Swedish Flower Hen Thread

[chickendeal]

well, my oldest are a week younger than that one roo I got from you. before the other 2 decided on the sex change...  then the next 3 are a few weeks younger.  I haven't sold ANY of your babies...  but you've gotten some of them back from me I think.  I think the first bunch and like the 3rd bunch you got from me...  well duh I should just look at my hatch log. LOL.

ok, you picked up a few assorted sfh/?? that hatched Feb. 9, including a dorking/?? something. the next 4 are my oldest (lost the one girl tho!) hatched march 5. then you had some shipped to me that you came and got too, the next bunch are my next youngest (the ones you met last weekend) hatched April 11th, then some more that hatched April 18, you picked up from me at the April swap. after that it's been the ones that went to Gilmanor, the next bunch you got at the may swap, and the last 1 to hatch came from the eggs you got at Gilmanor, now with orpingmomma (second round of babies so far this year...)

then, unfortunately you lost your roo juice supplier.

so currently I have 3 or 4 Gunnar roos and 2 girls, the 3 from Kimberly and 1 from...  whoever gave you the eggs at Gilmanor? k.i.forgot strikes again. LOL

did I confuse you too badly?  LOL

anyone need a Gunnar son? I've got 2 for sure that need homes.

both my girls from Kimberly are laying now, the roo seems to know his job, but I don't know that the girls have met up with him yet...  but thanks to a 'volunteer' broody, I know for sure they are fertile!  LOL  AND they're going in a pen after this weekend is over.

I would love a gunner roo but how to get it to missouri maybe overnight I would pay forsure

 

[ki4got]

so solve the problem and skip the long wait... give her a few chicks to mother.

I've discovered that some hens given babies will stop sitting and be good mothers, other girls try to act motherly but fail horribly, and others run screaming and start laying again within a week. LOL

my one 'good' momma, well great actually, is my buff orp. she's already on round 2 of chicks. she's got close to 30 right now. (again). assorted ages this time, not all new babies, and is once again doing a very good job. she'll get to go out in the pen once i'm done with this weekend's radio event (field day) and I have time to think clearly. LOL

a hen doesn't need to sit for a whole 21 days to be a good mother. orpingmomma sat for about 10 days the first time, and less than a week this time (if i'm remembering correctly). I don't trust a hen to incubate and not lose her nest or scramble them 'protecting' them from other girls, or whatever. tho one of my dorkings did the 'wild broody' pretty well, parked under my deck (that sits about 8" off the ground) directly under my door mat. LOL hatched 9, I lost 1, we had 3 stinkers. but for mothering, she stunk. she just wanted to sit on the babies, but did little or no interaction with them. orpingmomma talks to them, shows them how to eat, drink, scratch, etc. essentially she's teaching them how to BE chickens...

if you can find a hen that is a good momma like that, she's worth losing a few eggs over. and it saves a whole LOT of brooder headaches. I can put orpingmomma outside with this bunch probably Monday or Tuesday depending on weather, and she'll have them free ranging in another week or so, and going to bed with the big chickens in another couple weeks, all on her own. she seems to know when they're ready to start roosting and not huddling under her all night.

 

[ki4got]

Quote: sorry, I can't ship... now if you were to go on vacation in VA, i'm sure we could manage something. LOL

unless someone else is heading west and wants to transport a boy... but that would be between ya'll. just let me know who's picking him up and when. LOL

i'll have to figure out which one i'm keeping and leg band him so I don't make any mistakes... they're all wing banded already but that's too hard to see out in the yard.

 

[SunnySkies]

Bulldogma, I sure hope that last baby does well and is a girl of the right color!

 

[Bulldogma]

Bulldogma,

I have three of Gunnar's babies here. They hatched on May 26. One absolutely acts like a roo - jumps up on everything and out of the brooder whenever it gets the chance. Also seems to be the leader of the pack. It will be a MF and Ginger is its mother. The other two are more laid back and demurring. Astrid is the mother of one and it will be a MF. The last one has lots of white with some mottling and blue tipped tail feathers. Ginger is its mother. I am hoping that these last two will be pullets. But with SFH, they could be anything since they take so long to mature and show the gender. They are currently with 5 just over two week old wheaten/blue wheaten ameraucana chicks (Kat LaDue line). These eight will be the next wave growing.

Gotta get some pictures for you!

I'll keep my fingers crossed you have 2 pullets and one roo in that batch!

I would love a gunner roo but how to get it to missouri maybe overnight I would pay forsure

Yes - if anyone hears of someone driving from the east coast to (or through) MO, give us a shout out so we can get a Gunnar roo to chickendeal.

Bulldogma, I sure hope that last baby does well and is a girl of the right color!

Thank you! There is an external pip this morning!

 

[SunnySkies]

Yay about the pip!!

Wasp charged me this morning, I knew it was coming (I could see it in his stance as soon as I opened the coop that he wanted to challenge me) but I was ready, got him good, and he went off like he was thinking, what was that? He did successfully mount my oldest SFH pullet this morning so a) eggs are not far off and b) maybe it will help sweeten his disposition a bit.

I hate the teen years.

 

[PugBug]

OK - so my Silkie (Darth 'Bator) got the very last of the Gunnar eggs - most laid a week or more after he died (the rest were sold to help cover the vet bill) and only one started to develop. Well - 'Bator's last brood of 5 chicks kept trying to help their mamma brood the egg, and it was getting knocked all over the place and pooped on by mamma's little helpers. Finally I put 'Bator in one of the isolation areas in my trailer coop (thank goodness for those!).

Anyhooo, I figured there was a good chance the egg wasn't going to hatch after all it had been through. I hadn't seen any movement when I candled it... but I left it under her and now I have located some BCM chicks locally that I can slip under Mamma so she has some babies to raise (and I'll get eggs for my 3 other broodies - yeah - you read that right).

So on a whim I went out in the dark tonight and candled that poor, pooped-on, beaten up, rolled around, well loved egg... and saw an internal pip and the chick breathing!!!

I am REALLY hoping that Gunnar's last chick will be the Mille Fleur-colored SFH pullet I've been wanting so badly. (The last one turned into a cockerel - LOL!) Like a dummy I sold his other MF babies. So everybody keep your fingers crossed for a healthy Mille Fleur Gunnar daughter! She'll be cherished!

what ever it is will be a strong one from all it's been through! hope you get what you want

 

[Bulldogma]

Yay about the pip!!

Wasp charged me this morning, I knew it was coming (I could see it in his stance as soon as I opened the coop that he wanted to challenge me) but I was ready, got him good, and he went off like he was thinking, what was that? He did successfully mount my oldest SFH pullet this morning so a) eggs are not far off and b) maybe it will help sweeten his disposition a bit.

I hate the teen years.

Just wait until your 4 human kids are teens - LOL!! Yes - a good many roos go through it. It's a good time to keep them away from children. If you can get past that stage, you'll be good (usually). Great that Wasp is starting to mount. Just keep him away from chicks... and rabbits... and shoes... and ducks... and cantaloups... and ...

what ever it is will be a strong one from all it's been through! hope you get what you want

Yes - this is definitely one of those "meant to be" chicks, what ever it is! Of course I'm just hoping for that MF pullet... LOL!

 

[Bulldogma]

May I present - Gunnar's Last Chick (I totally need a better name - LOL!)

 

[jmarie]

Gunilla is a swedish girls name!!! makes me think of huskey women with huge arms and blond buns in their hair (the military wife in fifth element???)

May I present - Gunnar's Last Chick (I totally need a better name - LOL!)