Serama chicks and their weights at a month old

[Ladybird CA]

They were brooded in there, it’s 32 gallons. When my 6 by 20 coop arrives next week I’ll try to integrate them and my old English chicks who are in the shed with my 6 bantam hens but their eglu cube is too small to keep everyone in there.

 

[Noellereagan]

They were brooded in there, it’s 32 gallons. When my 6 by 20 coop arrives next week I’ll try to integrate them and my old English chicks who are in the shed with my 6 bantam hens but their eglu cube is too small to keep everyone in there.

Serama tolerate confinement very well. They're plenty fine in a 32 gallon for now. I have up to three chicks in a ten gallon until three weeks old. Then they move to a 30 gallon. Then into a Guinea pig cage. So they're just fine where they're at for now. Looks like you take them out often anyway. Pretty birds. The one you could pass off as an exchequer at an in cage show. And that's an accepted variety in smooth or Frizzled. I'm the Wisconsin state director for the Serama Council of North America and the president of The Serama Club of Wisconsin. Where are you located ?

 

[Noellereagan]

Serama tolerate confinement very well. They're plenty fine in a 32 gallon for now. I have up to three chicks in a ten gallon until three weeks old. Then they move to a 30 gallon. Then into a Guinea pig cage. So they're just fine where they're at for now. Looks like you take them out often anyway. Pretty birds. The one you could pass off as an exchequer at an in cage show. And that's an accepted variety in smooth or Frizzled. I'm the Wisconsin state director for the Serama Council of North America and the president of The Serama Club of Wisconsin. Where are you located ?

I see, Canada. I was hoping you were close and could take part in our show!

 

[Ladybird CA]

Yeah, darn. Wisconsin is about 14 hours from here. I’ve heard of people taking their birds to shows in the states and vice versa but I wonder what the health requirements would be. I’m going to the states on Friday but flying to California. I’ve seen pictures of exchequer leghorns but can’t tell the difference between exchequer and mottled or is it just a a different name for the same colour like lavender and self blue?

The unrelated pair are still in the 32 gallon until Wednesday. They’ve met the other 4 bantams when I let them out while in the yard but the pair were with them and the other 3 serama pullets for about an hour before I put the pair back in the tank. The seramas are still scared of the other bantams and slept in the run yesterday but today they went in the coop. I’m not yet sure if the frizzled pullets will be able to roost on the lowest perch so for now they’re sleeping on the floor of the coop. My husband took these pictures…he probably forgot to zoom in so the seramas just look like a blob.

 

[Noellereagan]

Yeah, darn. Wisconsin is about 14 hours from here. I’ve heard of people taking their birds to shows in the states and vice versa but I wonder what the health requirements would be. I’m going to the states on Friday but flying to California. I’ve seen pictures of exchequer leghorns but can’t tell the difference between exchequer and mottled or is it just a a different name for the same colour like lavender and self blue?

The unrelated pair are still in the 32 gallon until Wednesday. They’ve met the other 4 bantams when I let them out while in the yard but the pair were with them and the other 3 serama pullets for about an hour before I put the pair back in the tank. The seramas are still scared of the other bantams and slept in the run yesterday but today they went in the coop. I’m not yet sure if the frizzled pullets will be able to roost on the lowest perch so for now they’re sleeping on the floor of the coop. My husband took these pictures…he probably forgot to zoom in so the seramas just look like a blob.View attachment 3548923
View attachment 3548924

They are precious!
So when you think of exchequer leghorns, ideally, that would be the 60/40 white/ black distribution of colors. And all feathers would be white or black. Not both colors on the same feather. But the breed is a baby breed, so to speak. we are so new. So we are still perfecting type and such. And trying to get uniform judging based on the SOP. So the color thing is far from ideal. Technically most Serama shown as exchequer are mottled. But they're close enough for now. Hopefully, with time, a breeder will perfect them. I don't breed exchequer but I do breed mottled. But mine are mostly black with a little white. So they wouldn't work.

I'm not sure about what the health requirements would be for coming to the states from Canada. I'm a state licensed pullorum tester for our NPIP but I think you'd need a vet certificate and likely quarantine? I think it may be seen as importation but I can't be sure. I show all over the states and some states have certain requirements to even pass through that others don't have. So I think it all depends. Do you have an ag contact? Maybe they'd know. I know personally, I've driven as far as 21 hours one way to a show. We sure would love to have you!!!

 

[Ladybird CA]

Wow, 21 hours! Have you been to a tabletop show?

I had booked my vacation for October last year to go to a show in Ontario but it cancelled due to bird flu. My next two vacations are to go to weddings so it might be a few years until I can go to a show.

Maybe when my son is older and can tolerate longer car rides I’ll look into showing in the states. I suppose the nearest fair would be a good start for me

 

[Ladybird CA]

I was going to update this thread yesterday but I’m sick. Also upset that I lost the cheque I got from the auction. Then I tried to convince myself I have 3 months til it expires and my husband said that’s in the states, in Canada it’s 6 months. So hopefully I’ll come across it within 6 months. Or if I go the next auction maybe the auction owners will accept $5 to write me another cheque. But at the last one I thought I would have the courage/time/energy to make an auction box (box with square cut out, zip ties and duct tape) but ended up selling the 9 old English with the crate. I saw a pair of ducklings sell with such a box for just $3 which is sad.

Anyway on the 5th of July I put food gel colouring in my 3 bantam Cochins’ vents. Blue for the white cochin, green for mottled and red for buff. I read online that it will last for about 5 days. So far this is true for the white and buff cochin and it was for the mottled on the 5th until today. Luckily I’m off school and work today and this morning I saw the buff cochin sitting in the first nest and the mottled in the second. I just checked now while they are in the run and there is an egg with red streaks in the first nest. In the second the white cochin is sitting in it. I lifted her up and saw one egg. I’m glad I did because there are no more green streaks on the mottled cochin’s egg like the other days. Today it is a very faint light green, even yellow. I also had the choice to use yellow but decided not to as it is the lightest of the 4 colours. The white Cochin’s egg should have blue on it and I will continue to collect eggs until I can’t tell which hen laid which egg. I must’ve used 2 drops on the white and buff cochins and one for the mottled. I cracked 2 eggs from before I put food gel and one looked fertile and one didn’t. The only rooster I have is the 13 week old serama cockerel. My old English was able to fertilize eggs at that egg and serama mature faster with pullets possibly laying eggs at 4 months. I don’t want to hatch pullet eggs so probably won’t set the blue serama pullet’s eggs until next year. It’s almost like the cockerel knows the other pullets are his sisters because I’ve only seen him attempt to mate the blue pullet. Yesterday he did a courting dance with Snowball the white cochin and she pecked him so I don’t know if any of these eggs are fertile.

Today, yesterday, the 6th, the 5th white cochin egg and the Easter egger’s egg from the 4th. She hasn’t laid any eggs since then.

 

[Tonyroo]

Your white cochin looks to have an infection in her right eye.

 

[Ladybird CA]

She’s blind in that eye, the breeder says she got her from another breeder who said it may have been a dog attack. I hatched 2 chicks from her in 2020 when I first got her which turned out to be a white rooster and barred hen. My friend informed me about a month ago that the rooster was killed by a fox protecting his hens. The hen she gave away along with her other chickens because she had a baby and that hen was also eating eggs.

 

[Ladybird CA]

No egg from the white cochin yet and I found her sharing a nest with the Easter Egger Katie. She probably didn’t like that I picked her up to get Molly the mottled’s egg. I put her back in the other nest.