Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Ribh]

I love them. Easy going, great foragers and predator aware. Sven is a wonderful roo. But Venka's never gone broody (and she's 4 now) and her son Chirk is her only surviving offspring to date; a daughter died without warning after a very good first 18 months, cause unknown. V lays ivory coloured eggs, about 65g, about 150 per year. Which is very respectable I think. And they are real eye candy, her as well as the boys; it's always a pleasure to see them in the garden.

Definitely eye candy! I love eye candy!

 

[Ribh]

Lima has learn't how to dig. Sounds strange I know but the Ex Batts scratch the ground and move on if nothing interesting appears. I know it's not much of a hole but she kept at it and got rewarded by some tiny roots which she ate.
Matilda who does dig noticed Lima had found something interesting and took over. Matilda is senior to Lima.
There are now two diggers in the Ex Batts. Dusk started to dig rather than scratch last week but I haven't been quick enough to get a picture of her doing it yet.
View attachment 2934984

View attachment 2934985

Shad, I can't remember from my lot, but do battery's do anything with chicken toe nails? Just wondering if that's why they don't dig @ first? If they don't have nice strong nails any sort of digging would be difficult.

 

[Windrider]

Henry is such an impressive rooster. Look at the size of him next to the hens! I've always liked the look of the light Sussex.

Good to hear that some of the rescues are learning about digging. Although if they all learn to dig as well as Matilda, that allotment is going to look like lunar craters.

 

[Shadrach]

Shad, I can't remember from my lot, but do battery's do anything with chicken toe nails? Just wondering if that's why they don't dig @ first? If they don't have nice strong nails any sort of digging would be difficult.

Their nails are there and the right shape. I think in part it's they don't have the leg strength. In the coop run there is nothing to encourage them to dig. That all changes in the allotment run. The Ex Batts just don't, or haven't had until recently the overall strength, partly because they are/were underweight but I believe it's mostly due to lack of an environment that encourages vigerous excercise. In the allotament run they have space to run thirty metres and bit by bit I see more of them using their wings to travel quickly.

 

[Shadrach]

Henry is such an impressive rooster. Look at the size of him next to the hens! I've always liked the look of the light Sussex.

Good to hear that some of the rescues are learning about digging. Although if they all learn to dig as well as Matilda, that allotment is going to look like lunar craters.

It would be well worth it imo.

 

[Ribh]

Their nails are there and the right shape. I think in part it's they don't have the leg strength. In the coop run there is nothing to encourage them to dig. That all changes in the allotment run. The Ex Batts just don't, or haven't had until recently the overall strength, partly because they are/were underweight but I believe it's mostly due to lack of an environment that encourages vigerous excercise. In the allotament run they have space to run thirty metres and bit by bit I see more of them using their wings to travel quickly.

That makes sense. I mean even my short legged Japs & little feather dusters dig vigorously.

 

[MaryJanet]

Lima has learn't how to dig. Sounds strange I know but the Ex Batts scratch the ground and move on if nothing interesting appears. I know it's not much of a hole but she kept at it and got rewarded by some tiny roots which she ate.
Matilda who does dig noticed Lima had found something interesting and took over. Matilda is senior to Lima.
There are now two diggers in the Ex Batts. Dusk started to dig rather than scratch last week but I haven't been quick enough to get a picture of her doing it yet.
View attachment 2934984

View attachment 2934985

In addition to their interests changing, I'd guess their digging muscles are gradually becoming stronger too.

 

[MaryJanet]

Their nails are there and the right shape. I think in part it's they don't have the leg strength. In the coop run there is nothing to encourage them to dig. That all changes in the allotment run. The Ex Batts just don't, or haven't had until recently the overall strength, partly because they are/were underweight but I believe it's mostly due to lack of an environment that encourages vigerous excercise. In the allotament run they have space to run thirty metres and bit by bit I see more of them using their wings to travel quickly.

In addition to their interests changing, I'd guess their digging muscles are gradually becoming stronger too.

I should've read ahead

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I love them. Easy going, great foragers and predator aware. Sven is a wonderful roo. But Venka's never gone broody (and she's 4 now) and her son Chirk is her only surviving offspring to date; a daughter died without warning after a very good first 18 months, cause unknown. V lays ivory coloured eggs, about 65g, about 150 per year. Which is very respectable I think. And they are real eye candy, her as well as the boys; it's always a pleasure to see them in the garden.

Do you have the gold or silver variety. Debating getting one or two for my mixed flock to start getting that awareness back into their bloodlines (some wouldn't know a hawk from a rock unfortunately in this flock)

Here's some Westeros tax, decided to sunbathe in a snow free part of the barn

His son and daughter are in the right bottom corner waiting to see if he'll let them join

 

[Perris]

Do you have the gold or silver variety.

are you after campines (which come in gold or silver varieties) or SFH (which lack a recognized standard, though they're trying to preserve existing lines in Sweden)? If the former I can't answer; if the latter, the only appearance most of them have in common is the white tips or spots on the feathers, and that feature becomes apparent over time in muted form in their hybrid offspring, whether the base colour is black or brown and the skin colour white or yellow.