Pipd's Peeps!

[fluffycrow]

So great to hear he's back to normal

 

[2ndTink]

Yes! I'm glad he's doing ok now!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

I am as well! He's an old, old man at this point, a little over 10 years old, so I was afraid this might be the end for him. And now he's out free-ranging with the flock like nothing even happened. Crazy birds!

 

[2ndTink]

I am as well! He's an old, old man at this point, a little over 10 years old, so I was afraid this might be the end for him. And now he's out free-ranging with the flock like nothing even happened. Crazy birds!

He's over 10 years old!!! Wow! I hope I have some that live well that long I'm only 4 years in to having chickens.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Yeah, he's been around for a long, long time! I have his children and grandchildren in the flock as well. He's the second Silkie I ever owned. I even got him from another BYCer way back in 2015!

I was mistaken, though, he's not quite 10 yet. He will be 10 in October.

 

[fluffycrow]

Now that I have some good birds, I can't wait to see how long I'll have them! When I had production breeds, I can't remember having one live for more than 4 and a half years, if that. The oldest confirmed (I say confirmed because I got the brahma as fully mature adults, so they may be older than all of them, but I can't know for sure) birds here will turn three in a few months. They're already much healthier than the breeds I kept previously

 

[2ndTink]

Now that I have some good birds, I can't wait to see how long I'll have them! When I had production breeds, I can't remember having one live for more than 4 and a half years, if that. The oldest confirmed (I say confirmed because I got the brahma as fully mature adults, so they may be older than all of them, but I can't know for sure) birds here will turn three in a few months. They're already much healthier than the breeds I kept previously

I'm hoping I see the same with my new purebred layers from a breeder! My hatchery chickens haven't all seemed super robust. The Golden Comets all fizzled out early and one by one just passed. My original black astraulorps are 4 this spring and they are all doing great!

 

[fluffycrow]

Really hoping the best for your birds! Sad that you've already experienced some losses

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Now that I have some good birds, I can't wait to see how long I'll have them! When I had production breeds, I can't remember having one live for more than 4 and a half years, if that. The oldest confirmed (I say confirmed because I got the brahma as fully mature adults, so they may be older than all of them, but I can't know for sure) birds here will turn three in a few months. They're already much healthier than the breeds I kept previously

Yeah, with rare exceptions, my production birds all tended to die at around 2-3 years of age, usually to some horrible and incurable malady related to their high production. That's the reason I won't get those types of birds anymore. Too much heartbreak!

In my experience, both breeding for high production and inbreeding while working toward a standard can produce birds with shortened lifespans, though. So breeder birds are less likely to have those egg laying maladies because they're less bred for extreme production, but they can still end up with issues from the shallowness of the gene pool they come from due to selection for a standard. That's one reason why I chose a clan-style breeding setup for my Cochins, with the hopes that it would prevent an inbreeding depression and make the birds I produce a bit hardier. A good breeder should be taking into consideration the health of their birds as well, though, so unless it's a very rare breed where inbreeding is just an inherent issue and will continue being one until more people get involved and more flocks branch out away from the original ones, breeder birds tend to live longer and be hardier than production birds in my experience.

I'm hoping I see the same with my new purebred layers from a breeder! My hatchery chickens haven't all seemed super robust. The Golden Comets all fizzled out early and one by one just passed. My original black astraulorps are 4 this spring and they are all doing great!

Golden Comets are a high-production egg laying hybrid, so unfortunately are prone to fizzling out early. Sorry you had to go through that!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Oh, wanted to mention as well, Reuben is 100% back to normal. No further issues at all since yesterday morning.