Mille Cochin Info

[chickenwhisperer123]

WOW!!

I like Bertha and Bessie...

 

[BluffCountryShepherdess]

What a beautiful foundation flock! Congratulations on a great start with the MFC project. Can't wait to see your babies!
How do you check your eggs to see if they're fertile? I've just been putting mine in the bator ~ the fertile ones develop, the others don't.

 

[trinacliff]

Wow! Gorgeous! All except Bea...lol...she is hideous and I'll come take her off your hands.

. Seriously, I'm not too far from you if you decide to "cull" any of your ugly Millies! Hehe.

Kristen

 

[Coopa Cabana]

Vickie, What great birds to start with! Be sure and keep us posted with your progress.

 

[SunshineSilkies]

Quote:
I stick every one I get in the bator!!! Candle them after 7-10 days. No fertile ones yet, but I have 20 more ready to put in the bator(as soon as I get a bator open...LOL Have 3 going right now!) They are the sweetest birds...Their docile nature is so much like my silkies!

Vickie

 

[BluffCountryShepherdess]

I'm glad that they're working out so well for you, Vicki. I also love the personalities of my MFCs. The fertility rate on my girls has been lower than I would like and I'm considering trimming some cush feathers to see if that helps. One of my calicos has started laying now as well. It's so fun having the CHICKS to brighten up the winter months here in the "Snow Country" of Minnesota!

 

[lilcrow]

Quote:
I hope you'll forgive me for interrupting. I've been a lurker here for a long time. I'm very interested in your project and I think what you guys are doing is just magnificent. I wish I had the room to participate, but considering how long you have to grow them out and how many you need to keep, at this point, I just can't do it. OK now that I've made my excuses for why I've never said anything before, on to my reason now for this post. I was really surprised to see you say that you were considering trimming feathers, as if to say that your birds have been breeding naturally up to this point. Am I understanding you correctly? I just assumed since you were breeding cochins that they were being bred through AI. Is there anyone that is using AI, and how many people have success with natural breeding? All of my cochins need to be AI'd. I don't think I'd get ANY babies if I left it up to them.
It would be like trying to shoot a water pistol across the Grand Canyon, through a forest no less.

If you get the picture.

 

[evonne]

Quote:

that's hilarious...

i didn't know you could AI chickens.. lol.. but i'm fairly new.... and my cochins aren't even laying yet... but i did just get 2 roos so i'll be ready for when they do...
i'm still trying to decide if i want a pair or hatching eggs from lynn for my MFC's..... i will be getting them some time in feb hopefully... such a hard decision.... eggs/pair/eggs/pair/eggs/pair/ maybe 12/ definate 2 that will lay eggs soon enough....

 

[amazondoc]

Quote:
My immature birds do it just fine all on their own. The mature ones need to have their butts trimmed. I'm not interested in AIing anybody.

 

[BluffCountryShepherdess]

My MFCs are all young birds ~ under a year and not in full feather yet. Plus, because these are project birds, they do not have the perfect round rumps that we hope to acheive when the pattern is also correct. That being said, we are defintiely striving to get the best conformation along with the correct color/markings that we can as we work on the project. As far as my own flock goes (and I just got started this fall) only one of my girls, out of three, have had fertile eggs and the percentage rate has been rather low (probably 30 to 40 percent) for that pullet.

This is the pullet that I have gotten chicks from:

Now that I think about it, I wouldn't say that her cush is any smaller than either of the other two girls.

How often do you AI your flock? Do you have to gather from the Rooster for each hen or do you get enough to inseminate several girls from each 'session'?

I've seen the U-Tube video on collection and insemination ~ where the rooster is stroked until he ejaculates and pipettes are used to collect the semen and inseminate the hen ~ is that the method you use?

I really am trying to let my chickens lead as 'natural' a life as possible. Each breeding group (I have 3) has a large pen and access to outside during the warm months (I'm in MN.). My biggest group is a rooster and 7 hens and they're in a 12 X 10 stall with a door that opens to a fenced in paddock.