Swedish Flower Hen Thread

[rarebear]

Can some of that are experts in raising Flower Hens help me with some sexing? I have two that are 9 weeks and seven that are 7 weeks I need to get them to their new homes and am having a lot of trouble sexing them. Swedish females have red combs and waddles, correct? I have numerous ones that have developed combs that are pink with yellow at the base. Some have tiny yellow combs and others have more pronounced red combs. Any experts or very experiences at sexing???? I will then take some photos.

 

[minihorse927]

Can some of that are experts in raising Flower Hens help me with some sexing? I have two that are 9 weeks and seven that are 7 weeks I need to get them to their new homes and am having a lot of trouble sexing them. Swedish females have red combs and waddles, correct?  I have numerous ones that have developed combs that are pink with yellow at the base. Some have tiny yellow combs and others have more pronounced red combs. Any experts or very experiences at sexing????  I will then take some photos.

Post some pictures, we are all pretty good at guessing sex.

 

[MargaretAnneHK]

This has been a GREAT thread about one of the breeds I am very interested in!

 

[ki4got]

Can some of that are experts in raising Flower Hens help me with some sexing? I have two that are 9 weeks and seven that are 7 weeks I need to get them to their new homes and am having a lot of trouble sexing them. Swedish females have red combs and waddles, correct? I have numerous ones that have developed combs that are pink with yellow at the base. Some have tiny yellow combs and others have more pronounced red combs. Any experts or very experiences at sexing???? I will then take some photos.

roosters will have wattle development (pink/red and larger than the others) while pullets usually stay lighter and smaller much longer.

 

[minihorse927]

roosters will have wattle development (pink/red and larger than the others) while pullets usually stay lighter and smaller much longer.

X2

 

[SunnySkies]

Got my first SFH egg!!

My February pullet laid an egg in the Cochin coop (which has one random mutt hen sleeping in it). I busted her being romanced by a mixed breed rooster instead of a SFH (apparently she prefers older men, lol), so she is banished to her coop. Which has meant no more eggs since. LOL

Hopefully once she settles in, I can start hatching my own and get numbers up after the coon attack. I have 2 more pullets coming online in the next month or so, and then a few more after that.

I have a small dilemma. I love my mutt birds (I have one mutt rooster I will never ever get rid of), but I need to guarantee PB eggs. Everybody loves to free range and I prefer it. Do those of you breeding do any free range, do you have multiple breeds, or is it all SFH or all pens?

 

[KYTinpusher]

Got my first SFH egg!!

My February pullet laid an egg in the Cochin coop (which has one random mutt hen sleeping in it). I busted her being romanced by a mixed breed rooster instead of a SFH (apparently she prefers older men, lol), so she is banished to her coop. Which has meant no more eggs since. LOL

Hopefully once she settles in, I can start hatching my own and get numbers up after the coon attack. I have 2 more pullets coming online in the next month or so, and then a few more after that.

I have a small dilemma. I love my mutt birds (I have one mutt rooster I will never ever get rid of), but I need to guarantee PB eggs. Everybody loves to free range and I prefer it. Do those of you breeding do any free range, do you have multiple breeds, or is it all SFH or all pens?

My BR hens were truly free-ranging until recently when the fox showed up.

My SFH free-range within an electrified poultry fence which keeps them in and the BR out. My bachelors have an area surrounded by cattle panels covered with deer netting - so far they are content to stay put. The rest are in coops at the moment while I am working on new coops and dividing up areas for them to free-range.

 

[ki4got]

well, since I penned my sfh, I haven't gotten an egg since! ok, I think I got 2 from each, but since then they have gone on strike entirely. at least once they start laying again they should be purebred... the EE girl in there won't affect that any. LOL (her broken leg is nearly healed so she'll be loose again soon.)

 

[SunnySkies]

What I might end up doing is penning the layer flock, all mutt birds, as the SFH get so antsy, for some weeks while collecting SFH eggs, then let them all back out again, even though the mutt roosters keep everyone in line. Wasp flew at the door this morning, obviously very angry about being stuck in the coop. The April group won't stay in their day pen of deer netting...they fly out, no matter what I have done, or they race out when you go in to feed and dump the duck pool and the waterers. The mutts won't be happy, but if I want pure SFH, there isn't any other way until these silly girls settle down in a group with a good rooster. I'd like to maybe keep the extra SFH boys in a bachelor pen and then rotate them out with the girls, but Wasp is onerey....I saw him run across the horse pasture to attack his brother, who ran back into the coop to hide. He might get a coop to himself at that rate...or find himself in the soup.

I hope I'm not making them mean, but I have three late May boys that don't mind being caught and carried. They run a bit, don't come up to eat from your hand, but they are not difficult to catch, nor do they struggle when you carry them around. The pullet in with them is quite tame. But....my very aggressive original birds....that is what they were like at this age. I don't free range that group though; they are my blacks, and I keep them penned. Thinking of building them an open air coop and leaving them in it, adding a few pullets to the group. Maybe not being able to follow people around will help.

I have been unable to trap the huge coon. He is trap wise and stole the bait two nights running and has not come back since. But I hot wired my coops with some basic supplies from the store and created an 18 inch high fence with wires 3, 6, 9 and 18 inches off the ground, powered by a charger hot enough to use on my horse fences. DH touched it and said his hand hurt for a couple hours afterwards. But we talked about things...time to add a dog, and I found some GPs and Maremmas not too far away to go look at, all farm raised (but what that exactly means will be determined at the farm visit).

 

[PugBug]

Got my first SFH egg!!

My February pullet laid an egg in the Cochin coop (which has one random mutt hen sleeping in it). I busted her being romanced by a mixed breed rooster instead of a SFH (apparently she prefers older men, lol), so she is banished to her coop. Which has meant no more eggs since. LOL

Hopefully once she settles in, I can start hatching my own and get numbers up after the coon attack. I have 2 more pullets coming online in the next month or so, and then a few more after that.

I have a small dilemma. I love my mutt birds (I have one mutt rooster I will never ever get rid of), but I need to guarantee PB eggs. Everybody loves to free range and I prefer it. Do those of you breeding do any free range, do you have multiple breeds, or is it all SFH or all pens?

I have all of mine separated by breed or specific color etc. I give each their own day to free range, rotating the days. That way I can ensure no cross breeding.