Swedish Flower Hen Thread

[ChicwannaB]

I just read the Swedish Flower chicken review, 93% +. One comment says that some of the roosters get aggressive. Been there, done that. I'm thinking what if I choose to keep 2 roosters out of this batch so they are more focused on each other, would they be less aggressive to wards me, and people in general??
When I had my Dom and a large Buff Chantecler, they were both al right till I got rid of the one, then the other got real nasty and I got rid of him too. The mutt Roo I have now is his son, and he's a little bugger also!!

 

[Peep-Chicken]

Peep chicken, are you Sandi?

No Sandi here. So no, I am not.

 

[sillyillyondra]

I am looking for an addition to my small little flock of ladies. We live on .5 acre and let the ladies free range during the day. My girls are getting up in age and production has decreased significantly. I found a local guy who has 9 week old Cream Legbar, Swedish Flower & Maran pullets. We would like a good layer so we are leaning towards the Legbar but I read they can be loud and flighty. I have read great things about the SFH but I'm concerned about egg production being low. Any suggestions? I should add, I am in Northern California and have only raised BO (my favorite), Wynadottes and Light Brahmas thus far. All have been the sweetest girls.

 

[ChicwannaB]

Today I said good-bye to my Flower chickens and a few mutts.
Sunday night we had a terrible storm, power went out and my husband went to the pole barn to start the generator, we resumed watching our tv programs, he in the living room and me in the kitchen when power flickered. a few minutes it flickered again and everything went out. This should NOT have happened because our generator is/was 13,500 Watts and will easily run everything in the house. DH got up to check and see what was going on, the pole barn was on fire. 911 was called and he ran out the door to try to get his big truck and boat out of there so at least that was salvaged. No power!! Doors wouldn't go up. He shut off the propane tank and we stood helplessly and watch 35 years of his life go up in smoke.

I decided it was best to find somewhere else for my Flowers and other chickens to keep them out of the burnt rubble, not knowing what might be in there that could hurt them, many chemicals and tanks exploded, Propane, gas tanks, solvents, whatever. It will be awhile before this mess can be cleared away, already had 2 days of intense questions by insurance companies and neighbors dropping by.
The lady who recently bought some of my chickens said yes she had plenty of room and would take them all to her place. Boy was she an angel sent at the right time for me. I am so blessed. I can go see them anytime I want and if/when we get rebuilt I can go take some of them back and start over, but right now this is for the best.
I've enjoyed meeting many of you and chatting. Maybe someday I can come back and be on this thread again. Bye for now.

 

[cree57i]

Today I said good-bye to my Flower chickens and a few mutts.
Sunday night we had a terrible storm, power went out and my husband went to the pole barn to start the generator, we resumed watching our tv programs, he in the living room and me in the kitchen when power flickered. a few minutes it flickered again and everything went out. This should NOT have happened because our generator is/was 13,500 Watts and will easily run everything in the house. DH got up to check and see what was going on, the pole barn was on fire. 911 was called and he ran out the door to try to get his big truck and boat out of there so at least that was salvaged. No power!! Doors wouldn't go up. He shut off the propane tank and we stood helplessly and watch 35 years of his life go up in smoke.

I decided it was best to find somewhere else for my Flowers and other chickens to keep them out of the burnt rubble, not knowing what might be in there that could hurt them, many chemicals and tanks exploded, Propane, gas tanks, solvents, whatever. It will be awhile before this mess can be cleared away, already had 2 days of intense questions by insurance companies and neighbors dropping by.
The lady who recently bought some of my chickens said yes she had plenty of room and would take them all to her place. Boy was she an angel sent at the right time for me. I am so blessed. I can go see them anytime I want and if/when we get rebuilt I can go take some of them back and start over, but right now this is for the best.
I've enjoyed meeting many of you and chatting. Maybe someday I can come back and be on this thread again. Bye for now.

WOW! I have just caught up on the last 12 pages of this thread that I have missed out on. I feel like I know ChicwannaB. This is heartbreaking to hear about the loss of your barn (I hope not house too) and your chickens. Best wishes and prayers for a speedy recovery. It is apparent how much you like your chicks. I hope you are able to rebuild soon.

 

[ChicwannaB]

No, we didn't loose the house, but it was so hot on the north side, nearest the fire, that all the siding melted and is just hanging there.


vinyl siding on north side of the house


pole barn from the north


the garage door, from the driveway on the south.

We were so BLESSED, we have 5 dogs, 2 cats and had 11 chickens left and didn't lose ONE of them. Tho one dog scampered away in total fear and I worried for her all night till 3:30 in the morning, she was found and was okay.

There was no way to keep the chickens out of this, except stand guard and shoe them away when they came near. Right near this garage door was a sack of some sort of feed, unidentifiable after the fire, and they kept wanting to peck at that, I didn't know what could be in it so didn't dare let them in there to eat any of it. I had to go right to the store Monday morning and buy dog food, cat litter and chicken feed because that all burned up.

 

[KYTinpusher]

No, we didn't loose the house, but it was so hot on the north side, nearest the fire, that all the siding melted and is just hanging there.


vinyl siding on north side of the house


pole barn from the north


the garage door, from the driveway on the south.

We were so BLESSED, we have 5 dogs, 2 cats and had 11 chickens left and didn't lose ONE of them. Tho one dog scampered away in total fear and I worried for her all night till 3:30 in the morning, she was found and was okay.

There was no way to keep the chickens out of this, except stand guard and shoe them away when they came near. Right near this garage door was a sack of some sort of feed, unidentifiable after the fire, and they kept wanting to peck at that, I didn't know what could be in it so didn't dare let them in there to eat any of it. I had to go right to the store Monday morning and buy dog food, cat litter and chicken feed because that all burned up.

I'm so sorry!

It is truly a blessing that no lives were lost. I hope you can get this cleaned up and things replaced quickly so you can get your chickens back. Sending prayers for you...

 

[THeelChickinKY]

Also sending prayers your way - thank goodness the animals were okay!

 

[JulesChicks]

@ChicwannaB

I've been following your story here about your chickens and now the fire. So happy for you that no human or animal lives were lost, though I know your husband must be devastated regarding his losses... You are indeed blessed to have a home for your chickens where you can visit and maybe come back for them when the time is right. I pray for continued blessings for you and your husband as you rebuild what you have lost.

 

[OHfarmerswife]

Hi to all
Goodness haven't been on here in ages. Nice to see a lot of new people! Well at least new to me.

I was reading about SFH being aggressive. I have never had an aggressive too or hen. I have 7 coops all attached to each other separated by the walls of the runs in hardware cloth. ( Fort Knox )
I ) layer pen & sell my eggs to a small meat shop to pay for feed.
2) large SFH pen. I have 23 hens with 1 Rooster.
3) SFH breeding pen 6 hens 1 rooster. (2 black hens from Kytinpusher, snoleopard from Bulldigma & GFF)
4) momma & 12 SFH from My own stock.
5) momma & 8 SFH from my own stock
6) momma & 20 SFH chicks from GFF.
7) grow outs which include 12 SFH from Dale Fisher, Lavendar Orps & BBS Marans.
All in all I have 138!!
Who would have believed 3 years ago I started with 25 chicks just for eating eggs!!!!!!
I am a city girl married to a grain farmer.
My SFH are next to my layers & they free range with supervision each day for several hours. The can all see each other through the hardware cloth. When they free range my SFH do no like any of the layers to come close to them or their group. If anyone approaches growling starts & then if the intruder doesn't back away a fight ensues. I love my SFH as they are my favorites but they are a bit aggressive to the other girls from other pens!