Polish Thread!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Sylvester017]

I had to get ride of my single polish because the other girls were picking on her too much. I'm so heartbroken.

My formula for mixing breeds with Polish: Polish are non-combative and lightweight so I would only mix non-combative breeds together like Polish, Sultan, Silkie, Araucana, Ameraucana, Easter Egger, Breda, Cochin, Faverolles, Dominique, and Houdan. These non-combative breeds would rather flee than fight and are not aggressive bullies. Sussex, Brahma, and Jersey Giants are supposedly gentle giants but because of their enormous girth I would not mix them with the lighterweight gentle breeds. Even if a giant is gentle it will still be tempted to bully a smaller bird just because it can - it's a chicken thing!

Putting Polish or even EEs in a mixed heavier dual-purpose flock of assertive breeds is asking for the aggressive breeds to pick on the gentler smaller breeds. There are also some lightweight breeds that are wilder in temperament (i.e. Buttercups, Jaerhons, Fayoumi, Campine, Mediterranean class breeds like Legs, Ancona, etc) and would not mix well with non-combative breeds either.

Most breeds mix well together as chicks but as early as juveniles the aggressive breeds can show signs of aggression on the gentler non-combative breeds. We were lucky to have one White Leghorn that was gentle in the flock for 3 years and then suddenly went ballistic on the gentler flockmates. Another Buff Leghorn went cannibalistic at one year toward the gentler smaller breeds. Both had to be re-homed to halt bullying. One Marans clawed viciously at 18 months old and also had to be re-homed immediately. A colorful egg basket is no longer as important to us as having a non-combative flock. Currently pecking order status is a much subtler occurrence between our remaining gentle breeds.

 

[FoxholeFarm]

[COLOR=0000FF]My formula for mixing breeds with Polish:[/COLOR]  Polish are non-combative and lightweight so I would only mix non-combative breeds together like Polish, Sultan, Silkie, Araucana, Ameraucana, Easter Egger, Breda, Cochin, Faverolles, Dominique, and Houdan.  These non-combative breeds would rather flee than fight and are not aggressive bullies.  Sussex, Brahma, and Jersey Giants are supposedly gentle giants but because of their enormous girth I would not mix them with the lighterweight gentle breeds.  Even if a giant is gentle it will still be tempted to bully a smaller bird just because it can - it's a chicken thing!

Putting Polish or even EEs in a mixed heavier dual-purpose flock of assertive breeds is asking for the aggressive breeds to pick on the gentler smaller breeds.  There are also some lightweight breeds that are wilder in temperament (i.e. Buttercups, Jaerhons, Fayoumi, Campine, Mediterranean class breeds like Legs, Ancona, etc) and would not mix well with non-combative breeds either.

Most breeds mix well together as chicks but as early as juveniles the aggressive breeds can show signs of aggression on the gentler non-combative breeds.  We were lucky to have one White Leghorn that was gentle in the flock for 3 years and then suddenly went ballistic on the gentler flockmates.  Another Buff Leghorn went cannibalistic at one year toward the gentler smaller breeds.  Both had to be re-homed to halt bullying.  One Marans clawed viciously at 18 months old and also had to be re-homed immediately.  A colorful egg basket is no longer as important to us as having a non-combative flock.  Currently pecking order status is a much subtler occurrence between our remaining gentle breeds.

I'm seeing this issue as well. My Orpington is two or more times the size of Ny other bird in my flock, and she has taken some ugly chunks out of my smaller, more docile birds. In particular, my bantams are suffering. I'm at the point where my only options to remove her from the flock. :[

 

[AmyP716]

Thanks polishmom for the info on spangling. They do have some. Those feathers are just starting to grow in now.

 

[Sylvester017]

I'm seeing this issue as well. My Orpington is two or more times the size of Ny other bird in my flock, and she has taken some ugly chunks out of my smaller, more docile birds. In particular, my bantams are suffering. I'm at the point where my only options to remove her from the flock. :[

Orps are sweet birds in an evenly matched flock of dual purpose but our friend's Orp is bossy to smaller breeds. The Orp is loved but she definitely is not a shrinking violet and will push her weight around. I watched a youtube video of a pen with some Buff Orp and White Leghorn chicks and a couple of little ducklings. The Orp chicks were busy running around the pen disturbing the White Legs who were minding their own business foraging and kept pecking at the snoozing ducklings. Orps are definitely dominant personalities as most dual-purpose and Mediterranean class breeds are. I love all chickens but have to do my research before mixing non-combative or bantams with assertive heavier breeds. We ultimately decided not to have any breed over 5-lb and non-combative. There are some 3- or 4-lb breeds but we found most of them were wilder in temperament like Jaerhon, Campine, Braekel types, Fayoumi, etc. After much research and some experience we decided on the non-combative breeds per my Thread Post #1921 above.

 

[FoxholeFarm]

You are not giving me much hope here... Not at all what I wanted to hear! I wanted a happy ending where the Orpington realised the repercussions of her evil ways and finally understands the true meaning of christmas and brought presents for tiny polish Tim on Christmas day!

...or something like that.

Bummer. My EE birds are totally mellow with the banties as is my barnevelder. I think my orp is insecure because shes the bottom of the big birds and is trying to stay above the little ones. She just lost a rank to my banty cochin who got really defensive after hatching her chick and has been pecking back when she or her baby gets bullied. I'm very proud of that little hen for being such a confident momma her first time, but it only removed one from the pool of 6 beaten up bantams, which includes my polish.

 

[Sylvester017]

You are not giving me much hope here... Not at all what I wanted to hear! I wanted a happy ending where the Orpington realised the repercussions of her evil ways and finally understands the true meaning of christmas and brought presents for tiny polish Tim on Christmas day!

...or something like that.

Bummer. My EE birds are totally mellow with the banties as is my barnevelder. I think my orp is insecure because shes the bottom of the big birds and is trying to stay above the little ones. She just lost a rank to my banty cochin who got really defensive after hatching her chick and has been pecking back when she or her baby gets bullied. I'm very proud of that little hen for being such a confident momma her first time, but it only removed one from the pool of 6 beaten up bantams, which includes my polish.

Yeah - we never wanna hear one of our favourite hens has an issue. We certainly didn't want to rehome two prolific egg-laying Leghorns or a dark-egg layer Marans but we can't abide a few hooligans at the expense of the whole flock - their behavior was not just pecking order squabbling but outright injurious and/or cannibalistic attacks on gentle breeds.

We too love our Ameraucana (my avatar) who is a relative of the non-APA EEs and both fowl are just as sweet as can be. I read on OurFlyBabies.com how they keep a Blue Wheaten Ameraucana flock because they willingly accept orphaned chicks or injured birds without incidents. That's proven by the Blue Wheaten Amer we have now - she is a kooky spooky jittery jumpy alert predator-savvy sweet girl and wish I had room for a whole flock of them - but they are very vocal - they love talking with anyone who lends them an ear! They are a jumpy breed but by no means unfriendly. They get along with flock and humans alike and allow petting, and sleep in your arms, and allow another hen's baby chicks to climb on them - just a real sweet natured bird.

I love watching Cochins and Silkies. Just really sweet birds and when they have a reason to defend themselves they don't know they only weigh 2-lbs! I have a Silkie that thinks she's Macho Man but if she had to fight a 9-lb dual purpose hen she'd lose so we don't keep anything heavier than 5-lb gentle breeds.

 

[nate1the1great1]

I free range ALL my animals and whenever i through feed out they fight over pecking order and sometimes when they are oustskde they'll play and jump at eachother and then walk away but my flock consists of OEGBS,japanese bantams, americauna bantams, polish,naked neck, silkies, americauna New Hampshire Red, SLW's, leghorns, sex links, and Dominique's so i have a big mix i have 40 in all but they don't ever hurt eachother accept my cow stepped on my leghorns foot and broke it and another one cut its comb and my New Hampshire got a cut earlobe so fun but mine never peck my polishes crown or my silkies!!

 

[FoxholeFarm]

Lucky birds!

Sadly I can't range mine because of my dog who thinks they are animated squeaky toys.

 

[polishmom1744]

Thanks polishmom for the info on spangling. They do have some. Those feathers are just starting to grow in now.

You're welcome, So to answer your original question...since they have white, gold laced and spangling they are true to color, crests look good, body true to type, very promising.!! I thought they might have just started spangling...now the real show will begin! Congrats!

 

[polishmom1744]

Lucky birds!

Sadly I can't range mine because of my dog who thinks they are animated squeaky toys.

Ouch!!!

My dog tried that ...ONCE....and never again!!!

I only had to make him drop it..I showed it to him..he sniffed it I tapped is nose (tapped not beat..let me make that clear.!!!!) and said ...NO..bad dog!!!..my chicken..I repeated that and the second time he thought about it but didn't go for it..No tap... third time not so much as sniff & he never touched another bird and he even helps us herd up the ones that don't wanna go in at night ! I'm sure it has to do with his breed, he is a Chihuahua/Corgi mix, I had a Lab/Pyrenees that was worse then the cleverest coon...@ 4 months old he got re-home with a duck hunter...who trained him and swears he's the best bird dog ever! Not suggesting you get rid of your dog just saying you can sometimes train them not to harm birds or use it as advantage in a different environment.