The Buckeye Thread

[cactusrota]

Well mine showed up from Cackle last week all punky and healthy. Not sure about that light chipmunk one. I banded the two chipmunks so I can watch how they feather out from the others.
So excited!!

 

[wild chick]

Oh, I'm a sucker for the wee bitty ones! I'm not suppose to get ANY more until I get the chicken math into subtraction mode. That light one sure does stand out - that'll be interesting to watch!

 

[The Farmers' Daughter]

Well mine showed up from Cackle last week all punky and healthy. Not sure about that light chipmunk one. I banded the two chipmunks so I can watch how they feather out from the others.
So excited!! View attachment 1725223

They look terrific!

How often do you have to change legbands? I tried zip ties last year and their legs grew so fast the they started cutting off their circulation. When I tried to get the band off of one of them I ended up cutting off the tip of his toe.

 

[cactusrota]

Oh, I'm a sucker for the wee bitty ones! I'm not suppose to get ANY more until I get the chicken math into subtraction mode. That light one sure does stand out - that'll be interesting to watch!

My theory ( and I know nothing so don't take me seriously ) is that it's probably a throwback from the wild partridge game fowl ancestry of the breed. Only time will tell, though.

 

[cactusrota]

They look terrific!

How often do you have to change legbands? I tried zip ties last year and their legs grew so fast the they started cutting off their circulation. When I tried to get the band off of one of them I ended up cutting off the tip of his toe.

If I remember right I had to change every couple weeks ( I haven't used them since last spring) I put them on loose, just enough that they can't slip off the feet. I've tried the stretchy rubber band ones and they're able to get those off. And I definitely check regularly. I did have some cockerels in the bachelor pad pen that I had ziptied and neglected and one of them had their foot start swelling from the ziptie cutting off circulation. But I caught him up as soon as I noticed and got it off and he was fine the next day. I have a pair of nipper with sharp tips that i can slip inbetween the band and leg to cut them off even when they are tight and it's usually not a problem. You definitely have to get a good hold of their leg so they can't kick or flinch while you're doing it. I haven't had any serious problems yet...

 

[Barnyard Breeder]

Well mine showed up from Cackle last week all punky and healthy. Not sure about that light chipmunk one. I banded the two chipmunks so I can watch how they feather out from the others.
So excited!! View attachment 1725223

I will try to get pictures soon but my camera has no batteries.
Mine are two weeks old now and have quite a few feathers the chipmunks are much lighter in color, have more black on the wings, And the breast feathers have white specks
on the other hand the other chicks are feathering out with a very even dark dark red.
My cockerel from the other post has only been surpassed in size by one other but that cockerel is maturing much faster.
They look very nice

 

[Barnyard Breeder]

Blue band is chipmunk

Next two are of a better hen

Next two are of the slower growing cockerel

The last two are of my cockerel who is gaining weight extremely fast

 

[The Farmers' Daughter]

If anyone is in Canada & is looking for buckeyes this year, I'll have hatching eggs & chicks available.

If you're in Alberta, I have POL pullets and cockerels available.

 

[Nan Lee]

I have 8 Buckeyes I purchased from Tractor Supply March 18th. I am trying to decide which ones are pullets and which are cockerels. The salesman assured me he could tell the difference between them by their wing feathers. I laughed and told him at least he had a 50-50 chance. He didn't laugh with me. HA!

 

[The Farmers' Daughter]

lol
Buckeyes really aren't a good breed for wing sexing.
When they're day olds you have a somewhat good chance of being able to tell sex. If there is a slightly darker stripe on their back, it's a good chance that they are pullets. Once they start to feather, you'll just have to wait and see. I just sold a woman an eight month old pullet. About 3 weeks after she got it, it started to crow, and sure enough it was a cockerel. So... they're really slow to mature. You may be waiting a while.

I hope that you're enjoying them as much as I do!