Leghorns -19 weeks to first eggs

[AllenK RGV]

Allen,
You will have to show me pictures of the feathers. Sounds very interesting. I vote soup pot. Cooked another one of my Barred Rocks today. So much more flavor and texture than store bought.

Yes, wife, daughters and neighbor all picked out their favorite chick and informed me that I couldn't eat theirs. Then they got feathers. Then they got bigger and no one knew who was who. I love it. Now I'm the only one scratching backs.

7 eggs yesterday and 5 eggs today. Another RIR is squatting. We may get another brown layer in the mix. So far, all the brown eggs look like from the same RIR.

@KikisGirls Yesterday was 50 eggs! Today makes 55 eggs. So eggciting!

Got a couple of girls missing pieces of their combs. A couple with scabbed combs. Guessing we are pecking ordering. No one missing feathers, thank goodness.

Sure Ill get out there tomorrow ans hunt em down for feathers. Now I know exactly what to look for sexing them I bet I could do this 4 weeks sooner.

On the egg front sounds like you are going to be sick of eating those soon. Awesome that you have 50 already seems like just last week they started. Do you plan to keep this flock a good long while since they are productive. Or are you secretly afraid you might break even on the hobby?

 

[RUNuts]

Yes, these girls will be with us for another year. Wanted layers and the meat was a side thought. I should have done a little more research and I would not have gotten so many Leghorns. 2 1/2 weeks and 55 eggs. We are eating them all so far, but will share with neighbors in a bit. I'm even cooking before heading to work. Nice wholesome breakfast.

The egg sale business the neighbor was trying to put together may still have legs. But first, production needs to rise. Not in a hurry. Then we will look at breaking even.

Will try Cornish Cross from Ideal come spring. Started on the chicken tractor this weekend and will see before making second one. If I brood them in the garage, I could get the chicks as early as February for an April harvest. But will have venison (Oryx) and won't be needing meat like I do now. Still working on plan for this one.

Son's girl friend brought 4 dozen cabbage starts. So I stuck those in the front flower garden as "ornamental brassicas". LOL We will see how the HOA likes that. Isn't a head of cabbage a work of art! And it is edible. I'm interested to see if the front flower bed increases it's production since the dirt is spent. I mulched and realized the woodchips weren't that composted. The subsequent loads did better, but still. Everything is dying on me. The yard crew isn't helping. I'd plan to expand and they Round-upped the border before I moved it. Harrump! Ruined my plans.

 

[AllenK RGV]

Yes, these girls will be with us for another year. Wanted layers and the meat was a side thought. I should have done a little more research and I would not have gotten so many Leghorns. 2 1/2 weeks and 55 eggs. We are eating them all so far, but will share with neighbors in a bit. I'm even cooking before heading to work. Nice wholesome breakfast.

The egg sale business the neighbor was trying to put together may still have legs. But first, production needs to rise. Not in a hurry. Then we will look at breaking even.

Will try Cornish Cross from Ideal come spring. Started on the chicken tractor this weekend and will see before making second one. If I brood them in the garage, I could get the chicks as early as February for an April harvest. But will have venison (Oryx) and won't be needing meat like I do now. Still working on plan for this one.

Son's girl friend brought 4 dozen cabbage starts. So I stuck those in the front flower garden as "ornamental brassicas". LOL We will see how the HOA likes that. Isn't a head of cabbage a work of art! And it is edible. I'm interested to see if the front flower bed increases it's production since the dirt is spent. I mulched and realized the woodchips weren't that composted. The subsequent loads did better, but still. Everything is dying on me. The yard crew isn't helping. I'd plan to expand and they Round-upped the border before I moved it. Harrump! Ruined my plans.

yeah you gotta move out of that HOA community they sound like real asses. I honestly think you should get real drunk on halloween and sleep in your front yard. I bet that isn't in the covenants. I just have a yard guy but I only use him 9 months of the year when it feels like 100degrees outside. He probably cusses these cool fronts cause ill mow my yard happily for 5 hours when the weather is good.

 

[RUNuts]

Visitors let a chicken out. They really like going for walks. The dogs really likes chasing them. Bad dog. Bad chicken. Chicken lived.

6 eggs today. No brown. She must be taking a day off. The Leghorns are serious though. Still smallish eggs. The medium egg last week was a double yolk. Surprised me.

 

[AllenK RGV]

Congrats on the eggs, Kathrin and I drove to the beach today to fill a coleman cooler with sand for the birds to have a sand bath. I recon we brought back 120 or so pounds of it. Drove to Mexico again, before turning around after seeing all of the river trash on the beach and said no way. Took the three pups with as well so they had a good play and romp in the waves. I love going to Boca Chica on weekdays there are few people there at all I passed two vehicles on the beach both fishing. I probably broke even today as Lowes charges 3.25 per 50 pound bag and the Wrangler gets 19.5mpg and only a 35 minute trip each way to get to the beach. I recon I can get to SPI much faster, but like a quiet beach where the Sheriffs deputies won't be around to tell me about idiotic leash laws. Sorry didn't bother with photos of the feathering out in Sumatras, its a tommorrow thing. Oh yeah how many Redneck coops do you think I could make from this? I say 2....but will never know since I don't speak spanish. Was just something I found on craigslist brownsville under the free sections.

 

[AllenK RGV]

Allen,
You will have to show me pictures of the feathers. Sounds very interesting. I vote soup pot. Cooked another one of my Barred Rocks today. So much more flavor and texture than store bought.

Yes, wife, daughters and neighbor all picked out their favorite chick and informed me that I couldn't eat theirs. Then they got feathers. Then they got bigger and no one knew who was who. I love it. Now I'm the only one scratching backs.

7 eggs yesterday and 5 eggs today. Another RIR is squatting. We may get another brown layer in the mix. So far, all the brown eggs look like from the same RIR.

@KikisGirls Yesterday was 50 eggs! Today makes 55 eggs. So eggciting!

Got a couple of girls missing pieces of their combs. A couple with scabbed combs. Guessing we are pecking ordering. No one missing feathers, thank goodness.

Ok so I am breaking this post into 3 sections based on earliest possible methods for distinguishing between hens and roos in Sumatra, this may be beginner information and if it is please let me know with a comment as I was considering turning these posts into an article. First and foremost you cannot distinguish behaviorally between hens and roos of this breed. The hens will challenge both hens and roos to fights and flare their hackle feathers and fly feet first into each other to determine pecking order, at least mine do this as juveniles.

This is the first defining feathering of the shoulders and back in a female, notice the heart shaped terminal lobes on the feathering on top of the wings and back? The male in the bottom image has more pointed or ragged looking feathers in the same locations. Not the Clean bifurcated appearance of a female.

 

[AllenK RGV]

Next up the comb starts to grow in on males. The presence of a developed comb is uniquely a male trait at least in my flock. After that it is on to the Hackles where you notice a big difference, they both develop them and both are pointy in appearance, however, the males generally grow them longer and as youngsters it looks so much more painful in males as they display so many more(blood feathers/pin feathers?) on the neck.

Male top vs. Female Below.

 

[AllenK RGV]

Finally the latest and easiest sure fire methods are the tail and saddle feathering. Males start growing in sickles first and their presence expresses itself well before the saddles begin to grow in. The female saddling(see attached photos) shows once again a bifurcating terminal lobe to her feathering(bottom), and the male(top) displays much longer feathers and they are prominently pointed and long, additionally when viewed from above the males display a much more Criss-cross pattern in their saddle.

 

[RUNuts]

Thank you for the pictures and detailed explanation. I understand what you are looking for and at now.

Texted brother and he is down to 16 out of 50. Hmmm. May not be any to cull in a month. He is still struggling with predators.

I'd need some pallets or longer boards to get that into a coop shape. I'd would call it a good start for a project.

 

[AllenK RGV]

Thank you for the pictures and detailed explanation. I understand what you are looking for and at now.

Texted brother and he is down to 16 out of 50. Hmmm. May not be any to cull in a month. He is still struggling with predators.

I'd need some pallets or longer boards to get that into a coop shape. I'd would call it a good start for a project.

I would think with all the construction materials and reconstruction materials needed in Houston right now pallets should be a snap behind Lowes and Home Depot. If not go curb shopping(or those big orange construction waste bins) in affluent neighborhoods like Kingwood that you know were hit hard by flooding and also carry flood insurance.

Edit- Also you can just ask at customer service desk at those two big box stores for pallets if you see none behind the stores.