INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Faraday40]

Been away from the thread for a while. We went to northern WI to visit some friends/neighbors who moved away. Since we were passing by a WI BYC member who wanted some chicks, we also had a little chicken train. DH is still teasing me about detailing the car for our trip - then using it to transport livestock.

When we got back from our weekend trip I found some BIG surprises in the garden.


Although milking a cow is still on my bucket list, while in WI, I got to pet a calf. (My friend asked a neighbor if we could visit their organic dairy farm.) While at the farm, my kids went crazy for all the little kittens. I could tell the family spent a lot of time socializing the kittens. At one point my daughter was holding a pullet in one arm & a kitten in the other. LOL Meanwhile they were very interested in our urban chickens. They only had leghorns, Isa-Browns, & Cornish cross. They get them fro the mail & never had a hen go broody They were very interested in learning about our friendly Orpingtons & DD's poultry projects. They also raised a unique pig. (Feet were diff & they were more self-sufficient- but less tame.)


The kids playing on the hay.

 

[redring]

I never separated my Scovies. I ended up with 15 babies total, and they have the prettiest colors and patterns. They range from a hen who is entirely black with beautiful green highlights to a drake that is very light grey/lavendar with a white head. Everyone who visits have been gushing about how pretty they are.

I think this is mixed up with a number commonly used for breeding. A rooster can usually handle up to 8 hens. If he has more than that, then some of them may not get bred regularly enough to have fertile eggs.

Ah. I get it. Also good to know. Not interested right now in breeding but hay you never know what ill get up to.

 

[Indyshent]

Anyone have any advice on good treats for the chickens and ducks? Anything from the kitchen that they would enjoy but won't be detrimental?

Anything you can eat and more. Raw potatoes are supposed to be bad for them, but otherwise, it's fair game. Between a chicken and a dog, the dishes can be rinsed pretty well prior to the real washing

Chickens (like most animals) are lactose intolerant, so unless you're trying to recuperate their gut flora after a round of antibiotics, you don't need to purposefully feed them dairy. Even in that case, there are lots of probiotics available for them in feed stores, and you can ferment feed to improve their gut flora, also.

Mealworms, bread, peanuts, bits of cheese, dandelions, apples, any kind of meat, leftovers, older food you don't want to eat anymore, raisins, anything in your hand or on your plate, pretty much anything in your garden--including leaves, stems, seeds, fruits, vegetables, PESTS. Unless you're farming some particularly poisonous stuff, don't worry about it.

Meanwhile they were very interested in our urban chickens. They only had leghorns, Isa-Browns, & Cornish cross. They get them fro the mail & never had a hen go broody They were very interested in learning about our friendly Orpingtons & DD's poultry projects. They also raised a unique pig. (Feet were diff & they were more self-sufficient- but less tame.)


The kids playing on the hay.

Playing in the hay is awesome!

I'm working on socializing our lone surviving kitten, too. When she gets a little older, I'll introduce her to the birds. Her older brother occasionally fancied chasing chicks--then I left him penned with Major Tom awhile, and he was more or less cured of running down the babies.

Their mom has never had an inkling to chasing birds of any kind.

Pretty much everyone--rural or urban--is always surprised to see or hear about urban livestock. It's some unspoken rule. Most people are also surprised to find out that chickens can be beautiful pets, or that turkeys are about as close to a velociraptor as you're ever likely to meet. A six-foot turkey would be pretty dang dangerous, but velociraptor wasn't six feet tall anyway.

 

[Leahs Mom]

I'm thinking those would be great for self-defense if the need ever arises.

 

[tmarsh83]

I've heard of people making zucchini boats, but those zucchinis could literally be used as boats!

 

[Faraday40]

Those zucchini comments are too funny!

I took a few pics yesterday.

Will this guy ever fill out? LOL He's a very leggy lav orp, going through that awkward teen stage.



My 2 Appenzeller Spitzhauben pullets- finally laying. Their eggs are about the size of my Sebright's
...... Of course I still haven't fully decided which I'm keeping. (Probably the 2nd one, but the one with the messy white poof is a lot of fun too.)





My big beautiful Biele - named Hen Solo
Hard to appreciate her massive size in these pics. She's 5 mo now, so hopefully we'll see that 1st egg next month.




The last of our summer chicks. (I kept these 3 for now so the broody doesn't get depressed.)
1CCL and 2 English Orps = 5 wks old

 

[Lengerich Farms]

WE GOT OUR FIRST EGG TODAY!!!

 

[oldrooster]

Quote:
my computer went down while I was hospitalized last august then was re hospitalized in novmber then went back to work in febuary and was fired 2 months ago. that's it in a nut shell

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote:
my computer went down while I was hospitalized last august then was re hospitalized in novmber then went back to work in febuary and was fired 2 months ago. that's it in a nut shell

Wow. Sorry for all the bad stuff!

 

[Leahs Mom]

I have 2 Buckeye cockerels that I think would make good flock roosters. 15 weeks old.

I have separated them from the main flock today and left the other one to see how he does as he matures and a flock roo here.

The 2 I don't keep will go to the freezer unless someone wants one for a flock roo. So far they have been of very gentle temperament but I have not had Buckeyes before so I don't know how to expect them to be when the hormones kick in. I've heard good things about them.


Anyhow...if anyone is interested in one for a flock roo send me a pm.

Photos from last week:






ETA: These birds are from the Shumaker and Lay lines and purchased from Hidden Creek.