Larkwell Valley (2023)

[NagemTX]

That's good. I've noticed my try hards tend not to need a safe space away from other birds so much as they need to learn it's okay to let the eggs breathe. Especially this year. Out of almost 80 eggs (or so I've estimated), almost half were cooked by the hens by accident. Then about 24 have hatched and the rest either killed by some fault during incubation or a hen that killed them during popping. I've lost about 6-8 to hens as well after hatch. Unfortunately I have a lot of new broodies and they seem to be panicking at hatch more than I normally have. My Araucana Bunny absolutely destroyed a chick that hatched under her, as well as one that wasn't even pipped (I'm assuming she sensed something was wrong since that was the only one she did that too, but it was awful having to dispose of that egg when I found the source of the blood in her nest.). I'm not sure I'll let her set again, I'm waiting to see what she does with this batch now that she seems to have calmed down a bit.

My two Phoenix where very good on their first brood. The Spitzhauben gets overzealous on attacking the hand when I'm looking and breaks eggs.

My only losses was because of harsh weather. That downpour we had caught four chicks out in it and then they couldn't or wouldn't get away from the standing water. The other was a trample issue because of a sudden 20 degree drop in temperatures. I just need to build up infrastructure and I think it will be better.

 

[NagemTX]

What breeds are you getting?

More Spitzhaubens in gold and chamois. More Phoenix in golden and silver. Black and lavender Ameraucana. Silver laced English Orpingtons.

Will be trying to keep it hatching eggs after this. Except for an order of the red shoulder Yokohamas next year.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

More Spitzhaubens in gold and chamois. More Phoenix in golden and silver. Black and lavender Ameraucana. Silver laced English Orpingtons.

Will be trying to keep it hatching eggs after this. Except for an order of the red shoulder Yokohamas next year.

I'll need pics of the chamois. I love that color and wanted to get some before my flock got sick. Now it's just broody babies that will be processed almost definitely apart from some specific eggs I've bought.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

My two Phoenix where very good on their first brood. The Spitzhauben gets overzealous on attacking the hand when I'm looking and breaks eggs.

My only losses was because of harsh weather. That downpour we had caught four chicks out in it and then they couldn't or wouldn't get away from the standing water. The other was a trample issue because of a sudden 20 degree drop in temperatures. I just need to build up infrastructure and I think it will be better.

I haven't lost any chicks to the constant thunderstorms yet, thank goodness. Noticed some interesting broody behavior too during a really, really bad storm the night before last. I'll have to remember to expand on that finding when I have more time to sit and type it all out so it makes sense.

Right now, the mice are my main predator issue apart from the new mama's. They've been stealing eggs and chicks since my first clutch this spring. I might have to get some snap traps just to try and get a good hit on them. My Wyandotte is a good hunter though. She's gotten great at chasing and cornering young ones that come out when I lift bowls or flood tunnels in the sexlink pen

 

[JacinLarkwell]

We also learned that at a certain age, chickens seem to lose their waterproofing. A bunch of my senior hens can't go outside in the rain without immediately becoming soaked through. Nothing clogging their gland, they just apparently don't produce as much oil as they did when they were younger.

So suffice to say, chickens aren't a big fan of the thunderstorms. The ducks like it once it's not directly over us, and keep finding new ponds to play in

 

[NagemTX]

They are here! I got 4 extra so that puts it at 39 chicks. Two extra gold spangled Spits, one extra silver duckwing Phoenix and one extra lavender Ameraucana.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I half want to try and introduce the spangling into my pheonixes. I'll be putting my mottled Java in my recessive e white pen, but maybe I'll move the spitzhaubens into Wes' pen at some point. I just feel bad confining them, they love going everywhere they can.

 

[NagemTX]

I half want to try and introduce the spangling into my pheonixes. I'll be putting my mottled Java in my recessive e white pen, but maybe I'll move the spitzhaubens into Wes' pen at some point. I just feel bad confining them, they love going everywhere they can.

Yeah, I really hate confing any of them.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I have some @The Moonshiner eggs in the incubator now with some big plans for any females I hatch. Might keep a male or two, depending on what I end up with too. But Burt Reynolds (Hamilton and Mrs. Reynolds' son) needs some leghorn girl friends and I would love to get the blue silver and especially blue gold genes into the Phoenix flock. Leghorns seem to be the perfect breed to use, since I think the only things wrong from a Phoenix stand point are the lack of long tails and their leg colors?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Yeah, I really hate confing any of them.

Most of mine adapt to confinement pretty well, the spitzhaubes just don't, and they would be in one of my prefab if I put them with Wes, which would be even worse. Maybe when I move and start again, I'll use them. Plus then I'll be able to use the chamois