Pastoral Poultry, Traditional Farming For A Modern Era

[centrarchid]

This has been on my wish list of things to try. I have three ponds on my property, two of which would be suitable for duckweed cultivation. Are you feeding fresh or drying and adding to the feed ration?

I am an aquaculturist by profession. Duckweed does best in full sun with lots of nutrients (N and P) and with minimal current. The 50% crude protein is on a dry weight basis, not wet weight. You will have to dry it down a lot and by live weight, it is close to 90% moisture.

 

[SJ]

I am feeding it fresh. With all the run off that gets in the creek there is plenty of N&P. Plus the limestone bedrock puts plenty of minerals in the water. I'll spare you all my feelings on mega dairies and water quality in Dodge county Wisconsin. Just look up when was the time we passed a EPA water quality assessment. When I said "all over", duckweed covers the surface of the water by august. 90% water would explain the fecal consistency and the decreased water intake. I am goin to try to sun dry it on different fabrics this fall and see what works and what doesnt.

The buffalo clover is blooming right now and the blossoms must hold necter in morning or something because the birds will peck at them early in the day but not later.Spoiled birds...? My birds are working the pasture of alfalfa and oats pretty hard eachday and by the grasshoppers you would never know anything is eating them daily.
The hatchery delawares are starting to crow. Weights at 12 weeks were averaging 4 lbs with the biggest at 4 1/2lbs. Not great...not shaby. I will be weighing again this week.
It has been cooler for the last two weeks which I am hoping has increased the foraging.(Read as high hopes on weight gains.)Lol
I still got a predator issue but no losses in two weeks.Thank God!
My muscovy ducklings are a month old and fledging.
A pumpkin has taken over my entire garden. My birds love pumpkin seeds come fall. I hear the seeds will deworm birds if fed a certain way. Anyone else know about deworming with pumpkin seed?
The chicory is starting to bloom around here. I often wonder how to get a useable feed stuff from chicory for winter. Does anyone do this already?

 

[SJ]

Bonus!!! I got a snails all over the duck weed. Free calcium and protein.

The alfalfa field behind the house got cut today so the grass hoppers have no where to hide. MWAHHAHAHA!!!!

My Delaware broilers ate themselves into food comas. It looked like me after Thanksgiving dinner.LOL

It is days like this that make me scratch my head and wonder how we ever got to a poultry production model where we put thousands of birds in a flouresent lit shed where they never feel a blade of grass touch their feet. I feel there is just something fundamentally wrong with that picture.

There are few things more gratifying than watching your spring chicks having grown into young pullets and cockerels getting fat as they gorge on grasshoppers under the August sky until they can barely walk. I take their satifaction as my own in this moment and know I have done well in my part as poultry owner and farm. Where have you found fufillment lately from raising poultry in a traditional manner?

 

[centrarchid]

They must actually get benefits from eating all that stuff. Snails can be problematic with respect to parasites they harbor. Such parasites normally go for aquatic species more strongly associated with aquatic environments.

Watch them closely for changes in weight if possible. Some very tasty but otherwise inferior feeds can be consumed with gusto yet weight drops and egg production does not do as well. Also watch for wanky flavor in eggs.

As for grasshoppers being easier to catch after mowing, that is not always a good thing since chickens will consume more than needed for optimally balanced diet resulting in short-term bounty leading to long-term loss of grasshoppers. I now cut trails where birds can hunt very effectively but allow adequate refuge for grasshoppers and other insects to maintain their numbers as needed for reproduction and providing eats later in season.

 

[SJ]

They must actually get benefits from eating all that stuff. Snails can be problematic with respect to parasites they harbor. Such parasites normally go for aquatic species more strongly associated with aquatic environments.

Watch them closely for changes in weight if possible. Some very tasty but otherwise inferior feeds can be consumed with gusto yet weight drops and egg production does not do as well. Also watch for wanky flavor in eggs.

As for grasshoppers being easier to catch after mowing, that is not always a good thing since chickens will consume more than needed for optimally balanced diet resulting in short-term bounty leading to long-term loss of grasshoppers. I now cut trails where birds can hunt very effectively but allow adequate refuge for grasshoppers and other insects to maintain their numbers as needed for reproduction and providing eats later in season.

All valid points. I really like the trail idea too.
Over grazing will cause a ripple effect in an environment that has unpredictable consequences. Fortunetley I only have 36 birds on 17 acres of cut alfalfa. So even if they can't hide they sure can hop or fly to safety. Plus the birds are too lazy to venture over the whole 17 acres and stay pretty close to the tree line. There are sure to be plenty of grasshoppers that survive to make more next year. Plus the refuge of the canary grass and marsh that follows the creek will house a few thousand hoppers One last thing is the broilers only got until Monday.

Shsh, dont tell them.
As for snails being carriers of parasites. Well I got two thoughts on that. One is that free ranging chickens are going to be exposed to parasites some way or another be it in the dirt they roll in or the stuff the eat while foraging. Two is an echo of what you said, pay attention to your flock and keep records. l will be tasting my eggs a bit more now that you mentioned it tho.The eggs or lack of will tell you alot about what the general health of your flock is. Also scat is a great indicator of any animal's well being. I'll be watching as always for any signs of illness.

 

[Bill Matthews]

TO SJ or centrachid....You guys seem to know something about parasites, etc; so can you tell me if there are any parasites that are commonly passed from poultry to humans...As I get older and see and read about new illnesses I worry about things that ten years ago I had no concern about.....There was until recently a program on a cable channel that featured nothing except scary tales about weird parasites and worms in a medical setting....The flesh eating diseases' stories first caught my attention....I really enjoy this thread but wish more people would follow it...Thanks bayocum for the tip on the book "Epitaph for A Peach"...Haven't had a chance to order it yet...But will...Take Care and Thanks Everyone...

 

[bayocum]

Hi All,
We have been having a great time this year thinking of all the ways we can work to create a strain of birds that will have top-shelf meat qualities, productive laying capabilities, and be able to thrive in our hot summers and cold winters. We have our purebred varieties that we are also working to improve: Buckeyes, American Bresse, Sussex, Bielefelders, German New Hampshires and Marans...to name a few; but thinking of ways to combine the the qualities of some of these birds to create something fresh in this area has been an amusing venture. Currently we are working with our Buckeyes and Basque Hens. The BH's are fantastic foragers, excellent layers, and seem to thrive in our climate, likely due to their Mediterranean heritage. That said, the hens are delightful but the roosters have all been "right pains in the butt," or the ankle as it were. Our Buckeyes are wonderful birds. Their frames are excellent for supporting a nice carcass, one of our lines is great for eggs, and our mature rooster is hands down the best rooster we've ever had. He's diligent in his work, but not overbearing, and he is friendly to us (eating out of our hand) while still being protective of his ladies. He will also allow cockerels to be in the same pen, but wont tolerate their "carnal desires" with his girls, if you get the drift. This cross has resulted in some beautiful birds. We've had barred males (think Barred Rock) with single combs, light red hens with pea combs, and crele-colored roos/hens with pea combs (these are striking). The barred males are quite chunky. The creles are tall and full like the Buckeye. We will work with these for awhile and see what we can do to reach our goals for a high-vigor, egg and table bird suited to California central valley weather. What about you all, any of you have a "secret recipe" for the perfect homestead bird that you are interested in sharing?
-Brice

 

[centrarchid]

American Dominique by American Game. Cross and subsequent selection process is planned to take at least 20 years. Games put on muscle mass very well but are lacking in the frame department.

 

[bayocum]

Centrarchid,
What are you hoping to gain from the Dominique? What is your goal overall?

 

[centrarchid]

Centrarchid,
What are you hoping to gain from the Dominique? What is your goal overall?

Dominique has a larger carcass than games. It is simply a long-term hobby to develop my own line (one of two actually with other being pure Dominique) that meets the SOP for American Dominique and performs well in a free-range setting as best I understand that setting when the breed was originally developed. It is also a training setup for my kids and helps me "keep it real" with respect to extensive and diversified food production. And its fun.