Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Shadrach]

Which one is the fourth, was it another generation ? Will you have to re-home all three ? That would be too bad ! Even though you can't keep all with Paprika / Svenka's chicks.

I'm thinking I have two boys. The smaller chick (it's growing up, but very slowly) looks like a twin of the bigger one that's definitely a cockerel. It also has big feet .

The farmer we got the eggs from, Gaston, had a broody that hatched 11 chicks a week before Chipie and Eve. Unfortunately a fox got to them last Friday and only 2 survived. It must have been famished, because it went through three collies and a retired Anatolian Lgd. However it didn't get away fast enough and Gaston shot it. Long story to say he will probably take one boy or two from us since he has almost no chicks left.

My Uncle used to say that one should feed the wildlife if one kept free range chickens. There may be some sense in this.

 

[ManueB]

My Uncle used to say that one should feed the wildlife if one kept free range chickens. There may be some sense in this.

I don't know if it would work but I love the idea. Reminds me of folklore tales : leave an offering to gain some creature's good will like the small folk or the domovoi.
Do you think if I leave some lettuce for the roe deers they will cease eating down all the vegetables in my garden ?

 

[RoyalChick]

I don't know if it would work but I love the idea. Reminds me of folklore tales : leave an offering to gain some creature's good will like the small folk or the domovoi.
Do you think if I leave some lettuce for the roe deers they will cease eating down all the vegetables in my garden ?

In my experience deer are completely without corruption - you can try bribing them all you want and they will still eat your garden!

 

[Iluveggers]

the melamine added to infant formula in China some years back was; as I recall it was added to boost the apparent protein values.

The hospitals here in the US really push formula if a baby isn’t gaining “quick enough” or latching on to mom with ease. I spent 3 days fighting with all but 1 nurse so I could keep DS next to me and they wouldn’t sneak a pacifier or sugar water to mess up the difficulty I was having getting him started feeding. Pediatrician will also recommend “supplementing formula” if weight isn’t significant early, which makes a baby lazy and less likely to want to eat from mom. Very frustrating but DS made it 13 months no formula. Lots of money to be made in the infant formula industry…

 

[Perris]

Which one is the fourth, was it another generation ? Will you have to re-home all three ?

It's one of Paprika's clutch that's the 4 th gen, though the home grown one of the 3 photo'd is 3rd gen (the red/brown one). I'll play it by ear on the rehoming. They say to not count chickens before they've hatched, and I've learned not to count chicks as (grown up) chickens until they are actually fully grown. A fair few pass en route, sadly.

Do you think if I leave some lettuce for the roe deers they will cease eating down all the vegetables in my garden ?

nice try, but no

 

[micstrachan]

The Legbars are not daily layers, but the rest lay most days. It will tail off in a couple of months I expect. Given there is nothing I can do about the RSL high productivity rate, selling the eggs seems a good option for helping to pay for the costs of keeping them.
I've allowed £50 per month from my own money, eggs or not. Most hobbies probably cost a lot more per month. My allotment patch came free as does some fruit and veg donated by some of the other plot holders, including C.
When one considers how much I enjoy the chickens and the allotments in general, it seems like a bargain.
It's taken a while. For the first few months I didn't get anything back, not even cooperation. Things have improved as they have a tendency to do if one is persistant with a task.
The possible down side is the chickens have gone from being the allotment chickens to Bucket Boy's chickens and with that comes the responsibility for their welfare.

I think if’s all fabulous, Shad. You are doing such wonders with them.

Flash, the Legbar here, is the most consistent layer. Egg yolk peritonitis took Margo, the Brown Leghorn, and I suspect it eventually got Dorothy, the California White (3/4 White Leghorn, 1/4 Barred Rock). I hope it doesn’t get Flash. She is built and moves like a Leghorn, though I think Leghorn is supposed to comprise less than 1/2 of her genetics. Interesting that she seems to be more Leghorn-like than the Legbars at the allotments or RC’s Palace.

 

[micstrachan]

tax for plastic trash:
View attachment 3178049

He’s gorgeous. Do the spangled feathers on his chest come from Speckled Sussex?

 

[fuentemoon]

Do you think if I leave some lettuce for the roe deers they will cease eating down all the vegetables in my garden ?

It sometimes works to distract slugs/snails but not deer. When i had a deer issue i planted 3 times what i wanted especially of the things they liked most. I had a fenced garden area and an unfenced deer area. Wasn't perfect but helped.

Broody Rosie having a good stretch

 

[micstrachan]

In my experience deer are completely without corruption - you can try bribing them all you want and they will still eat your garden!

Yes, they will even sample the “deer safe” plants. Ask me how I know.

 

[Perris]

He’s gorgeous. Do the spangled feathers on his chest come from Speckled Sussex?

Indeed he is. He's a Swedish Flower, so I don't think there's any connection with Sussex of any variety, but I haven't yet got my head round chicken genetics, so maybe it's the same gene expressing independently in them both.