Serama people - would like info

[rhodiegal]

I have an empty coop that used to house peafowl and I was trying to get something different to put in it. I have been reading about Serama's and would like any input from those who have them. We have 3 kids who love our laying chickens and a large coop with shed to keep them in.

Are they friendly and good for kids? We live in Georgia and the winters stay mostly in 30's and 40's - but sometimes dip into 20's. Are they ok in a normal chicken house? Any info on personality would be great.

Lastly - they are not easy to find. I found some in Georgia in our farmers bulletin, but we would have to drive aways. The ones online are super expensive - even the pet versions (not interested in a $50 pet version that is an egg eater!).

Any info appreciated.

 

[Cuban Longtails]

They are tiny birds. They do not require a lot of food or space. They make easy prey as they are no larger than a 6 - 8 week old chick.

The reason they are hard to find is because they are, in my opinion, hard to hatch/raise. Mine were hatched and raised by a bantam hen. I bought hatching eggs from a byc member who advertised them. He sent several and because shipping is hard them, only a handfull hatched.

Some folks have success hatching them in incubators, but I've yet to accomplish that.

 

[becky3086]

Where are you in Georgia? I really like the seramas that I have. I bought my eggs from ebay. I ended up with 40 of them and hatched out 4, however, when I tested my own eggs, I got 3 out of 3 and I incubated them in an incubator. I tried letting the seramas hatch the next batch but they scrambled the eggs. Waiting for them to lay again, so far just one egg which is in the bator. I have not had mine over the winter here so can't tell you how they did.
Becky

 

[rhodiegal]

We are in the Dawsonville area of north Georgia. I don't think I would attempt to hatch them out since I have had miserable luck trying to hatch peafowl eggs in our incubator. I am having a hard time deciding between the Japanese bantams and Serama. The only predator I would worry about that would be able to get past our Great Pyrenees is a Rat snake. Once in a while I find them in my hen house, and being that these birds are such tiny things, I worry they could get swallowed easily by a snake.

 

[magsrags]

I have 1 black Serama and it is the friendliest little bugger. He hatched out all alone so "I" was his mom and had to almost hand feed him off my nail for a week before he got the right idea. Now I call him and he flies onto my hand and perches there like a parrot would. Comes when I call he/she as well. Gets along fine with his room mates the "sultans" too. They are younger than him but he is "little big man and rules the roost.

My brother has a handfull and gets a big kick out of them as well.
Housed properly yours would do fine in the winter I am sure from what websites devoted to them have to say.

 

[key west chick]

I'm in Gainesville and have had wonderful luck with mine. I did heat my pen a few nights last year with a propane heater cause its not enclosed but really think they could have done without it. I have a barred roo and a silkied roo and a few hens. I just lost my silkied hen to something the other night when she didnt come in with everyone else and slept under the stars. I do have 3 silkied babies right now of hers that she hatched a few weeks ago. If you are interested, when my other hen starts laying again, I can give you some eggs and you can try to hatch them. I've had good luck hatching my eggs in my incubator so far. I think its just shipped eggs that do so poorly. I feed mine regular layer pellets and some scratch, just like my big chickens. Babies eat normal chick starter.

 

[BluegrassSeramas]

Quote:
Seramas are super friendly and if not born tame, can easily be tamed with handling a couple of days. You kids would love them. They like to follow you around, and if you get one that is very small you have to be careful not to step on it, as they are always 'underfoot'. My 2 year old walks around after the roos and pics them up. They tolerate her very well. I have never had an aggressive serama rooster.

They are OK in a normal house, as long as there are no places big enough for them to get out. You will want to watch for snakes, and may build something solid and higher up for them to sleep in at night. They are small and easily picked up by predators, although a few of ours are free all the time, and have been fine.

The weather sounds great for Serama. We get into the negatives here in KY, and have to take a few measures to keep them from getting frostbite. If it were me, depending on where they came from and where they were kept, I would acclimate them to the outdoors and weather before the winter cooler months set in. They should be fine as long as they have shelter from wind and wet.

They are hard to find in good quality. Breeders that are working toward type have to breed and cull a lot and usually sell the good ones if they want the next 'breeder' to have quality birds. Some people get them and charge premium prices for what I call 'junk'. Familiarize yourself with the standard so you know what you are getting. I have shipped eggs a few times and my customers so far have had good hatch rates. I use a TON of bubble wrap. I have better luck using broodies to either hatch the chicks, or at least start them by sitting on the eggs for 10 days or so, then I switch them to the incubator. I am by no means an expert on incubators, but get decent hatches from my eggs. The problem I have is that some of my hens lay frequently and some do not. That means birds from certain pairs have great hens that do not lay as many eggs, and that means fewer chicks from them. The ones that turn out to have greater type, are more expensive, as I dont have as many from their parents. My birds have very short or no backs, and are small, and I have not had any problems with fertility.

Look at Ondra's Seramas webpage to see type.

 

[BoJo]

If you still have the available room, and not set on seramas....I live one mile outside of downtown Dawsonville, and have a few Chickens that need homes....Let me know!


BoJo