The Aloha Chicken Project

[alohachickens]

Exciting variety of colorings! It's also great that you've found some other local folks to hatch out eggs. Hopefully the thread will really start hopping with new-chick pics! I plan to have my incubator running by next weekend. I also sent 18 eggs home with someone who lives in Bellingham, WA. which should hatch around 1/20. The eggs were from two Aloha hens, and fertilized by either my RIR/NHR roo or Buff Rock roo. (no separate pens yet). As has been discussed, this generation should be solid-colored (no mottling/spotting) offspring. I'm real curious as to what this will look like, but more importantly, what sizes we'll get. Lately I've been going out at night and picking up various hens, just to compare their weights and body... and WOW, my two older buff hens feel SO heavy! Then I pick up the smaller Aloha hens and it feels like I'm picking up a quail or something. Huge difference. No wonder they can still fly with clipped wing. I'm looking forward to the size improvements!

I'm giggling thinking of you out in the coop, lifting up hens like you're in a gym. But you are right - these original Alohas are pretty darn small. As for improvements in size, I have one of the late October chicks, who is only two and a half months right now. He is ALREADY as large as the smallest Aloha hen! With almost four months of growing left to do! The other chicks in the Oct. hatch are not nearly as large. Hopefully, though, we will get some serious improvement this generation. This guy in particular looks promising - huge and colorful. He may have a bit of barring though, darn it. But already, I'm mentally crossing him with NHR and Buff Rock hens next year . . . . ha ha ha.

 

[notinoz2007]

seems the picking has lessened a bit. there is one particular little rooster that starts it. he's pretty aggressive but also one of the more attractive so far. i've tried about all the tips i've gotten. they are in red light now which improved their attitudes dramatically. every once in a while i give them a little cat food or scrambled eggs. i've been testing different snacks to see what they like. millet is by far the favorite, and they seem to love lettuce, but not strawberries which i thought was strange. every chicken i've ever had goes nuts for strawberries. and they dont like black oil sunflower seeds, maybe they are just too little for that still.
i'll try to remember to post a few pictures in the next few days. funny mabo compared them to quail, thats what mine look like right now! they're 3 1/2 weeks old, brown stripey colors, and no tail feathers (from the picking)

 

[notinoz2007]

at 10 days old, when feather picking started. i painted the blood spots green (didnt have blucote at the time) so they couldnt see it. worked like a charm


at 3 weeks, in their new home. took this pic while cleaning the bedding. lots of color variety now. i particularly like the ones with white back and chest feathers.


poor shelly, dont know what happened to all her feathers, probably eaten... she is as happy as can be tho.

 

[RareBreedFancier]

<snip>

Three of the chicks have been of special interest to me. Lots of orange and white. One, the only orange mottled with yellow legs, was lost in the pile-up. (Of course.) The other two have pink Sussex-colored legs. One may have barring, but the other looks fine. This is the one that I'm not sure will be barred?

One hen (I think it's a hen?) that I've named "Pepper" may be too barred? I'm not sure if she will work in the program or not. All I do know, is she is HUGE in body. So cute and fat!

<snip>

All very nice chicks but I trimmed to these two, I think the top one may be barred but really need a better pic of the black on the flight feathers or tail feathers. The one in the second pic is clearly barred but I wouldn't say 'too barred' with barring either you have it or you don't. However, if she's a hen and you mate her to an unbarred roo all of her daughters will be unbarred and all of her sons will be barred. Thus you can use her in your breeding program and keep any of her daughters knowing they are free from barring.

 

[MaBo]

Over the Christmas holiday, my sister came to visit, and I gave her some eggs to take home and hatch. In the last few days, 12 of 18 hatched out good and healthy! That's pretty decent hatch rate, all factors considered (egg age, etc). The eggs were from two Aloha hens, father being either a big RIR/NHR roo, or a big Buff Rock roo, in that order of likelihood. These should be carry the mottling gene, but not express it (i.e., they'll be solid). Here's the pics she sent me...



My Sis' says they all seem good and healthy! Aloha's spreading to Bellingham, WA, LOL! I'm kinda floored, as these are my first eggs ever hatched! (even if 'vicariously', LOL)

Just last night, I finished construction of my own incubator, and am currently doing some run testing, and hope to be incubating soon!

 

[Mahonri]

Cute chicks.

 

[Christie Rhae]

Wel if any of you guys are NPIP I would love to take some aloha eggs off your hands.
Aloha chickens in the Aloha State...

 

[Deerfield Acres]

Over the Christmas holiday, my sister came to visit, and I gave her some eggs to take home and hatch. In the last few days, 12 of 18 hatched out good and healthy! That's pretty decent hatch rate, all factors considered (egg age, etc). The eggs were from two Aloha hens, father being either a big RIR/NHR roo, or a big Buff Rock roo, in that order of likelihood. These should be carry the mottling gene, but not express it (i.e., they'll be solid). Here's the pics she sent me...

Oh, that's awesome! This is really getting interesting!

 

[notinoz2007]

i'm sad my chicks arent more friendly. they startle easy if i watch them a while and then stand up, or when i move my hand they all shuffle away. i think its because i hatched so many at once and didnt have any one on one bonding time with them. they do like me when they are hungry tho, lol.
i'm getting such pretty colors! mostly i have noticed that there are pink legs but there are at least 5 with beautiful yellow legs, and 2 with almost green legs, where would that have come from? and there is one chick whose comb goes into a circle near the top of the head, i've never seen anything like that and it is very cool. i'll try to get a pic of it in the next few days.
fun fun fun!!!

 

[Tam'ra of Rainbow Vortex]

Some of mine had grey legs with pink toes, which I think is pretty neat. I think it comes from the same place as the puffy cheeks I have on one pair. I also got one with a crown looking comb... turned out to be a rooster.
Don't worry about the skittishness, though. Once mine were a bit older and moved outside they gor friendlier. Well, except for the aformentioned puffy cheeked pair, who are still terrified of me and, in the rooster's case, every other chicken as well.
It's exciting so many people with new chicks!
I am going to put some of my Sussex crossed eggs in with MaBo's buff crossed in his new incubator and we will soon see Oregon's second generation of the Aloha project. I am really looking forward to it...
Now I just need to get around to dealing with the last few culls so I can get my second breeding pen back.