INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Bill1234]

What breed of turkey is good for meat and what breed is good for breeding and hatching.

 

[chick rookie]

Am very impressed with the new line of quail I added from @James Marie the babies are huge to start with, and grow so fast! I have 12 hatchlings so far. The 18 we processed, extra cocks dressed out at 14 oz average. I kept 12 for my layers/breeders. Just huge quail and am really pleased.
My geese are actively breeding and the Muscovy hens have chosen drakes. Egg production for the chickens has not picked up yet, that's OK. Turkeys are also breeding. My 2 Holland toms are not going to work out, so one will need a new home. My turkey boys are fighting a lot.
Mallards are breeding also. I have 12 or more, 2 boys. one fella thinks I need one boy and challenges the other nonstop! I took the subordinate fella and put him with 6 girls. Now to see if they are fertile.
My last challenge is the guinea. I need to co mingle 3 flocks. My oldest 5 guineas are all hens. The rest are mixed, lavender, pearls and dundotte. All together we have around 20..
Really waiting on my orp flocks to lay soon.

I am so confused right now, and have been often when reading what others have said about their ducks and breeding..... Don't know allot about ducks so sorry if this is stupid, but I was sure ducks, especially Mallards matted for life??? So if that is the case how do you get them to breed more than 1 hen?

I don't want the cold to come back!!!!! I've let all the ladies out to enjoy some free ranging the last few days. They have been cooped up for months, last year's babies have never even been out to free range! I haven't seen the hawk in a while so I thought I would let them enjoy the nice weather too. It has been a hoot watching the youngsters exploring! Last night two of the mottled Breda and a brave silkied Ameraucana even roosted with the big girls in the big girl coop! It is so much fun seeing them start to get more comfortable with life!

All of my June babies held off on laying before Winter hit, but one of the Breda is now giving me cute little cream pullet eggs! They are gorgeous! Several other girls have started back up, it is nice having eggs to go collect again!

Life is humming along in my neck of the woods. I had a marathon day of interviews (5.5 straight hours!) at a company I would really like to work for, so I am still pretty drained from that. But excited that an offer could be coming in the next couple of weeks! I bought a new car and will be trading my horse trailer in for something a bit smaller. I'm looking forward to Spring and spending time outside again!

I'm with you, I hate the cold and am more than ready for spring!! I am more than ready for eggs as well this not having any eggs right now is driving me nuts!! driving my customers nuts too!!
Good luck with you interviews, hope you get the 1 you really want.

From what I understand, chickens have a certain number of ovi (eggs to be) and once those are gone, thats it. I am not saying anyone should not do it. I just don't myself. Its a real trade off, you have to decide what you want for your flock. Artificial light is a personal choice. I don't because
#1 the added electric cost.
#2 I want my birds to live longer.
Some layer breeds like golden comets will just keep right on laying. Without artificial light though, the hens bodies tell them to take a break. In the cold months with short daylight hours many heritage breeds just don't lay. My comets and Sumatra are the only chickens laying regular for us right now.

So what I am hearing is that I messed up getting rid of my hatchery breeds and getting all heritage, if I want eggs through the winter???? Dang'it!!!



So I said I would get baby pic's and maybe even some chicken pic's, well I finally did are ya ready???? hear it comes!!!

 

[James Beller]

ISO: Jubilee orpingtons

 

[ChickCrazed]

I am so confused right now, and have been often when reading what others have said about their ducks and breeding..... Don't know allot about ducks so sorry if this is stupid, but I was sure ducks, especially Mallards matted for life??? So if that is the case how do you get them to breed more than 1 hen?

I'm with you, I hate the cold and am more than ready for spring!! I am more than ready for eggs as well this not having any eggs right now is driving me nuts!! driving my customers nuts too!!
Good luck with you interviews, hope you get the 1 you really want.

So what I am hearing is that I messed up getting rid of my hatchery breeds and getting all heritage, if I want eggs through the winter???? Dang'it!!!



So I said I would get baby pic's and maybe even some chicken pic's, well I finally did are ya ready???? hear it comes!!!

There are some heritage type breeds known for laying well in the winter. Bielefelders were bred in Germany and are known for being good winter layers. I know there are others out there as well. It might be a good idea to invest in at least one of those heritage breeds for the winter alone.

Here are Bielefelders for any that are new to the thread!

 

[iamfivewire]

we got our first biele's last year & once they start laying, theyve been pretty consistant so far . our leghorns have been too . our Iowa Blues have started back up recently.

 

[Indyshent]

I am so confused right now, and have been often when reading what others have said about their ducks and breeding..... Don't know allot about ducks so sorry if this is stupid, but I was sure ducks, especially Mallards matted for life??? So if that is the case how do you get them to breed more than 1 hen?


So what I am hearing is that I messed up getting rid of my hatchery breeds and getting all heritage, if I want eggs through the winter???? Dang'it!!!

BAHAHAHAAHHAHA! Ducks mating for life; what a riot!

Nope, nope and nope. Drakes are the horniest, most rapacious little swingers God has ever made, I think. Muscovy are better than Mallard-derived (my Muscovy drakes have yet to get busy with anyone). Geese are monogamous (supposedly, though research into different wild geese has found that there is some fooling around that happens between largely monogamous couples).

Hatchery birds are probably more likely to lay well because hatcheries make their living on eggs, and the customers generally want eggs more than beautiful type. Heritage birds tend to lay smaller eggs, less often and get a really late start (7 mos to a year). Size and number may pick up as the bird ages (to a point). Champion egg layers are industrial, commercial strains that are as far from heritage as you're likely to get.

EDIT: Regarding winter layers specifically: Look for huge birds. Brahmas, Faverolles, Cochins, Bielefelders, possibly Giants and big Orps. Huge birds don't feel the cold quite so much and keep plugging along right through it (if you're lucky). My Brahmas and Cochin have been really, really good layers this winter. Oddly enough, an Australorp and one of the EEs have been pretty good too.

 

[Faraday40]

Tax check is on the way!

Hoping to find lilac muscovy soon

Lucky! Besides paying higher taxes, the State of IL now says "For the 2016 tax filing season, we do not expect to release any Illinois Individual Income Tax refunds prior to March 1, 2016." Just another reason I wish I were a Hoosier.

 

[Indyshent]

What breed of turkey is good for meat and what breed is good for breeding and hatching.

Strictly for meat, you're pretty well off with broad-breasted white and bronze turkeys. Breeding and hatching, you'll have to have heritage breeds. Of heritage breeds, Royal Palm are champion egg-layers, will set and mother very well, free range very well, fly very well, and are exceptionally prolific (they are the smallest as meat turkeys go, however, and have the smallest breasts). Turkeys are seasonal layers and famous broodies (as in, they'll fight over golf balls and mother them into oblivion).

Porter's Turkeys (best place to get them)

 

[amwchickin]

Well, the AI scare has calmed down for the most part. My flock gets tested next Tuesday to verify that they are clean. If the wind hits just right you can smell the decay of the turkey houses. I wish there was a better way to handle the situation for the farmers. A Farbest worker I talked to said they were already working on repopulating - I'm thinking they better be in other turkey houses or something because it is WAY too soon to be using the ones that were infected. I didn't push the person to say anymore because they aren't supposed to be talking about it at all. I know the BOAH, Indiana Dept of Health, and other agencies have a handle on things, but I hope that the company owners (who are hardly at any $$ loss here) are not pushing things to go back to normal too soon.

My Silkie/Sizzle chicks are getting big! This pic is even seems old, they have feathered out more since it was taken.

I think the bottom right will be the only Sizzle.

I also added another member to the family!

I've kind of been wanting a rabbit for awhile, and I broke down at Rural King and bought her. All I had been seeing there were the all white ones, and I need color! So, it has been fun trying to get her to not run away from me or Roxy! I think I have named her Prim.

And this is my morning, every morning:

It is quite ridiculous! If I don't pay attention to them early enough, they are pecking at the glass door! I love waking up to my chickens!!

What I do not love: roosters fighting! Two Marans boys were going at it for over 2 hours. I tried my best to break them apart, and so did Roxy, but they were determined to keep going. I think the reason they were fighting was for dominance. Unfortunately, the other night, Ozzie, the Birchen Marans I got from @ChickCrazed , passed away. He was 3+ years old and got bad frostbite last year on his comb and toes (because he was stubborn!). He was a good boy though and even though a little disabled, remained the Alpha male. I believe he went in his sleep because I found him kind of curled up on the coop floor. RIP big boy!

 

[amwchickin]

I forgot....can I get suggestions on automatic coop doors? Solar, electric - whatever you have, let me know what you like/dislike! Thanks!