The Evolution of Atlas: A Breeding (and Chat) Thread

[robhuncor]

Love the photos, Cyn! You take great pictures and it's nice to see how the babies are growing. I love seeing photos of your yard too. It reminds me of going to camp when I was a kid! It must be so nice and quiet among the big trees.(Except for rooster crowing!)

 

[speckledhen]

Love the photos, Cyn! You take great pictures and it's nice to see how the babies are growing. I love seeing photos of your yard too. It reminds me of going to camp when I was a kid! It must be so nice and quiet among the big trees.(Except for rooster crowing!)

You are too sweet, Robin. I'm frustrated with my camera. For some reason, the photos are quite grainy a lot of the time. When I first got it, used from Amazon for $59, it was okay, but it seems like the shutter speed has slowed down. Could be my imagination, I guess.

It is quiet here, aside from, as you said, the roosters crowing. And when Apollo, Hector and the Brahma guy start up, it will be back to as loud as it used to be. I'm hoping for a deep, soulful, "big guy" crow from the Brahma that will help me not miss Suede's voice so much.

 

[1muttsfan]

A nice quartet. Is his barring crisping up now that he is more feathered?

 

[speckledhen]

A nice quartet. Is his barring crisping up now that he is more feathered?

Yes, it is. I need to go back and check photos of the original Rex, Wynette, Ida and Dottie at around that age. Let me check for comparison.

 

[speckledhen]

Here are the Stukels at about 7 weeks old, including the original Rex. (would you believe that is my late Buff Orp hen, Hope, and she is the SAME age as the Rocks?? She was a HUGE framed gal!).






Wynette at about 8 weeks old


Rex I, same age.



Then, Rex I at 11 weeks:

 

[holm25]

CYN!!! They look amazing!!

 

[speckledhen]

CYN!!! They look amazing!!

Thanks, Isaiah. Which ones, though, the baby Stukels or Hector and his three girls? Weren't Rex, Dottie, Wynette and Ida awesome? I sure miss Dottie. She was the sweetest hen ever. Dru is her daughter but Dru is a little quirky, for lack of a better word. She's sweet, yes, but still a little odd at times.

I just hope that Hector will be a good boy when his hormones kick in. He'd better be good-I'll have to warn him that studly young Apollo is still here and can have his girls at any time if he acts up, LOL.

If you haven't seen it, check out my Brahma thread. Those are adorable chicks.

 

[1muttsfan]

Wow Wynette was a knockout as a teen

 

[speckledhen]

Wow Wynette was a knockout as a teen

Yes, she sure was, and still is! Unfortunately, she and Ida passed their 5th hatch-day back on April 6, and Druscilla is right behind them, since she came out of the original Rex, so she's maybe 6 months younger than they are. I have no idea how long they'll be with me. They are just awesome hens. I bet Hector's girls will be wonderful, too. Properly bred BRs are just great all-round birds in every respect.

 

[speckledhen]

I let Hector out of his pen this afternoon. They were thrilled with the grass growing behind the coop they are currently in. Of course, as soon as the Brahmas are feathered out more, I'll be putting the four back in with them. They were pulling out feathers of the younger bunch, so I'd like them to feather out more fully, but now that the Brahmas are starting to really spar heavily and bulk up some, maybe they'll face up to the BR heathens a little more.

You see how Thea's barring goes evenly all the way to the end of her wings already? That is one reason I decided to keep her, even though she was not quite as large as one or two of the others I let Andrew take with him.