Texas

[KnobbyOaks]

Well....I thought I would get on here and say a "BIG HOWDY" to everybody! I live in a little town called "Cedar Creek" right outside of Austin, TX. Have way too many chickens and just love it!

Welcome, I live fairly close to you, just east of Elgin. I'm already planning my next flock of chickens while I'm trying to egg my pullets into giving me eggs.

 

[RachaelS]

Well....I thought I would get on here and say a "BIG HOWDY" to everybody! I live in a little town called "Cedar Creek" right outside of Austin, TX. Have way too many chickens and just love it!

Welcome! I used to own some land over there. Sold it about 5 years to early, I bet with the race track it would have gone way up in value, LOL! We are now in between South Austin and Dripping Springs. This is a great thread, hope you enjoy it!

 

[Cockle-Dood]

One of my ee's is starting to get feathers along the back of its neck...these would be called the saddle feathers in a roo, correct? If they are saddles would they be coming in this quick? Chicks are right almost 2 weeks old, this is also one of my fullest feathered of my chicks and was the first to start its tail...which is easily twice the size of all the others in the brooder...could this be signs of a roo or could it just be a fast developer?

I will attempt to get a pic or two in just a sec but am using my phone so im not sure how they will turn out.

 

[yinepu]

One of my ee's is starting to get feathers along the back of its neck...these would be called the saddle feathers in a roo, correct? If they are saddles would they be coming in this quick? Chicks are right almost 2 weeks old, this is also one of my fullest feathered of my chicks and was the first to start its tail...which is easily twice the size of all the others in the brooder...could this be signs of a roo or could it just be a fast developer?

I will attempt to get a pic or two in just a sec but am using my phone so im not sure how they will turn out.

Hackle feathers are the ones at the neck.. saddle feathers are closer to their rear end of their body




if you look at the picture of jack.. his hackle feathers are mostly yellow
his saddle feathers are the long feathers that are coming off his back/rear just before his tail feathers start

2 weeks is a bit young.. but if this helps any the hackle feathers on a roo are pointed.. on a pullet they are more rounded

 

[Cockle-Dood]

Here are a couple pics, i hope you can see. He/she is one of the EE's that are in my avatar...bonnie and clyde...this one happens to be bonnie but may be needing a name swap lol!

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And here is a quick one of their digs...

 

[yinepu]

So today I am starting with sprouting trays of wheat for the birds.. plus starting a fermented feed bucket. Didn't have the Braggs ACV.. so I pulled out some Alaskan Sourdough starter that I had stored in the freezer. Mixed it with some water.. a bit of game bird starter and layer crumbles. I figured once this gets fermenting well I can add more of the layer feed to it and move it to a bigger bucket.

i started with a bit of the gamebird because it's ground a bit finer.. so it should help the yeast get a jump start. We hardly ever have flour in the house or I would have added a bit of that too.

i also picked up a bag of oats.. may have to sprout / ferment some of that too to go into the mix. 640 pounds of feed.. and that's not going to last an entire week. I hope the fermented feed and sprouted grains help to cut back on the feed bill!

 

[Cockle-Dood]

Jack is beautiful! But i can def see the difference...still learning the nomenclature (big word, yeah!).

This guy/gal has been my fave since day one, it was the first one in my box to take home. Its legs are definatly not the slate of an Am, but they arent quite yellow either...almost a grayish along the inner and more yellow on the sides, kinda pretty!

 

[yinepu]

Here are a couple pics, i hope you can see. He/she is one of the EE's that are in my avatar...bonnie and clyde...this one happens to be bonnie but may be needing a name swap lol!

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And here is a quick one of their digs...

That's still baby fluff... so you're going to have to wait a while for real feathers to grow in.. lol

You can try comparing combs and legs to the other chicks and see if there is a marked difference yet...

 

[yinepu]

Jack is beautiful! But i can def see the difference...still learning the nomenclature (big word, yeah!).

This guy/gal has been my fave since day one, it was the first one in my box to take home. Its legs are definatly not the slate of an Am, but they arent quite yellow either...almost a grayish along the inner and more yellow on the sides, kinda pretty!

Just compare the thickness of it's legs to the other chicks.. and check and see if the comb is a bit bigger.. other than that tail feather growth has been an indicator with some chicks

thanks for the compliments on Jack.. he's my number 1 main Mutt Roo.. and the oldest of the chickens..

 

[Cockle-Dood]

Here is a third i took...didnt post the first time for whatever reason