INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[flyladyrocks]

Just FYI, your hens should be still putting out fertile eggs if it has been 3 weeks or less. It might be worth sticking some of your recent eggs underneath your broody. Otherwise KittyDoc has jubilee and lavender orps and is in Zionsville. I have Bielie eggs and Olive egger hatching eggs. SallyInIndiana has the Blue Laced Red Wyandottes and I think someone else has another sort of laced Wyandotte. Some of the members have a list in their signature line that shows who has what breeds. I don't think some of our newer members are on there but it might give you a more thorough list than my overworked brain can.

Editing to add pictures of my precious Bielies!!! Love them!

 

[ChickCrazed]

I'm sure today's eggs are fine and refrigeration shouldn't matter. Bielefelders in real life aren't much like legbars, they are at least twice as large and very vibrantly colored. Feather pattern is similar but color and size are very different IMO. They do lay very well. I'm getting three eggs a day from four Bielie ladies right now.

 

[Acornewell]

Hey all. Feeling so bummed right now. My Buff Orp has gone full on broody. It is kinda funny. She screams at us when we go in the coop. Did that noise relaly come out of my sweet Buff Orp? She wanted to kill me when i took 3 eggs out from under her twice today. I'm bummed b/c since our roo died, no chicks.

I suspected a week ago that she was "practicing" the broody routine. She is the one I was counting on to go broody and here we are with no fertile eggs.
So, I am wondering who lives within an hour or so from Indy and will have chicks and eggs.

What you have and how much for them. I don't want chicks before the end of March. So if you are up for some business - eggs in the first couple weeks of March or later, chicks sometime from the the end of March to end of April (maybe later) PM me now before I blow it and give in to temptation at Tractor Supply!

I am still deciding what I want. I was counting on a bunch of mixed chicks. A few LB chicks b/c I had a LB roo and hen, but the rest would be mixed. So I am not opposed to mixed eggs too stick under my broody! With my luck she'll have given up the broody routine by the end of Feb. We have not yet decided on trying to incubate this year but need to decide soon - I'd love to incubate some rare breeds.

Specific breeds -my DD wants silkies for her birthday. I really don't want white. DD and I both have March birthdays! My birthday wish is a Frizzle and a Jubilee Orpington or 2. I was thinking 2 of you were considering breeding Jubilees maybe Brad and ??? Brad I know you are not within an hour but still interested. Those are the breeds we have wanted for a year now. For those of you who are Doctor Who Fans I really want a Frizzle (not Bantam) whose name is River Song! A Polish Frizzle and I'm dancing a jig!

Beyond that, I am still deciding:
Others that have been on the "I want" list the longest: Swedish Flower hens (would love with a crown), Wyandottes, DD really wants a colorful egg basket -but not sure we are emotionally ready for Legbars so soon after losing ours, So Araucana, Americana, Easter Eggers and Black Copper Marans are definitely in the Mix. Some of you have had issues with not so friendly Easter Eggers so feel free to give me input! My Orp is the only one who did not get a frostbit comb this year and I so love Orps so any Orp is high up there.

Seriously, I could go on and on. I love all my chickens and love so many different kinds! I keep finding more breeds I am not familiar with and fall in love with. I really should not live in the middle of the city - even with our large lot still, there have to be limits to numbers! Hubby wants to eventually get to 30. We have 7 now.

I am super close to Ft. Wayne...not sure how far it is to Indy. We sometimes have to go there for the VA Hospital. I just set some 16 eggs today. Some Quail Bearded Belgian D'Anver Bantams, Blue (splash) Silkies, Black Sex Link, and a mix I am not sure what will come of...its my Orpington Hen bred with my silver phoenix/orpington rooster!!!

My crazy chicken lady neighbor friend has swedish flower hens and I know she has a bunch of colored silkies...I can check to see what she has. I know she was talking about getting all her birds back in their correct breeding pens for hatching! She also has the cutest little call ducks!!!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Hi everyone!

Does anyone want to talk NPIP? :/

Is it still $80? Is that for the testing or the certification? I can't find anything info on being certified, only on becoming a tester - do you know of links that explain how to have your flock certified? If I took the class and became a tester would I still need to pay the $80 each year for my own flock?

Thanks for any info!

I can't help you on this, sorry. I will say, though, it cost around $70 if I remember right just for the MG test I had done on my birds. I've heard that the cost can vary depending on the tester, but I have no idea how true that is. Hope someone else jumps in to help!

Yes. Orpingtons are great with kids

Funny Orpington story:
My daughter & her friend found a caterpillar. (Sphinx moth - nothing special) They named it, made a house, fed it, etc. The next day they brought it into school where it received a bit too much "loving." After school they decided to have a caterpillar funeral. They picked some flowers for the grave & grabbed a garden spade. As the girls walked through the yard in search of a proper burial place, the usual chicken parade followed behind them. The girls thought it was sweet that the hens joined them for the funeral procession. I chuckled b/c I knew the real reason was that the chickens saw the deceased as yummy treat with a side of delicious flowers. I distracted the hens while the girls finished their ceremony. Thankfully, DD & her friend were off playing by the time the hens returned & defiled the grave.

Our Orps really, really like their food. They follow us around & say "Tr-eeeeeeeeeeaaaaats" in a whining tone like they're starving. But because they're so docile, any child can just scoop them up. They will sit on laps while going down the slide or swinging. They're used to playing house &/or being dressed up. They ALWAYS come running when we call. We have a mixed flock, & I enjoy the variety of breeds, but the Orps are for the kids.

Aww... I think I've only really not had Orpingtons because the Buff ones seem to be the most abundant and I'm just not much for buffy / reddish colors in chickens. (Or white, or solid black really, or, well, any solid color. ) They sound a lot like the Dorkings, super calm and loveable.

I'm sure today's eggs are fine and refrigeration shouldn't matter. Bielefelders in real life aren't much like legbars, they are at least twice as large and very vibrantly colored. Feather pattern is similar but color and size are very different IMO. They do lay very well. I'm getting three eggs a day from four Bielie ladies right now.

Their feather pattern is similar because they are both based on wildtype partridge. Legbars are cream partridge and, as I recall, Bielies are red partridge. They also both have some sort of autosexing barring as well (but I don't remember the specifics on that anymore). So they are similar, but the Legbars seem to have more subtle markings as compared to the brighter colors on Bielies. There's also the size difference. The Bielies appear heavier and fluffier, while Legbars are more skinny and leggy. Most Legbars have a crest as well. They do look very similar as chicks, but not as adults.

Here's a side-by-side (EDIT: top-by-bottom? ) comparison of my Legbar and Bielefelder hens if it helps.

Wildtype partridge and its variants are probably my favorite colors in chickens. They're all so pretty!

(P.S., Wildtype, wildtype plus red, wildtype plus silver )

 

[pbirdhaven]

Our newest addition I brought home today. She's in quarantine for the next month getting her weighed and wormed tomorrow. She's pretty docile which I hope is nice and not a product of her being ill. They never wormed her and she was being raised with chickens.

o, I am wondering who lives within an hour or so from Indy and will have chicks and eggs.

What you have and how much for them. I don't want chicks before the end of March. So if you are up for some business - eggs in the first couple weeks of March or later, chicks sometime from the the end of March to end of April (maybe later) PM me now before I blow it and give in to temptation at Tractor Supply!

I am still deciding what I want. I was counting on a bunch of mixed chicks. A few LB chicks b/c I had a LB roo and hen, but the rest would be mixed. So I am not opposed to mixed eggs too stick under my broody! With my luck she'll have given up the broody routine by the end of Feb. We have not yet decided on trying to incubate this year but need to decide soon - I'd love to incubate some rare breeds.

Specific breeds -my DD wants silkies for her birthday. I really don't want white. DD and I both have March birthdays! My birthday wish is a Frizzle and a Jubilee Orpington or 2. I was thinking 2 of you were considering breeding Jubilees maybe Brad and ??? Brad I know you are not within an hour but still interested. Those are the breeds we have wanted for a year now. For those of you who are Doctor Who Fans I really want a Frizzle (not Bantam) whose name is River Song! A Polish Frizzle and I'm dancing a jig!

Will PM you

 

[Thriftymom6]

@pipdzipdnreadytogo
Thank you! That makes me feel so much better. It was bad they have lost most of their combs I look at them and can't believe how bad they look. The leghorns combs are fine and theirs are big too!

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Thank you for the warm welcome back to the thread!

To those of you have asked to be my Facebook friend, I apologize for not responding~ in some cases, I only know people by their BYC screen names. I appreciate those who've asked, but I very rarely look at it and have never even listed anything on my profile.

Since I am on the computer so much for graphic design work, I need a break from the screen. And our BYC Indiana thread is much higher on the priority list than FB!!

@jchny2000 @pipdzipdnreadytogo I appreciate the info about flock leaders! I didn't realize that there could be more than one. For a long time, I only had five pet chickens, but then I became active on this site! Now I have 11, and I'm afraid that seeing all of the posts of adorable baby chicks has stirred my maternal instincts! haha @kabhyper1 has always especially been a bad influence by posting such cute photos. lol

@barb s Thank you! Of course I will be at Chickenfest!

@Thriftymom6 I'm partial to your chocolate orp chicks since my Bonbon girl (on my avatar) is my favorite chicken. Did you breed or buy hatching eggs?
@racinchickins Yes! My chickens have really increased production in the last week or so. I've had so many eggs that I hard boiled some today~ I thought that warm, colorful eggs would be nice on a cold, dreary day.

Tip for anyone interested: Adding salt to the water really prevents shells from sticking.



@ellymayRans It was a fun surprise when the three black bantam Cochins from your hatching eggs began laying green eggs! I hadn't remembered that Cochins lay green eggs. Here are two examples. My tiny Cochin named Monday lays quail sized eggs. haha Cochin eggs make my EE's eggs look more blue.


@Acornewell You are a wonderful, conscientious person to rescue the craigslist chickens! I would definitely report this cruel case of animal neglect to your local animal control and Humane Society, and the Indiana State Board of Animal Health.

I also urge everyone who sees cases of animal cruelty -- through craigslist types of ads, swap meets or wherever: Please don't look the other way. Those animals need your help. You can remain anonymous when reporting. Take photos with your phone and write down information about the person, location, phone, etc.

This link is from Michigan State University's Law School, which is an excellent resource for all kinds of animal issues/laws that are listed by state.
IN - Cruelty - Consolidated Cruelty Statutes | Animal Legal ...

It is amazing to read about so many topics we have discussed on the thread. The first link is a brief summary, and the second link has more details.

Legal Protections for Chickens

Legal Protection for Chickens cont.

Okay, I'm off of the soapbox now!

BIG

and so glad you have some free time again! Its a big "ahhhhh" when you have time to relax.
Lots of great info! Thanks for all the fantastic links

I have also learned that some roosters will just "get along" against all odds. My bad boy Bruce the BA (nope he isn't in the freezer yet) is very good friends with my BCM rooster Rudy. They just got along! after the BCM was housed for the winter in Bruce's coop, they just clicked. Never even a disagreement from the beginning! Bruce is human aggressive, but a good protective roo for his hens, and socializes well with other roos. My small breeding groups I normally keep out there. They have some free range, but more confined from the general flock, off season.
My LO roosters are tolerant of other roosters also, unless they are aggressive to the hens. If a hen screams out, he kicks them off and attacks the roo. My leghorn boys are not very nice to the hens, they will be going very soon.

Quote: LOL I hear ya, I dread weekends because I expect to find some new creature left in our yard overnight! Easter is really bad, I usually find adult cats dumped out here, occasionally dogs. Lots of misc poultry! I had around a dozen guinea left here last fall. Many of them stayed, I have just left them. The cats I rehome or they just don't thrive if I can catch them. So many are declawed, never even been outdoors (clean fur and soft pads) and just terrified. Some are also bird aggressive and that cannot happen here.

Quote: Thats a fantastic gift, you and I have talked a lot about it! There is so much at the Childrens' museum, you can't ever see it all. My oldest is 32 and still talks about it like a kid lol, she loved going there.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Quote: Awww Thank you!

X2, compassion for animals means you have a kind heart

I already informed my family that I cannot be responsible for what happens the next time I need to go to Tractor supply. I anticipate "needing" to go in a couple weeks (when chick days start). The thing is, I have said over and over I don't want to get hatchery chicks this year, I want to get them from someone on here, we won't really be ready for chicks til the end of March (need some warmth to work on our coop/run expansion), need to get our tax check (anyone else want to use it all for chicken related things?) . . .

But then I get on here with all you wonderful enablers (which I love you all for) and see chick pics and the longing in my heart grows. I need to come up with a plan before chick days. Since my roo died I won't have any chicks from my flock, so the kids and I need to decide what we will be getting - who from and approx when and then maybe I can resist chick days...maybe. Of course my son wants brown leghorns, not easy to find.

Go for it - breed that biggest, fluffiest, friendliest chicken on the planet!
Toss in Bielefelder and english orp, they get flat huge too!

Quote:

it never goes away either, I have been hatching 2 years now and every week, I am peering in the window every 20 minutes! I want the clear door for my cabinet so I can see in better LOL!

Ok. Any takers!!!??

Someone slap me! I just accepted 4 Emu eggs!!! I can barely get chicken eggs to hatch. Plus coming all the way from CA... but they were giving them away and I figure if it's even remotely successful it will be worth it. Quite an experience. Or at the very least paid to have them shipped to me to see and touch a real one!! I know, I know, I'm shaking my head too!! Lol!!

OMG you didn't! I am crossing my fingers for you, what a challenge! They usually hatch well in a sportsman cabinet if you know anyone close. I have really wanted them a long time. DH says a loud NO anytime they are mentioned. Fascinating birds! I have met them at Chicago's zoo, and a few others. They actually free ranged along with the peafowl. Much calmer than Ostrich, and if you respect the breeding cycles are not hard to keep. I visited a farm up in Columbia city, and strongly considered them, DH just wasn't going for it. The hen was laying and was NOT liking strangers around. The "boom"calling sound is just too impressive to hear. You do need a strong 6 ft or higher fence, and they are at eye level or higher as adults, no kidding. The hen was taller than me by over a foot!

Quote: Hmmm. The only breed two breeds she picked that met your criteria would be Javas and Rocks. You need to be careful with the game breeds : Aseel, Shamo, Maylay, etc.... They tend not to get along with other breeds of chickens. And the males will injure/kill other roosters. As far as your huge fluffy chicken, you need to throw in some Brahma too. They meet the huge, fluffy, docile category very well! I love mine!

As far as planning for the year. I'll have Mottled Javas, Cream Legbars, and American Bresse chicks available this year. I finally got the groups separated, and I'll start saving eggs in March.
Agreed! My modern and OE games are sweet interacting with people, but NOT accepting to any outside rooster, often even another hen is challenged by the dominant hen. They will fight and kill them, or be killed. I have learned to keep my groups separate and confined. If its not their own offspring its hard adding to the breeding group.
I am still really interested in your Bresse, quite impressed with your finished birds the day we were there to process those guys. I love the legbars, but they just don't seem hardy as free rangers here. I may try them again next year but keep them confined. I just love the calm, friendly personality, even the roos are just sweet and laid back. The eggs are gorgeous robin egg blue too.

 

[Faraday40]

Aww...

I think I've only really not had Orpingtons because the Buff ones seem to be the most abundant and I'm just not much for buffy / reddish colors in chickens. (Or white, or solid black really, or, well, any solid color.

) They sound a lot like the Dorkings, super calm and loveable.

Their feather pattern is similar because they are both based on wildtype partridge. Legbars are cream partridge and, as I recall, Bielies are red partridge. They also both have some sort of autosexing barring as well (but I don't remember the specifics on that anymore). So they are similar, but the Legbars seem to have more subtle markings as compared to the brighter colors on Bielies. There's also the size difference. The Bielies appear heavier and fluffier, while Legbars are more skinny and leggy. Most Legbars have a crest as well. They do look very similar as chicks, but not as adults.

I agree they're all pretty. Dorkings are on my wish list. Of course that list is getting long.....

I agree about buff orps looking bland. I personally like the Blues, Lavenders, & Blacks. Especially those big, extra fluffy, English Orps.
How can we resist picking up our "Cuddles" when she looks at us like this?







If you really want some eye candy, there are all kinds of fancy project colors of English Orpingtons.
These beautiful pics below are not my own.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

A quick hello

Hopefully things will settle down around here before too long. I keep trying to skim the posts and there are lots I'd like to reply to but just haven't had the energy.

Appreciate the condolences - thanks!


All of a sudden getting as many as 6 eggs a day from the 9 girls I have. Seems like a new girl lays every day. The door to the barn is frozen but they have plenty of room in there. This winter has been wonderful with the 16x12 indoor pen. Much better than the small chicken shed and I haven't had to worry about shoveling anything.


@pipdzipdnreadytogo
How is that girl with the silly, oversized crest?

I cannot imagine. Its a long road to get things in order, I think about you every day

.
Mine have all picked up very well, and I had 2 muscovy eggs today

I have to separate colors. This will be a challenge, I never clipped wings, anyone's wings! All but 2 of my muscovy are excellent fliers. My 2 oldest drakes can't get off the ground, so that's a help lol.

"achieve the hugest, fluffiest, friendliest chicken on the planet?"

My vote is for Orpingtons! They're already Huge, Friendly, Docile Giants. Make Great pets, don't fly, & lay eggs year round Cons: always underfoot (a chicken parade follows everywhere you go) & they are passionate about eating. While they follow you, they'll whine & beg for treats.

I'm going to try some Bielefelders this year. I've heard only great things about them. Someday I'd like to see a Jersey Giant. It seems I prefer the bigger birds. *


*not emus though. LOL You'll have to keep us updated on that adventure.

So far, I am really pleased with my beilies, big, sweet lazy birds. The rooster is nicer than the hen, and enjoying the breed very much.

Quote: I hatched a couple of his bresse last season. They were great white birds. My lack of love for white is the reason I sold mine. But they were nice and grew wonderfully. I did not have a rooster but the hens were very sweet. I would choose the Bresse any day over the white leghorns.
Agreed, I like my WL hens, the roosters are not very nice. I plan to give my 5 hens to my Jaerhon rooster, and do away with the leghorn roosters soon. He is much more a gentleman to his 4 hens, and am sure he will like having a few more lol.

I do love this pic! There's just something about the loving look she gives.

What a sweet doll

Had to do some test photos today so I thought I'd update the "BAD MOLT" girl. I had to bring her into the house for almost 3 weeks. Never had a bird molt so bad and right when it went into the single digits here.

She is a hatchery red girl from Townline that they sell as "Rhode island Red". She will be 3 yo in March. BTW...she started laying this week.



Here she is November 21, 2014:



Today: Feb. 10, 2015

My BA girl did really well too. of course I didn't get pics. She does look very much like a RIR.