INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[kabhyper1]

Sounds hopeful! 

I think u may be right about the heart issue. If she has heart or lung problems, then a super dusty environment could probably cause wheezing. Like a asthma or copd affects a person. Just spitballing I really have no idea what I'm talking about most of the time.

 

[Rhandi74]

Ok, warning, crazy pic overload. Today was our first nice day in a while and I thought I would share some pics with everyone.

Sadie our potbelly pig

Cole

Panther

Twilight

Blizzard

Sunshine

Maybaline

Pie

Mamba

Butterfinger

Popcorn

Smokey trying to impersonate a polish

Noel

 

[silkieaddictIN]

Must go asap 7 ft long x 5 ft wide x 4 ft tall heavy as heck

I have the one pictured and one in a little better shape

Good for calves goats chickens pigs and dogs even. $200 or best offer located covington indiana can deliver ONE within 40 mins of covington for an extra fee. Best offer takes them, will lower if can get sold tomorrow. If interested pm me asap moving and must go

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Must go asap 7 ft long x 5 ft wide x 4 ft tall heavy as heck

I have the one pictured and one in a little better shape

Good for calves goats chickens pigs and dogs even. $200 or best offer located covington indiana can deliver ONE within 40 mins of covington for an extra fee. Best offer takes them, will lower if can get sold tomorrow. If interested pm me asap moving and must go

will send a PM

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Hi guys, Oldest DD was gifted a female potbellied pig for her birthday by youngest DD. Well, long story short, she needs rehomed. DD is working too many hours and this lil piggy can't stay. Potbellies act like a dog, and can be very fun. She is housed next to my feeder hog Wibur, and that pen will be removed for pasture space next month. Marla is not spayed, is about 8 months old. White with a few blue/black markings. just needs a loving home where she won't be ignored. PM if interested! There is no rehoming fee for a serious, caring home.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Quote: I am so glad you did it. Realistically its probably the easiest transition for your cockerels.
In the best world, best case arrangements, they all need quarantined. My birds that needed rehomed are case by case. If I do not know the person, or know of them well through our thread, or close friends.. then they are locked away in my trailer. I go a full 45 day quarantine for birds that are unknown, example a neighbor drops by saying it was at the park, gas station or grocery running around. I rarely turn a bird away unless there is an obvious problem/illness, or the person is "pushing" me to take it in.. They all needed a home, and I let them come here. And the tossed out the window birds someone didn't want anymore. those get the 45 days. No kidding, I often find roosters and some hens I do not recognize, or know where they came from. Like stray cats here, "hey its a farm, they need our unwanted pet!"

If its someone I know, have spoken with a long time (thread members) or been to their home and seen their flock and husbandry, I will handle it differently. Again, case by case. Every bird I accept or purchase is examined when it gets here. I cage them, immediately. Watch the poop, is there worms, mites, lice? Vets will do a fecal very cheap. Free range to free range rehoming is different for me, its ever changing. I keep an egg flock, these are the misfits, the mix breeds and the birds that are not fitting a breeding program.
Do I always quarantine away from the main flock, NO. Do I cage and observe, absolutely. That bird has just left every thing it knows and had probably since it was a chick or hatched. It needs to learn, hey, here is where you sleep, eat and roost. This is your flock. That's the people that feed you every day. It also will be terribly stressed. It needs routine and the same people caring for it daily. It also needs its new flock, so its not feeling alone.
There are several risks. My egg flock eats a lot of natural things and some do pass with age. Hatchery birds seem to live 3 years at most, its pretty sad. I am seeing the worm "football" chases, or snakes, mice and even a wild bird on occasion. They are chickens, I let them be chickens and have a natural life as best I can.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

@pipdzipdnreadytogo
Good points all. Thanks for the response even if your brain was tired!

@jchny2000
I'm looking forward to the breed discussion. One thing I'd ask folks is to define WHY they like a particular breed since different folks are looking for different things. So it may be helpful to answer in terms of some specifics of why each person likes particular breeds. Such as:


What's your main purpose/focus for keeping chickens?
-Pets?
-Production of eggs or meat?
-Business endeavor...raising chickens/hatching eggs/meat to sell?
-A mix of all of the above?


How is the egg production?
How is the personality? What about your experience w/the roosters?
In general, what do you like or dislike about the breeds you've raised?

Thanks so much! This is exactly what I was looking for, seeing lots of great posts already.
My Favorites are Plymouth Rock, Orpingtons, marans any colors.
This is my first winter with white Leghorn, so far they are also becoming a favorite!
MAIN PURPOSE is all the above

How is the egg production?My eggs drop to almost none December to February, not using artificial light. these breeds are 5 days a week laying normally.
White leghorn are egg machines, 5 eggs a day, 5 hens!
How is the personality? What about your experience w/the roosters? Roos are fine, no issues. Hens are sweet. I enjoy roosters very much when they are social..Leghorn are flighty, but a true gem for free ranging flock. Fly well, roos are always alert and watching.
In general, what do you like or dislike about the breeds you've raised? BA, hens are picky and aggressive with younger hens nonstop. Roosters are human aggressive. Same issue with my former line of GLW. The GLW roo, Red, also fathered my first year of EEs, I did not keep those hens. They were also people aggressive with the exception of the blue EEs fathered by my LO roos and I still have 3 hens from that hatch.
Retrospect, what would I have done differently?
If my SIL to be had asked that question today, I would have said "maybe"! in March 2012 he offered me free chickens, ducks. And geese (these we bought). I got 6 chinese gosling, 4 muscovy duckling, and 6 GLW chicks. I was blessed with "hen luck", each group only had 1 "boy"! I would have rethought the chickens and picked a different breed. Honestly tho, I now know what it means to own a mean rooster. That's a big education itself in chicken keeping. Being part of this thread has taught me he doesn't have to be mean to still be a good, protective rooster to his hens.

What a busy couple of days. Got both coops all ready for winter and everyone has moved into their new digs.We actually moved the big chickens into "Chick Commander " last night and I actually got some eggs in the new nesting boxes

today. We moved all the silkies and cochins into their new "Banty Commander" coop today.Get ready for lots of pics

This is CHICK COMMANDER



Sorry I went so crazy with the pics. I got a little camera happy yesterday. Hope everyone enjoys them as much as I do.

Loved all your pics, please post as many and often as you like!
Interesting use of the snow fencing, good idea! I am a repurposer too.

Quote: Gus and family are doing great. I got Jules an apron, she is molting, and looks cold. Cricket JR is non aggressive, is pretty good with his little group of hens already, he has around 7 EEs. Gus Jr stays with the BAs a lot, since Bruce is in jail 90% of the time. If I keep my hens, he gets all of them! He is a very nice roo, and doesn't have as big of comb, thanks to Jules. The lil black cochin mix roo is finally growing, has a wyandotte comb, and feathered legs. He acts more wyandotte, and is a bit timid.
DH wants LF Cochin but I am hesitating adding any more breeds. If I do it will be beilies or coronation sussex, I want a large heavy breed. I love the silkies but they are too aggressive to my OEGBs. I don't have enough breeding pens now

so breed sorting is just too much an issue. My Marans, Polish, NN/polish project have their own coops so far.

 

[Leahs Mom]

@kabhyper1
How's that kiddo this morning?

 

[chickiebaby1]

Good Morning ALL

This is my first year with chickens, we just got our first chicks in March and I have to say if it were not for this site and this thread I would have been a at a total loss. I have gotten some awesome advice and several ideas from all of you and it has just been a great experience. Of course when we first started I had no idea what I was doing. I thought "straight run" meant they had to have a run that was straight....

I know, I know... but like I said I have learned a lot. We also were just going to start with 12 chickens....... well then I found Dinky's Auction house and an incubator and the chicken math set in, I'm sure most of you know what I mean. So as for my input on this conversation, I am new and this is just what I have seen from the birds I have had.


What's your main purpose/focus for keeping chickens?

Eggs, companionship, and in spring i will be selling chicks, lots of chicks.

How is the egg production?
So far egg production has been up in the air. Most of mine should be laying by now, but I have only been getting 3 eggs a day. Which makes me think it's because of less light each day. My white leghorn Penny and my ISA brown Daisy were laying everyday, but Penny will go sometimes for a week without laying at all. My Rhode island reds Laverne and Shirley also lay very well. I am still waiting on the 10 Barred Rocks to start laying. My Silver LAced Wyanedotte Gwen also lays very well.

How is the personality? My favorite chicken out of all 80 or so is my ISA Brown Daisy. She is the sweetest and will come up to me. I loved her so much I actually went and bought 3 more (they are still growing). I also loved my RIR so much that I got 4 more of them. My Barrs are also great, they just don't get as close. I did not care for my 8 Easter Eggers ( actually rehomed all of them), they were not social to any of the other birds and they were the biggest bullies and very flighty. When I decided to downsize for winter, they were my first choice to go. I love my silkies and cochins also. I am not crazy about the bantams, but those two breeds are not as small and they are really sweet and cute. I love my silkie rooster Sparky, he is very sweet and he likes to cuddle. My white leghorn roo, Foghorn, is a great rooster and takes very good care of his girls, he also tolerates my Silver laced rooster PutPut and RIR roo Blaze, they both know that Foggy is boss, so they all seem to get along fine and they all take good care of the girls. I saw PutPut actually challenge a big dog over the weekend that tried to get a hold of one of the younger girls, which was pretty awesome.My bantam cochin Alice has turned out to be a great momma hen, I gave her 4 baby chicks when I first got her and she has just been really great with them. I put all of the bantams together over the weekend and she is very protective of hers, so I don't have to worry about them. The only bird I have had so far that was human aggressive was my Black Austrolorp Rourke. At first he was my favorite and he would let me hold him and pet him and he would come inside for short visits, but once the hormones kicked in, I had to watch my back every time I went into the yard, that is when I decided it was time for him to go. I had learned ( on here) that an aggressive rooster will pass that aggression on to his offspring and I just don't need that around here.



In general, what do you like or dislike about the breeds you've raised?

I absolutely love my chicky babies and can't wait to go out and see them everyday. It is my routine that every afternoon when I get home from school that I have to make my rounds and let the big ones out to free range, check for eggs and just talk to and watch them. I love watching them. It's better than tv. and when I have had a stressful day they really help calm me down and get back into a better mood.When I first got chicks I just thought it would be awesome to have fresh eggs,but now each one of them holds a place in my heart, I have over 80 birds and each one has a name and is like my little kid. I talk to them and sign to them and I almost obsess at how they are taken care of. I just want to make sure that they are happy and healthy. They are my family.

 

[ChickCrazed]

That is an interesting discussion, I look forward to hearing what other people say. For me, if I had to go down to only one breed I would definitely keep the Bielefelders. They are dual purpose and auto-sexing, so you immediately know which ones not to get attached to if you are going to grow the roosters out to eat (which I would like to do at some point). They lay a very good amount of a medium-dark brown eggs, it is a similar color to my Welsummer's eggs, and are said to be great winter layers. They are HUGE birds! My rooster at 7 months of age is slightly over 10 lbs, I've heard that Bielefelder roos grow until 18 months and get up to 13 lbs in the end. I don't have a single worry when he is out there with his girls free ranging! They are great free-rangers. They are also VERY VERY sweet and inquisitive and are so laid back I think they would do fine in close quarters (they don't pick on each other and will be bullied by aggressive breeds). Personality wise I would say they are very similar to a cochin, they come running and want to hang out seeing what I am doing out there, and are fine with being picked up and handled. I also can't see a Bielie roo ever being people aggressive, I can guarantee it would be rare. Bielies will also go broody, but don't seem to be ALWAYS broody like my Marans girls. I also think they are gorgeous (they are so much prettier in person, they are really difficult to photograph)! Everyone who comes out wants a picture with Heiser and remarks on how large and gorgeous he is.

A close second would be Marans, but I don't want to constantly fight broodiness since I am interested in the eggs.

I realized I forgot to add the breeds I have not had a good experience with. So far the only breed I would totally rule out getting again is a Wyandotte. I got a gorgeous Blue Laced Red from Jerry Foley (very well respected breeder) and she is SUPER standoffish and can be a huge bully to new birds. I've had her more than a year at this point and she is the only bird that won't come up to me. She is pretty and can live out her years here, but I won't get another.

As I mentioned before I really like the Marans, but they are a bit too broody to have too many of them. You would have no useable nest boxes EVER! I like my Isbars and they are really a pretty bird and have gorgeous speckled green eggs, but they are a bit too small for me. I'm not sure what to do with such tiny roosters! They don't ever get big enough to eat!

A lot of my other birds have been hatchery quality, so I don't want to tar and feather a breed based on my experience with a poor example of what they are supposed to be. I have come to the realization that I don't want hatchery quality moving forward. I will ALWAYS have Bielefelders now, they are an absolute for me, but I will probably start to let my hatchery birds naturally "expire" over time and start replacing with higher quality heritage or SOP birds. I would rather have a hardier bird with better longevity (like others have said they don't seem to last longer than 3 years). Specifically on my list are SOP Barred Rocks, Red-Brown Ameraucana and some type of Orpington.