Introducing the Ideal Dozen

[3KillerBs]

Alas, we lost poor Kung Pao, the purple-banded Langshan cockerel.

In the chaos after my injury, he managed to spend Sunday night trapped between the chick-tight inner curtain and the electric netting (which was on). I found him hunkered down on Monday morning when I went to let the birds out. He seemed unusually docile when I rescued him -- normally he resisted any kind of handling. I put him down next to the waterer but was unable to provide any kind of special care or observation because I had to go to work.

DS#3 found him dead just before dinner. Thread here.

My speculation at this point was that spending the night alone getting zapped when he tried to move just overwhelmed him in stress and trauma. He's always been the least adventurous and most easily frightened of the group.

I absolutely CANNOT blame my 15yo for missing him when he shut them up for the night well after dark. I probably couldn't have seen a black chick in a dark corner either and it's very difficult to count chickens when half are going to roost in the coop and half out in the run clutter and some of the ones in the coop are in a cuddle pile instead of on the roost.

 

[Auntiejessi3]

Alas, we lost poor Kung Pao, the purple-banded Langshan cockerel.

In the chaos after my injury, he managed to spend Sunday night trapped between the chick-tight inner curtain and the electric netting (which was on). I found him hunkered down on Monday morning when I went to let the birds out. He seemed unusually docile when I rescued him -- normally he resisted any kind of handling. I put him down next to the waterer but was unable to provide any kind of special care or observation because I had to go to work.

DS#3 found him dead just before dinner. Thread here.

My speculation at this point was that spending the night alone getting zapped when he tried to move just overwhelmed him in stress and trauma. He's always been the least adventurous and most easily frightened of the group.

I absolutely CANNOT blame my 15yo for missing him when he shut them up for the night well after dark. I probably couldn't have seen a black chick in a dark corner either and it's very difficult to count chickens when half are going to roost in the coop and half out in the run clutter and some of the ones in the coop are in a cuddle pile instead of on the roost.

 

[3KillerBs]

I managed to put a reasonable-height perch into the brooder/coop for them in hope of convincing them to go to roost in there instead of on the run clutter, which they preferred to their baby perches.

A few of them decided to perch there, but over half were out on the run clutter and had to be lured in with wet mash or even picked up and put in.

View attachment 2772786View attachment 2772788

Update on this:

It took a few days to make the transition, but for the past couple nights everyone has willingly gone to roost on the perch instead of out in the run.

 

[3KillerBs]

No photo updates for the past 2 weeks because of my injuries but here they are at 12 weeks exactly. The photos are not so good because my helper has gone back to school and controlling 2lb chicks one-handed isn't as easy as controlling 6oz chicks that way.

Everroast, Dominique, purple band. 33.8oz

Chasseur, French Cuckoo Marans, green band, 30.3oz

Alfredo, Silver-Laced Cochin, Green Band, 28.9oz

Kebob, SLC, purple band, 31.2oz

Ludwig (formerly En Croute), Black Langshan, I got a weight of 29.9oz but I don't trust it because he launched out of the bucket before the scale settled. I'll have to try to get him off the roost tonight. He's very solid in the hand so I think he has to be heavier than the smallest cochin. (Any tips on something better than a 5-gallon bucket for containing birds while weighing them?) No real male saddles showing yet -- he's only just finished feathering out, after all -- and he's not crowing, but I think there's no doubt that he's male.

Provencal, FCM, blue band, 31.9oz

Classic, Dominique, green band, 31.2oz

Buffalo, Dominique, green band, 31.2. Note female-appearing saddles.

Sesame, Black Langshan, blue band, 31.5oz (another reason to doubt the weight for Ludwig because he's visibly larger than his breed-sister).

Fricasee, FCM, purple band, 31.9oz

Nugget, SLC, blue band, still the smallest reliable weight in the flock at 29.1oz. She feels light in the hand compared to Ludwig. The most docile and easiest to catch.

 

[3KillerBs]

I knew it!

DH helped me weigh Ludwig again so that I could use 2 hands to block him from jumping out of the bucket and Ludwig was calmer in the dark.

45.1oz. Big and solid, like I thought he ought to be.

 

[3KillerBs]

This morning I was opening up and heard a loud AWWK! from the brooder/coop.

When I opened it up Ludwig came out first, jumped up on some run clutter and did it again.

He's trying to crow!

 

[3KillerBs]

We're going to be selling 3 of these birds, one each of the Cochins, FCMs, and Dominiques.

I'm not sure what factors to use to choose.

Among the FCMs, Chasseur is the lightest but the heaviest, Fricasee, is short on foot feathers.

In the Dominiques, I like the paler, clearer barring on Buffalo (that made us suspect her of being male), but she's middling in size and the smallest, Classic, is the friendliest and boldest of the entire group.

(My son will pick which Cochin to sell based on whatever criteria he cares to use).

 

[3KillerBs]

When I went out to close up tonight I picked Ludwig off the perch and took his band off. I only have one cockerel so he doesn't need it and I was concerned that it might get uncomfortably snug without me noticing as I'm working more hours the next couple weeks since he's growing quite rapidly at this stage -- being taller than, though not as solidly built as, several of the adult hens.

It was non-traumatic. I just tucked him under my arm, captured the relevant leg, and used the end-cutter mini-pliers to do the job.

The difficult part was resisting the urge to pet him.

 

[3KillerBs]

We had the windows open last night so we could clearly hear Ludwig's juvenile attempts to crow this morning.

He's improved in only a week, but it's still hilariously broken and strange.

 

[3KillerBs]

5 of these girls are now for sale:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/five-pol-pullets-in-central-nc.1494830/