries do have nice birds. I have a good looking BR rooster from Meyer but not show quality. Akers claims to have heritage or pure breeds and their prices match up closer to the breeders prices. But I'm not sure if they ship and they don't give exact dates for your order since they are not as large as Meyers or Crackle. But right about now the hatchery hatching season is winding down. Meyer has the largest selection of the few I checked out. I did not look into white egg laying breeds though. I'm not against the white eggs, but having only brown eggs makes it easier to pack up a dozen eggs. No picky customer wanting 6 white and 6 brown fresh eggs.

 

[BlossomSilkies]

Anyone here from Granger? We are looking at a home there, no HOA for this house, so other than that wondering if I could have some chickens there? The home has about 1 acre and not in one of the subdivisions in Granger.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Well, I just had another up and down afternoon. When I got home and did a check for eggs, I had a surprise. One of the eggs that my broody phoenix was sitting on had hatched! I didn't think there was any way she could do it, considering all the interference from the other chickens, and she is only at 18 days from when I gave her the eggs. From first glance, it looks like it came from one of the Brahma eggs, and it does have feathered feet. The father is probably the Fayoumi, although it has an outside chance that it could be a partridge cochin.

That was the good news. The bad news is that I then watched new mommy try to peck it to death. I rescued it, but its pretty bloody about the head. I put together an emergency brooder, so we'll see how it goes.

Question to more knowledgeable folks (that means nearly all of you...) Should I leave the remaining egg with her now that I have relocated her to her own pen? Or is it that if she will attack one, she will attack them all?

I would take it just in case it hatches during the night. I would not want to risk finding out the hen had pecked it while I was sleeping. Also your rescued chick, when it survives will need a brooding buddy or a mirror. The brooding buddy is easier.

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

Well, I just had another up and down afternoon. When I got home and did a check for eggs, I had a surprise. One of the eggs that my broody phoenix was sitting on had hatched! I didn't think there was any way she could do it, considering all the interference from the other chickens, and she is only at 18 days from when I gave her the eggs. From first glance, it looks like it came from one of the Brahma eggs, and it does have feathered feet. The father is probably the Fayoumi, although it has an outside chance that it could be a partridge cochin.

That was the good news. The bad news is that I then watched new mommy try to peck it to death. I rescued it, but its pretty bloody about the head. I put together an emergency brooder, so we'll see how it goes.

Question to more knowledgeable folks (that means nearly all of you...) Should I leave the remaining egg with her now that I have relocated her to her own pen? Or is it that if she will attack one, she will attack them all?

She will most likley attack the other if it hatched too.And if she hatches eggs again will most likley peck all the hatches. You could let her hatch the egg and watch so as soon as it hatches you can take it away

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Any reason why the broody hen pecks the chicks. I can understand the past is a good indicator of the future. What I'm more of asking is if the hen can smell the true laying hen and somehow know they aren't hers or something else that would make her hate the chicks she just spent over 2 weeks hatching.

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

Any reason why the broody hen pecks the chicks. I can understand the past is a good indicator of the future. What I'm more of asking is if the hen can smell the true laying hen and somehow know they aren't hers or something else that would make her hate the chicks she just spent over 2 weeks hatching.

I really dont know why they peck the chicks. I have had hens hatch eggs from other hens and mother them just fine. I have never had a hen peck her chicks, but they usually repeat the pattern

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

No hatchery will have heritage breeds of any kind. Their barred Rocks, Rhode Island reds, 'Americanas/Araucanas' (which are actually Easter-eggers), and most of the rest of their breeds have usually been bred more for production rather than for the standard, which has involved some obvious outcrosses. If you want heritage breeds, you will have to find a breeder with good stock and either purchase adults or hatching eggs from them.


 

Most Hatcheries have heritage breeds. They may not be show stock but they aren't necessarily "mixes" either. If you read the descriptions on hatchery birds it will tell you that they can be poor- excellent layers. If they are being mixed and bred for high production wouldn't the descriptions all read excellent? Although I do think for show you have to have better lines from quality breeders,  the hatcheries are a good place to sample both production and heritage breeds.

No. Hatcheries do not have heritage breeds. They have birds that are labelled as heritage breeds. Compare any hatchery bird to a heritage bird from a breeder, and you can see that they are far from the same. Hatchery birds often have the wrong shape, size, and sometimes even color (as is the case for their RIRs and so-called 'Americana/Araucanas'). As far as their egg laying abilities, outcrossing isn't a magic fix-all for all the bird's problems. Just because you take a poor layer and cross it with a super layer doesn't mean the offspring will be 'excellent' layers. It's probably safe to say, though, that these hatchery birds, even the poor layers, lay better (and earlier) than their high quality counterparts.

Notice also that I didn't say they were mixes, I said they were outcrossed in the past. This means that a different breed (or a different color of the same breed) was crossed in to improve the line in some way, and then the offspring of this cross bred back to pure birds with the hope that that improvement can be maintained in future generations. Outcrossing is performed even in show quality lines, but is often more controlled in that setting because unlike with hatcheries that mass produce and so they have hundreds of birds, breeders typically have small breeding groups and can cull anything undesirable in generations after the outcross as they work to improve the breed by the standard.

 

[hogster160]

I want to thank all those who were concerned about our girl, Sesame.

We took her to the avian vet in Indianapolis this morning, and she believes our assumption of Marek's was correct.

We didn't feel it would be right to make her wait and suffer until we got an appointment at Purdue to make 100% sure.

We had her euthanized there at 11:40 this morning. It seemed like she went peacefully. As peacefully as a creature can. We decided to have it done there because neither of us have ever performed a cervical dislocation, and we weren't too sure about using carbon dioxide as a method.

She was a beautiful butterscotch colored Buff Orpington. She made us laugh. She rocked the coop and run. We miss her, we became too attached (which I guess happens with one's very first 'flock'). We'll be posting pictures of the other girls later and watching them like hawks. We (I) feel we owe it to Sesame.

Thank you again for your concern, it is much appreciated,

Mr Tattoohead

Sesame Chicken (at 13 weeks)

Rest In Peace

I am so very sorry. Please visit the other threads I showed earlier in this thread. There are others with md in their flocks and can help. They have helped me tremendously.

Will you be having a necropsy done? Did they do blood work?

It is so easy to become attached to these little creatures. You did a good thing today. She was loved and she knew it. You can't really do much more than that.

Deb

 

[bradselig]

here are a few more pictures of chicks i dont think ive ever posted. these are some chicks from Hoosier Silkies. Id have to double check age. Im not sure what the golden colored chick is, but has some blue in it as well, Porcelain? the others are splash and a blue.

unsure of color chick. thinking its a roo.

splash 1 chick. thinking its a roo.

splash 2. thinking its a pullet.

blue chick. thinking its a pullet.

group shot

 

[gunchief25]

I want to thank all those who were concerned about our girl, Sesame.

We took her to the avian vet in Indianapolis this morning, and she believes our assumption of Marek's was correct.

We didn't feel it would be right to make her wait and suffer until we got an appointment at Purdue to make 100% sure.

We had her euthanized there at 11:40 this morning. It seemed like she went peacefully. As peacefully as a creature can. We decided to have it done there because neither of us have ever performed a cervical dislocation, and we weren't too sure about using carbon dioxide as a method.

She was a beautiful butterscotch colored Buff Orpington. She made us laugh. She rocked the coop and run. We miss her, we became too attached (which I guess happens with one's very first 'flock'). We'll be posting pictures of the other girls later and watching them like hawks. We (I) feel we owe it to Sesame.

Thank you again for your concern, it is much appreciated,

Mr Tattoohead

Sesame Chicken (at 13 weeks)

Rest In Peace

arest in peace Sesame