Raising Swedish Hedemora on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia

[Offshoreorca]

Chick #1 Lavender Wooly "Freki" (Pullet?) - One of pair of wolves that accompany Odin in Norse mythology, name meaning covetous or avaricious

Chick #2 Lavender Wooly "Geri" (Cockerel?) - The second of the pair of wolves that accompany Odin in Norse mythology, name meaning greedy

Chick #3 White Wooly "Freya" (Pullet?) - Norse Goddess of Love, Fertility, and Battle

Chick #4 White Wooly "Freyr" (Cockerel) - Norse God of Fertility

Chick #5 Black/Grey Smooth "Frigga" (Pullet?) - Norse Goddess of Marriage and Motherhood

Chick #6 Brown Smooth "Thor" (Cockerel) - Norse God of Thunder and Battle, named for his orange/reddish colouration

 

[Tonyroo]

They look like there doing well. Are you going to start a breeding program with these chicks? Maybe other people in your region would like to acquire them.

 

[Tonyroo]

I seriously considered this breed, when I started with a chicken flock but chose Swedish Flower hen.

 

[Offshoreorca]

They look like there doing well. Are you going to start a breeding program with these chicks? Maybe other people in your region would like to acquire them.

I seriously considered this breed, when I started with a chicken flock but chose Swedish Flower hen.

I will probably keep a small flock - a cockerel and as many pullets as I have from this hatch (and perhaps a second hatch down the road). I'm certainly interest in the conservation of Swedish Hedemora, so will be breeding them in the future for sure.

 

[N F C]

Chick #1 Lavender Wooly "Freki" (Pullet?) - One of pair of wolves that accompany Odin in Norse mythology, name meaning covetous or avaricious

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Chick #2 Lavender Wooly "Geri" (Cockerel?) - The second of the pair of wolves that accompany Odin in Norse mythology, name meaning greedy

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Chick #3 White Wooly "Freya" (Pullet?) - Norse Goddess of Love, Fertility, and Battle

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Chick #4 White Wooly "Freyr" (Cockerel) - Norse God of Fertility

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Chick #5 Black/Grey Smooth "Frigga" (Pullet?) - Norse Goddess of Marriage and Motherhood

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Chick #6 Brown Smooth "Thor" (Cockerel) - Norse God of Thunder and Battle, named for his orange/reddish colouration

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Such pretty birds, they look like they're doing great!

 

[Offshoreorca]

Such pretty birds, they look like they're doing great!

Thanks I love the array of colours and other differences from this landrace - the lavender fibro ones have a bit of a spooky look with those dark pooling eyes. Perfect for this time of year!

 

[Finnie]

I once had some Swedish Flower Hens named Freki and Freya!

You might want to consider keeping both (all) cockerels. Murphy’s Law says that if you don’t have a backup rooster, something will happen to the one you do have. Besides, if you have more than one to choose from, you can breed with the best one, instead of not having a choice.

 

[Offshoreorca]

I once had some Swedish Flower Hens named Freki and Freya!

You might want to consider keeping both (all) cockerels. Murphy’s Law says that if you don’t have a backup rooster, something will happen to the one you do have. Besides, if you have more than one to choose from, you can breed with the best one, instead of not having a choice.

Oh nice!

And yes, I will definitely be keeping the cockerels for a while as I want to see them mature. I've (fingers crossed) never lost a cockerel/rooster yet and just have to watch the hen/rooster ratio when my flock is together in the winter - as they are confined to the coop and run during the worst of the weather, but I'll gladly keep two if they are well behaved and fit in with the flock!

I currently have about 30 chickens, with a Blue Cochin Rooster (he's 5 years old already), Black Copper Marans Rooster (1.5 yrs), Wheaten Ameraucana Rooster (1.5 years), and have added the Swedish Hedemora and White Bresse this year. The young chicks aren't in my total chicken count, but I will be hopefully keeping a rooster from each (or two). The Bresse will probably be kept separately.

 

[Offshoreorca]

The "Almost 2 Months" Update!

Well, we're almost at the two month mark and I think we finally have some answers on what sexes these little ones are. They have grown a lot in the last couple of weeks and are starting to look a bit more like chickens.

Chick #1 Lavender Wooly "Freki" (Pullet)

Chick #2 Lavender Wooly "Geri" (Pullet?)

Chick #3 White Wooly "Freya" (Pullet)

Chick #4 White Wooly "Freyr" (Cockerel)

Chick #5 Black/Grey Smooth "Frigga" (Cockerel)

Chick #6 Brown Smooth "Thor" (Cockerel)

 

[Tonyroo]

There growing up nice.