INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Mother2Hens]

I'm considering marker (clicker) training for my chickens. Has anyone else tried this?

Yes, I tried it when I had four chicks because I wanted to have a sound that they'd recognize when I wanted their attention. IMO, the most effective method of training animals is immediately rewarding with food. The most important and difficult thing about training (and raising kids!) is being consistent. Anyway, I didn't stick with it because the clicker kept getting misplaced.

I have trained my chickens just by pointing, saying commands, and singing the mockingbird lullaby to signal settling down for sleep (

yes, you can sing it, too! lol). From my experience, most chickens can be trained. Several of my flock know their names, and they definitely know and like routines.
@kittydoc ~ Did you say you just planted hostas? My chickens love mine so much that they've eaten most down to nubs! I've moved several hostas (away from the chicken areas) that are in this condition below, and they amazingly bounce back.

The one below bloomed even though its leaves were chewed up (Liriope is pictured behind the blooms. They don't bother it).

 

[chick rookie]

@chick rookie :
here are a couple GLW Pullets (7 weeks old in picture) that we are trying to sell - their patterns look different than yours , as well as leg color

Yes mine have Black legs, we are thinking maybe BCM's now. Man people can sure mess things up, They were bought as SLW, then we started seeing the Gold come and so we changed it to GLW and now BCM ... lol

That's easy. Just call them while inside the coop/run & start tossing some scratch. We also carry the same "treat bucket" so when they see it, they come running. Normally, we only do it at night or if a storm is coming, but it works great if we need to run to the store or something. We do the reverse in the morning. The pullets are trained to find the chicken tractor & put themselves inside to await their treat. I only allow the adults to free range, so the pullets are just used to going straight into the tractor. Normally it's just a few feet away from the last location. The funny part is when the tractor gets moved to a new location far from where they were yesterday. They flock to the former spot then run around in circles like lost, little ants until the tractor is spotted.

that's how I get my birds in for bed or when I want them out of the way of the hay truck when it comes... all it takes is the white bucket to come out of the garage... lol I only have to do the call when someone is too intent on scratching for bugs to notice the bucket.

I think we are headed in that direction! It was mostly dry today, weather report is looking pretty good rest of the week.

Hope it stays like this through Sunday. But bringing tarps just in case... lol

So am kinda "upsizing" rather than downsizing lol. Working on adding marans back to my flocks again, and dark cornish hopefully. Have my chicks for next years chicken breeders picked out. Really pleased with the colors and variety I am seeing hatch with my EE/OE flock.

So guys, what breeds or species will you continue to keep, or not keep? What birds have been a headache, or a joy to have?
For us, turkey, guinea, ducks, quail, geese and chickens will still be here next year.

Chicken math... aint it great. lol
I will stick with my WR girls I just love them. They are very sweet and lay every day, great free rangers, they come home every evening for bed and through the day to lay in the boxes don't have to go on egg hunts for these girls.
We added BA back this year, had them before and just missed the big brown eggs so got them back, wont get rid of them again, live and learn.
Love my EE's so will be keeping them, going to keep a few of the BR chicks I am trying to hatch, don't have many of those and even tho I don't like that they are flighty, I like the egg color and I get at least 5 eggs a week from them and they lay 2 to 3 a week in the winter.
Still on the fence about my Lt. Brahma's will depend on how well they do this winter.
No more ISA's they laid well enough, just aren't good to have chicks around and 2 of the 3 I HAD started busting the eggs in the boxes.
Would like to get a couple "SLW" ( lol ) just for the color in the yard, I think they are beautiful, but kinda suck on the egg laying.
Absolutely no more RIR's!! Still have 1 left to get rid of if anyone wants her. They lay real good but they start fights with everyone in the yard!!! This girl is almost bald because her mouth writes checks her butt cant cash. Probably the reason she hasn't been sold yet, who wants a bald chicken???
I think I finally got DH his Cochin, but hey we thought we had SLW's too...???
I hope that is what she/he is??

I have a few mystery chicks this year will have to see how that all works out... lol
Might be getting Some Welsummers back, Had them before love love love them should have never got rid of them and the one I kept up and died.
They are great layers even in the winter, learned that if ya don't mess with them Alott as chicks they turn out to be sweetys... don't understand it but it worked for us.
Hopefully I will be adding some of jchny2000 LO and OE's. ( hoping to get some hatching eggs from her ).
Excited to see how those work out. Heard nothing but good about them and you got to admit they are just the most beautiful chicken. ( LO ) and I have been hoping for some olive eggs for a long time.
ok I think I covered them all.. lol
Cant believe I forgot my SF's, first time having them and only have 2 so we will have to see what happens with them. So far I love them, they have a great personality and not scared of anything... lol

 

[ChickCrazed]

So am kinda "upsizing" rather than downsizing lol. Working on adding marans back to my flocks again, and dark cornish hopefully. Have my chicks for next years chicken breeders picked out. Really pleased with the colors and variety I am seeing hatch with my EE/OE flock.

So guys, what breeds or species will you continue to keep, or not keep? What birds have been a headache, or a joy to have?
For us, turkey, guinea, ducks, quail, geese and chickens will still be here next year.

I will be keeping my Bielefelders and adding my silkied lavender (and black split to lavender) Ameraucana and Mottled Breda. I need to get some updated pictures of the little darlings. I also have some Olive Eggers in the brooder that I may also keep. I am going to try to refrain from upsizing any of Brad's cochins

.

My biggest headaches have come from my Isbars. I love the green Isbar eggs but they are perpetually trying to go broody, won't even lay in the nest boxes any more because they are constantly trying to sneak a nest somewhere, and are tiny flighty little things that scream and yell when I have to catch them. Not at all my style!

 

[ChickCrazed]

Yes mine have Black legs, we are thinking maybe BCM's now. Man people can sure mess things up, They were bought as SLW, then we started seeing the Gold come and so we changed it to GLW and now BCM ... lol

I would think they would have solid black bodies if they were Black Copper Marans.

 

[browncow15]

So am kinda "upsizing" rather than downsizing lol. Working on adding marans back to my flocks again, and dark cornish hopefully. Have my chicks for next years chicken breeders picked out. Really pleased with the colors and variety I am seeing hatch with my EE/OE flock.

So guys, what breeds or species will you continue to keep, or not keep? What birds have been a headache, or a joy to have?
For us, turkey, guinea, ducks, quail, geese and chickens will still be here next year.

Most of my flock goes this fall. Either selling or to the freezer. The plan is to get rid if most if not all the hatchery birds I have. Im keeping CCL, marans and OEs I just hatched. I'm hoping to offer sexlinked olive eggers in the spring. My light brown leghorns stay, and my orps. My goal is to get down to minimal birds for the winter. We will see how that goes

I vaguely remember reading a post a few days ago about someone seeing who all is laying. Was that @kittydoc ? How are you going about doing that?

 

[ellymayRans]

Most of my flock goes this fall. Either selling or to the freezer. The plan is to get rid if most if not all the hatchery birds I have. Im keeping CCL, marans and OEs I just hatched. I'm hoping to offer sexlinked olive eggers in the spring. My light brown leghorns stay, and my orps. My goal is to get down to minimal birds for the winter. We will see how that goes

Sounds like a good plan! I wish I could have that much discipline!

 

[ellymayRans]

I had to make a hole in my bator pea egg because I was getting too stressed that it had been internally pipped for at least 24 hours! It's still alive so that's good.

I checked on my broody peahen and no peeps but I hear a rustling under her so I'm certain at least one of the two have hatched. I'm hoping both!

Here's the view from my front porch. She's nested under the far fir tree.

Poor gal got poured on yet again. I'm so over the rain and mud!

 

[chick rookie]

I would think they would have solid black bodies if they were Black Copper Marans.

I thought that too, but if you look up images of Black Copper Marans, not all are solid black.

 

[ellymayRans]

@mother2hens one of the girls eggs hatched this morning and another has pipped. My GCM roo had taken to them and it's an olive egger with feathered shanks as well! Oh what a doll!! Hoping for a girl but my luck it's not! Haha! It doesn't have a spot though..Only time will tell

I definitely have a small but growing list of these hatches I want to hang onto!! Sigh....

 

[browncow15]

Sounds like a good plan! I wish I could have that much discipline!

I just plain don't have room to keep a bunch of birds over the winter so...

I was confused after the sexlinked talk the other day so I did some digging. The way I understand it for barring to be sexlinked the FEMALE has to be barred and the male solid. If the male is barred ALL his chicks will be barred (I think). I love genetics but my brain doesn't absorb information like it did before I had three kids screaming at me all the time