Meyer Hatchery Chicken pics anyone??

[holm25]

Lovely hens! Great pics!

Thx!!!

Hey, y'all, I see I've missed a lot here! Sorry I haven't posted for a while. I went through a bit of a rough patch just as the semester started and pretty much just stuck around BYC for my state thread. Anyway, I got some pictures of the flock today and thought I'd share a few pics of the Meyer girls in the bunch.

These girls are about 2 years old:

Frou-Frou, my beloved splash Marans.

Fancy the Partridge Plymouth Rock, not looking so fancy while going through her molt:




Poggy the Speckled Sussex:




Iddy Biddy the runty Speckled Sussex:





Huka's the only one of the 1-year-olds that I got pictures of. She is a Silver Lakenvelder:







A few of the babies, who will be 4 months old on Thursday:

Mabel the Welsummer:




Georgette the Black Copper Marans. Wouldn't want to meet her in a dark alley.

Elda the Silver Gray Dorking, such a pretty young lady!

Elly again, having some snuggles.

I crouched to take a picture of something and she came right over.




Elda snuggling while Kit-kit waits her turn.

I love these Dorkings, definitely a must-have for pet flocks!




I'll probably have more pictures of the babies to post on Thursday or Friday for their 4-month-old 'hatchday'.

Pretty birds!!!

 

[holm25]

Love that first pic, stunning, intense dark eyes!
Is the pullet in the foreground of the second pic the same as the third above? EE? Love the markings!

Thx!! Yep and she is a EE named Jessy!!!

 

[NanaLynn]

I certainly hate to be a Debbie Downer here, being the recipient of a mis sexed Columbian Wyandotte from Meyer 2 years ago.... BUT.. this is a cockrel.. I am almost positive. How old is this bird? He clearly has hackle feathers that are clearly pointed, and his saddle feathers are all ready starting to form in the clear marked pointy fashion. Last but not least.. his comb is FAR too developed and red. Sorry.....

I was trying so hard to deny it. It looks like 4 out of 10 wrong! I simply can not have 7 roosters in the yard, they will have to go.... Will send Meyer an email tomorrow with pics, boohoo.

Now that she says that...I do see the pointed feathers around the neck there. A females would be rounded. Sorry too...that is way higher then average.

 

[autumnhearth]

My husband's Silver Grey Dorking, Victoria's, comb and wattles started growing in earnest two weeks ago, they went from the tiniest with still some yellow on the comb, to passing our Buff Orp's and are now equal with our Marans. She has also been squatting for me for a week now (Baby and Morgaine still don't) and has been following Amelia and Clara in when they lay, of course she's always been the most curious about what goes on in the coop. So although Dorkings are said to be late to mature, I wouldn't be surprised if we get eggs from her soon. It is hard to capture her fabulous full, long, low body and big tail, she is constantly moving, loves to scratch more than her sisters.



The three non-layers who I had to move to the pen today while Amelia and Clara were trying to lay, they keep bothering them. At first I thought they were just hassling Amelia but Baby got right in Clara's face while she was all settled down in the corner, despite her hissing.


Sunday I picked up a bale of straw and put some in the nest boxes, some in the coop over the sand and let the girls spread around the rest in the run. They were in heaven. Of course since adding straw to the coop the girls thought they didn't need to use the nest boxes anymore. Clara has wanted to lay in this corner since her first egg, but it wasn't so accommodating when it was just sand.


Amelia laid outside the nest box on Sunday but since then has returned to the nest boxes for privacy, smart girl. Today Clara and Amelia laid within in a minute of each other which was pretty near. Clara stood up and her blue-green egg was under her, I told her she was a good girl, petted her and right as I picked up her egg Amelia started squawking and stood up to reveal her big brown one. So I scooped up both warm eggs and came back with meal worms for a job well done and to get them off their nests, which they tend to linger on.

 

[Melabella]

My husband's Silver Grey Dorking, Victoria's, comb and wattles started growing in earnest two weeks ago, they went from the tiniest with still some yellow on the comb, to passing our Buff Orp's and are now equal with our Marans. She has also been squatting for me for a week now (Baby and Morgaine still don't) and has been following Amelia and Clara in when they lay, of course she's always been the most curious about what goes on in the coop. So although Dorkings are said to be late to mature, I wouldn't be surprised if we get eggs from her soon. It is hard to capture her fabulous full, long, low body and big tail, she is constantly moving, loves to scratch more than her sisters.

Oh WOW.. thank you so much for posting these,,, I have been SO looking for someone to post pictures of the SGD more mature. I have 3 in the brooder growing out, that will be 3 weeks old on Sunday. You bring out an interesting point. I almost didn't order this breed even though I truly wanted them because of their propensity to go broody. I wonder though, that even though Meyer is a wonderful hatchery, and gives us all affordable opportunities to own breeds that we would have to travel great distances to buy, or wait incredibly long times on lists while smaller breeders hatch some. I have never received an unhealthy bird from Meyer, they all thrive, and grow, and have enjoyed their bird immensely. I wonder though, and think.. they are still a hatchery, not a breeder or hobbyist, a hatchery whose goal it is to supply to the very large, and growing demands of a constantly morphing chicken loving public. I am sure every year, their numbers are growing exponentially, and their goals are different. Yes, my Meyer Barred Rock and Black Australorp are examples of fine hatchery stock, whose breeding parents were chosen on health, and fast maturity, and, as you have noted in your dorking girl, ones that reach a shorter and shorter reach to POL. They certainly would not pass judgment into ANY breeder's flock who reproduces their birds painstakingly to the Standard of Perfection of the APA, or who intends to show their birds. Even the breeder or farmer who is into carrying on the rich tradition of breed preservation of Heritage birds. Meyer keeps us all happy, but I am very curious to see how my 2 year old flock just entering their molt, and finishing their 2nd laying season will do next year in 2015. I am sure I will see a marked decline in eggs.

I am sure your SGD reached maturity far earlier than the pullet in England who is the same age, with barely a red comb in sight. Meyer must select for the girls giving up their eggs freely and not setting on them so they can keep us all in little baby SG Dorking chicks. I am thankful for the chance to get to know some of these breeds, but when I order some Black Australorps for my next flock, I will try my hand at some Heritage birds, just to see how that goes. I like the idea of maybe less eggs, for a bird that lays a lot more years. Not as many tough decisions as to what to do with a girl after she stops laying. I'm not there yet, but I have thought long and hard about it.

On a side note,.. THE HAWKS ARE INSANE TODAY. I think I am going to head out and put everyone up and in the coop. My dog is running around frantic, with his tongue out to the side.

Go away HAWKS!

MB

 

[christine9]

So at five weeks, this little cuckoo marans is the sweetest of the bunch. Had to post her picture

And my poor looking buff brahma going through her first real molt.

 

[autumnhearth]

Oh WOW.. thank you so much for posting these,,, I have been SO looking for someone to post pictures of the SGD more mature. I have 3 in the brooder growing out, that will be 3 weeks old on Sunday. You bring out an interesting point. I almost didn't order this breed even though I truly wanted them because of their propensity to go broody. I wonder though, that even though Meyer is a wonderful hatchery, and gives us all affordable opportunities to own breeds that we would have to travel great distances to buy, or wait incredibly long times on lists while smaller breeders hatch some. I have never received an unhealthy bird from Meyer, they all thrive, and grow, and have enjoyed their bird immensely. I wonder though, and think.. they are still a hatchery, not a breeder or hobbyist, a hatchery whose goal it is to supply to the very large, and growing demands of a constantly morphing chicken loving public. I am sure every year, their numbers are growing exponentially, and their goals are different. Yes, my Meyer Barred Rock and Black Australorp are examples of fine hatchery stock, whose breeding parents were chosen on health, and fast maturity, and, as you have noted in your dorking girl, ones that reach a shorter and shorter reach to POL. They certainly would not pass judgment into ANY breeder's flock who reproduces their birds painstakingly to the Standard of Perfection of the APA, or who intends to show their birds. Even the breeder or farmer who is into carrying on the rich tradition of breed preservation of Heritage birds. Meyer keeps us all happy, but I am very curious to see how my 2 year old flock just entering their molt, and finishing their 2nd laying season will do next year in 2015. I am sure I will see a marked decline in eggs.

I am sure your SGD reached maturity far earlier than the pullet in England who is the same age, with barely a red comb in sight. Meyer must select for the girls giving up their eggs freely and not setting on them so they can keep us all in little baby SG Dorking chicks. I am thankful for the chance to get to know some of these breeds, but when I order some Black Australorps for my next flock, I will try my hand at some Heritage birds, just to see how that goes. I like the idea of maybe less eggs, for a bird that lays a lot more years. Not as many tough decisions as to what to do with a girl after she stops laying. I'm not there yet, but I have thought long and hard about it.

You're welcome, I thought you and Pipdzipdnreadytogo might want to see her, our girls are 23 weeks, our EE started laying at 21 and our Golden Buff at 22. I know Meyer describes the Dorkings as being slow to mature, but it makes sense that hatchery birds would be bred to be bit faster. We'll see when she lays, I honestly thought she would be the last until this recent quick development of her comb and wattles and the squatting... Pipdzipnreadytogo's Dorkings look like they have bigger pinker combs and wattles than Victoria did at 19 weeks.

The husband is set that our first girls will live into happy hen retirement with us, even though Dorkings are good meat birds. I had once suggested that one day we could get a flock of Dorkings for meat, or just the extra males for meat he immediately said no, *he* will have a flock of Dorkings and they will not be fore eating. But there are Red Dorkings (they look like Welsmmers) and White and even Birchen! Maybe one day I will cross White Dorkings with Buckeyes and have sex linked meat birds and then he can't complain. But that's way down the road.

 

[rnchick74]

hi rnchick,

So happy for you, I will be in your shoes soon enough with some of the hatches I have done. Just a suggestion... can you plan to meet this man somewhere, and bring the birds in a cage? I have heard some very unfortunate sad stories of people having other chicken owners to their places with disastrous results in relation to bio security breaches. Even if this new prospective owners flock is healthy, with no seeming health issues...you just never know if what he brings on the bottom of his shoes to your place,, is something your birds have never been exposed to. Also ask him if he plans to quarantine them properly first. I recently re-homed one of my lavender ameraucana roosters to a woman at a tractor supply swap. My bird was in excellent condition at 12 weeks old. Not realizing that I should have asked her if she intended to quarantine him properly, she arrived home with him and put him straight in with her other birds. Within 10 days he wasn't eating, and then he died after 14 days of having him. She called me of course, and told me I sold her a sick bird. I informed her that certainly was not the case, as the two pullets and one roo that were his hatch mates were fine. The other roo I re-homed to a friend the same day, and her bird is alive, and well after a 30 day quarantine stay away from her other birds. I am petrified to have anyone over to my place that has birds. I just don't want to risk it.

just a suggestion,
Good Luck!
MB

I wish I had a cage big enough for the 2...but I don't. My plan is to have the person stay in their car & I will bring the birds to them. I have special rubber boots that are only used for the chicken area & after dropping off the chickens to the person I will disinfect them with a dilute bleach solution, go inside & change clothing before going back outside to deal with birds again. It's the best I can do. I'm not going to let anyone who has chickens back onto my coop. Even my chicken friends - we are very conscientious about bio-security & bring "clean" shoes to each others houses/coops.

Unfortunately, the guy tonight didn't show up. I have another person lined up for tomorrow - fingers crossed!!!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

I had someone far more experienced than I tell me that an Easter Egger is a mixed breed from one purebred chicken that carries the blue egg gene, and another chicken that does not..  From what I understand, even if two purebred Ameraucanas are bred, and do not meet breed standards in some way, ie: color of legs or plumage, it's an EE.    I am no expert, but that is what I was told.  I have always toyed with getting some Bielefelders... do you like them so far?  Beautiful birds!    Right now I have three separate grow out pens going on... craziness!  Hubby going a bit worried, but I assured him as soon as the second coop is ready, and the run is built... things will seem a bit more controlled.  The chicken poo is driving us both a bit batty  at the moment!  Next Spring I am setting up a chicken fence so they stay behind the barn!  Only problem is it doesn't look very pretty looking out towards the horse paddocks.

Have a great day all! 

MB

Well, to put it in the most basic terms, Easter-eggers are any bird that has a possibility of laying a blue or green egg but is not true to the standard of any breed. Usually, the are related to Ameraucanas, but not always. The reason I word it this way is because if an Ameraucana of one color is bred to an Ameraucana of another color, the offspring usually will not conform to the standard (with the exception of BBS) and is therefore technically an Easter-egger. People get into a tizzy about this definition, but when you think about it... When someone crosses, for example, a Barred Plymouth Rock to a Partridge Plymouth Rock, do they still call it a Plymouth Rock, or do they call it a mixed breed? Any that I have seen have been called mixed breeds.

As far as the Bielefelders, well, I ended up with Violet by accident. I bought two cream Legbars from someone, and apparently he didn't realize he still had a Bielefelder pullet in the mix. Well, Violet was pretty much identical to the Legbar pullet I got with her, so I couldn't blame the guy. I'm happy I ended up with her anyway! But anyway, from my limited experience with Violet, I love them! Vi is super sweet and soft and loves to tuck her head up under my arm and doze. For a pet, she's a doll. She hasn't laid yet, so I can't tell you anything about that, but her temperament is so calm and docile, and from what I've read the boys are similar as well. They would probably be good for someone with kids--no guarantees, of course, but they have just the right personality for it in my opinion.

You're welcome, I thought you and Pipdzipdnreadytogo might want to see her, our girls are 23 weeks, our EE started laying at 21 and our Golden Buff at 22.  I know Meyer describes the Dorkings as being slow to mature, but it makes sense that hatchery birds would be bred to be bit faster.  We'll see when she lays, I honestly thought she would be the last until this recent quick development of her comb and wattles and the squatting...  Pipdzipnreadytogo's Dorkings look like they have bigger pinker combs and wattles than Victoria did at 19 weeks.

The husband is set that our first girls will live into happy hen retirement with us, even though Dorkings are good meat birds.  I had once suggested that one day we could get a flock of Dorkings for meat, or just the extra males for meat he immediately said no, *he* will have a flock of Dorkings and they will not be fore eating.  But there are Red Dorkings (they look like Welsmmers) and White and even Birchen!  Maybe one day I will cross White Dorkings with Buckeyes and have sex linked meat birds and then he can't complain.  But that's way down the road.

Wow! Kit and Elda are 17 weeks old, so I guess they are a bit advanced! I started noticing wattles and a reddish flush in their faces at 15-16 weeks. I guess my girls have the genes for laying!

Also, your sexlink plan actually won't work. Dorkings are recessive white, from my understanding, so you'll likely end up with all reddish or black offspring from that cross. White in general usually doesn't work for sexlinked crosses, with a few exceptionsincluding Rhode Island Whites. Silver and Gold make sexlinks. Red carries gold, so what you need for a sexlinked cross is a Buckeye rooster and Silver Gray Dorking females.

 

[autumnhearth]

Also, your sexlink plan actually won't work. Dorkings are recessive white, from my understanding, so you'll likely end up with all reddish or black offspring from that cross. White in general usually doesn't work for sexlinked crosses, with a few exceptionsincluding Rhode Island Whites. Silver and Gold make sexlinks. Red carries gold, so what you need for a sexlinked cross is a Buckeye rooster and Silver Gray Dorking females.

Interesting! Thanks for letting me know now