The Aloha Chicken Project

[Deerfield Acres]

Sommer, I understand your feeling about giving them the vaccination bazooka. I've considered it myself, many times. It is hard to decide between wanting the flock to be naturally healthy or, in some cases, just alive! I'm getting my flock NPIP tested this coming week, as long as the weather cooperates. I was all set to give them the Marek's vaccination, also, but now I'm hesitating and going to go back to do my research again before I make a final decision. It's just complicated. I think when they don't have fresh grass under their feet, and mine have the opportunity but prefer to stay closer to the coop where they've worn it away, it becomes more important to guard against illness. Decisions, decisions.

 

[alohachickens]

Notinoz -

Do you still have the roo (with they yellow legs) on the top pic? If so, I think I'd like to take him. I hope this message didn't arrive too late!

Didn't go on here for a couple days, been busy here. Derek dropped off the BIG incubator, and then yesterday I went up to Stephen's to pick up eggs and drop off a new roo for his Sussex pen. But, judging just from the front shot here, I'm seeing a lot of white on the chest of the yellow-legged roo there.

Yes, you are right, the Swedish are slower to mature and (I think) a little tougher to sex, though at least they have these nice, long tails, which makes them easier to sex than say, Orpingtons, (Who are just big and fluffy all over!)

Speaking of which, last year Derek put Buff Orpington hens under an Aloha roo. I wasn't interested in them, but Stephen took a few "hens" for fun. Turns out, he accidentally kept one of the Orp/Aloha cross roos, because he thought it was a big hen.

He is mature now, and he is a MONSTER. Size issues? WHAT size issues? Holy cow, this guy is enormous. If I didn't trust Derek I'd never believe that was part Aloha. Size is exactly as big as a pure Orp.

Unfortunately, we have a lot of "bad" in there - short tail, loose feathers, pink legs, solid buff color which now I'm seeing has been resistant to spotting. However, I think Taz on here (who has mentioned getting a spare Jubilee Orp rooster from a friend) should have tremendous success on size improvement, if she crosses the Jubilee Orp with small, really colorful Alohas.

However, like all the out-crosses we've been working with, I think the Orp will do much better when reduced down to 1/4. (As in, mix in some Sussex/Aloha crosses or NHR/Aloha crosses in the next generation.) The Orp increases size in one generation but is way too fluffy and loose-feathered and tough to sex. The female Aloha/Orps had the "messy butts" issue often seen in Orps and Cochins.

But, even a quarter Orp, could work really well for Taz, if countered with yellow legs and long tails on the other 3/4ths of the bloodline . . . . I almost think from what I was seeing that size could carry through to 3/4 Aloha, 1/4 Orp and still show major improvement.

BTW, Notinoz, it is possible your Mr. Lovely is a pure Swedish roo . . . I'd have to see him in person to know for sure. Or he could even be 3/4 Swedish, as you picked up eggs before I had the pen sorted, so the pure Swedish roo was running with two pure Swedish hens, plus several half-Swedish, half-Aloha hens.

(Got everything sorted out now, so we should have no problems with that in a couple of weeks.)

.
sommer, the following 3 pics... tell me which roo you would go with, we are culling on saturday - she has 9 roos and most are crowing! (my fav is the twin to mine) let me know if you want any. they need a few more months of growing out but she has some good ones.
these are at my friends house. 2 handsome roos and a pullet. the one on the far right is almost an exact copy of the one i have here.


here is mr lovely today. still showing lots of white, i think he is 3 or 4 months old, i will hve to get out the calendar. he shows no interest in crowing which is great, all my other aloha roos have crowed by now. i atribute the swedish flower genetics to the fact that i cant sex them as early as i used to, and also to their slower maturation. would that be a wrong guess?

 

[alohachickens]

Notinoz brought me the yellow-legged roo! Looks a lot like a Speckled Sussex rooster.

But BOY are those some yellow, yellow, yellow legs! Like, cartoon-yellow.

He's in quarantine, now. Will be pampered in his own private suite for a week before put in with the other youngsters.

 

[15littlem]

Are Aloha eggs free? (as in,is shipping the only charge)

 

[alohachickens]

Are Aloha eggs free? (as in,is shipping the only charge)

Depends! If someone has enough of a start that they just need a rooster, eggs might work. So if someone has a flock of hens started, I'd consider sending eggs for just the cost of shipping.

However, because the Alohas aren't breeding "true" yet, I'm sending chicks now. Because you need to start with a big bunch of chicks and then cull, cull, cull down to the very best few. Shipped eggs weren't effective enough. Once the post office shook them up, the few chicks that hatched on the other side were not enough to ever get a breeding program going. It was like throwing eggs in the trash. You need a LOT of chicks to get the "gems" in there.

I started with 40 chicks here a few months ago that I was raising, and now I'm down to 10. I may only keep five for the final breeder pen. I'd rather work with a smaller group of awesome hens than a big group of mediocre ones! LOL! A big order of chicks is still the best way to get started . . .

 

[notinoz2007]

the roo i brought you was born oct 6. sorry it took so long to get you the information. he is like the exact copy of mine, which is also rare in the aloha scheme of things.
mine is starting to show interest in the ladies, but not crowing yet, yay

 

[alohachickens]

the roo i brought you was born oct 6. sorry it took so long to get you the information. he is like the exact copy of mine, which is also rare in the aloha scheme of things.
mine is starting to show interest in the ladies, but not crowing yet, yay

Cool, so he's already five months! He's still hiding out in terror in the "main" coop so clearly he isn't ready yet (most roos are not ready until six months and the Swedish seemed to need even longer to mentally get mature enough to approach the hens.) But hey, there is really good hope that he'll be ready by first week of April? Especially if I pen him with a few of the smallest and most docile hens.

 

[alohachickens]

Photos of my favorite hen from the teen group. She's probably part Swedish. Big yet still growing for sure! I like her because she doesn't look like a pure Swedish Flower hen at all.

 

[alohachickens]

Crazy how much white the chicks are losing. I think we are still OK on some, but check out this roo.

Two months:




A week or two ago;




Today:








Wouldn't believe it if it wasn't happening before my eyes.

Updated photos of this boy. Geez, is he changing a lot! He looks more and more Swedish as he matures, but something is still "off" about him, maybe he's 3/4ths Swedish 1/4 Aloha? He certainly did not look like any Swedish chick that I've seen, as a chick, and now his body shape seems a little different from the pure Swedish.






I'll grow him all the way up, and then we'll see how he looks side by side next to the pure Swedish rooster.

Doesn't he look all gangly and awful right now?

 

[15littlem]

Updated photos of this boy. Geez, is he changing a lot! He looks more and more Swedish as he matures, but something is still "off" about him, maybe he's 3/4ths Swedish 1/4 Aloha? He certainly did not look like any Swedish chick that I've seen, as a chick, and now his body shape seems a little different from the pure Swedish.






I'll grow him all the way up, and then we'll see how he looks side by side next to the pure Swedish rooster.

Doesn't he look all gangly and awful right now?

He looks kind of gamey