Swedish Flower Hen Thread

[KYTinpusher]

I probably will keep Magnus, but it would be wrong to breed him, no matter how handsome he is. DD is not going to let me send him to freezer camp even if I had the heart to do it. One of my goals in hatching eggs (all breeds) is to obtain enough birds that I can let them truly free-range and I can afford to lose a few. Magnus will now be one of my free-range, mixed flock birds as he is now one that I can afford to lose.

(though hopefully not)

I believe all of us who have adopted this breed have a responsibility to work to improve, not just breed indiscriminately. It may be a long time before the SFH is accepted into the APA, but if we are not consciencious to breed for the betterment of the breed, it may not be accepted at all. I know most people who are going to own this breed will never show them, but we are the pioneers in this country and all future birds will come from the stock we have right now. If I knew I would NEVER sell a hatching egg, or a chick, or a grown bird to anyone, but ALWAYS keep them to myself, then perhaps I could justify using him to breed. But not only is that not going to be the case, and as I said, I have six other roos to use that at this point appear to be better candidates to breed. I am a novice at this, too, but from what I have read, side sprigs are difficult and time consuming to eliminate without a LOT of culling. I'd rather not do that if I don't have to.

OK, I'll get down off my soapbox now.

 

[roncrna]

Do the legbands signify different blood lines? I read the entire thread and never found out if this is what they indicate. Thanks!

 

[ladyfaeden]

Quote:
I agree with what you said. While there isn't a standard yet as far as I know, I've been joting notes of what I'd like to see in it and will be doing a major cull before offering eggs and chicks. One of the things I would like to see is that the breed stay practical as a free ranging chicken-so keeping the crests small so they have good vision.

 

[ladyfaeden]

BTW, I do think introductions of rare breeds go through stages and I'm grateful to those offering chicks and eggs so I can gather enough of a selection for my project. My cream legbars are at a much earlier stage and I'm just crossing my fingers that all of the ones I got grow up to be nice enough to breed.

 

[Knock Kneed Hen]

My two older cockerels (11 wks). "Sorrel" is amazingly camouflaged just about everywhere he goes.

"Clarey" is so calm and sweet. Lets me walk right up and pick him up, the kids too

 

[ladyfaeden]

Quote:
Both are gorgeous! They make me want my chicks to grow up faster!

 

[jeremy]

Quote:
Both are gorgeous! They make me want my chicks to grow up faster!

x2! I want my babies to grow up now!

 

[Gold Griffin Chicken Mom]

Quote:
This is not specific to this breed. It's more of general bird advice. Well, bird and dog. You will see many similarities to training a dog or a small child.

Spend some time reading the behaviors section in the topics about "bad" roosters. People have lots of good advice there. Similar to dogs, much behavior is dependent upon the individual bird AND how the owner handles early "testing" behaviors. You would not allow a large breed dog to jump on a child and knock them down. Don't allow a young cockeral to "side step" at any member of your family. Children out rank the chickens and MUST be respected! Your birds' attitude is formed by you, or rather your reactions to their behaviors as youngsters.

So go read up on the warning signs. May you be blessed with sweet chickens. Don't forget to interact with them as much as possible. I hope this helps.

 

[salunra]

Thanks. I do know this. I have been studying and researching for almost 2 yrs now. I was just hoping to get some personal experience on the general temperament of these birds now that more of them are out and about.




Quote:
This is not specific to this breed. It's more of general bird advice. Well, bird and dog. You will see many similarities to training a dog or a small child.

Spend some time reading the behaviors section in the topics about "bad" roosters. People have lots of good advice there. Similar to dogs, much behavior is dependent upon the individual bird AND how the owner handles early "testing" behaviors. You would not allow a large breed dog to jump on a child and knock them down. Don't allow a young cockeral to "side step" at any member of your family. Children out rank the chickens and MUST be respected! Your birds' attitude is formed by you, or rather your reactions to their behaviors as youngsters.

So go read up on the warning signs. May you be blessed with sweet chickens. Don't forget to interact with them as much as possible. I hope this helps.

 

[CarolJ]

I drove almost three hours to get 11 Swedish Flower Hen chicks today - then almost 3 hours back home. Totally worth the drive! They are so cute, and I'm looking forward to seeing how they change as they grow. I'll get photos and post them tomorrow.