Swedish Flower Hen Thread

[PugBug]

Could it be minks?

There's about 20 acres of woods behind my property, the woods start about 5 ft behind the chicken pens so anything is possible. I was thinking rats because of the condition of the dead chicks-

 

[PugBug]

well good point about these birds not likely ever having a "standard" so these things should be considered of less importance than other things like hardiness etc.... I have started out trying to have as much genetic diversity as is possible by starting my flock with birds from 6 sources. Of course I realize that everybody's birds ultimately go back to GFFs but I am trying to have as much diversity as possible under the circumstances to retain their hardiness. I guess that so long as I have just as good or better to choose from that don't have these traits, I would opt to use the birds without but in the long run you are right in that you really can't "throw the baby out with the bathwater" so to speak as these things have nothing to do with their beauty, temperament and their hardiness which is the reason .we were drawn to them in the first place!

Yes that's right & as long as that's all that's wrong with your young men then I'd use them for now. I had 4 boys to choose from & as it turned out the 1 with side springs & the 1 with split wing were also hiney-holes in personality- the 2 I chose to keep for breeding had no such problems plus they have nice personalities so it made my decision easy. None of my girls have split wing or side springs so I am good there too.

 

[PugBug]

We just went out to check on the chicks & to see if we had caught a rat yet (we put out those big sticky rat strips) the chicks are fine, but as I was doing a quick check on all the other pens I did see that Johanna the mama SFH was roosting on top of the cabin with the others & had left her baby to sleep by itself under the cabin. This is the first night she's done this since it hatched. Seeing as the problems with rats I was worried a rat might get it! I took it & put in the cabin with all the other small chicks- I hated to take it from her, but I can't leave it unprotected. And can you believe the little thing bit the poo out of me LOL three times on my neck before I was able to pull it back- so baby SFH's are tough little boogers for sure

 

[mtadkins5]

Oops... Don't know what happened on previous post. If you're not in a hurry I'm hoping to have some the first of the year. I have 2 cockerels... Dweezil is a light colored cockerel and I have 2 pullets who don't have any black also. Will post pics later today. I am in East TN

That sounds great! We have talked before so I know where you are too

PS- GO VOLS!!!

 

[gardengoats11]

My creste SFH rooster is bald. One of the olive egger roosters plucked his head. Anyone want an olive egger rooster?

 

[KYTinpusher]

My creste SFH rooster is bald. One of the olive egger roosters plucked his head. Anyone want an olive egger rooster?

Ummm... he would be soup in this house

 

[PugBug]

My creste SFH rooster is bald. One of the olive egger roosters plucked his head. Anyone want an olive egger rooster?

poor thing! Sounds like the OE needs to visit freezer camp~

 

[Bulldogma]

My creste SFH rooster is bald. One of the olive egger roosters plucked his head. Anyone want an olive egger rooster?

Is it wrong that I started laughing hysterically at that?

Poor roo - but yeah - either I would separate them if it were possible or find another job for the OE.

I have a Silkie hen who gets wacky hairdos from her suitors when they breed her.



(And she looks so happy about it!)
You can't see it, but she has male pattern baldness on the top...

 

[ki4got]

Quote: I wonder if Jim Henson had silkies in mind when he created Beaker... LOL

 

[RedRidge]

Here's Dweezil (my second cockerel)... 11 weeks old...