The Heritage Rhode Island Red Site

[Fentress]

If they were frightened by something, that should subside over time. Maybe, there is one psychotic leader, that won't let it go and everyone else is reacting to that. I had a crazy K two years ago, that would spazz out and run around the yard for no reason and dash pell mell into the woods and thrash around. He was the first to go.

 

[chickkrzi]

[qU name="cmom" url="/t/407294/the-heritage-rhode-island-red-site/8940#post_15090272"]Eggs are in the incubator. Chicks due to hatch on April 23rd. I candled some of the eggs today and there may be some duds but all that I candled  were viable. I'll candle again when I set them in the hatchers. As soon as these chicks hatch I will probably have eggs available. I want to see how well it goes for the first hatch for this year. I rearranged the birds and who is in what coop and pen a few weeks ago.
[/quote]

Would love to get some of those beautiful RIW's. PLEASE

 

[Rancher3535]

My cream legbars are kind of like that so I what I do is take a chair and sit in the pen for maybe 2-3 minutes with a small can of cracked corn. I use a certain call and toss a few kernels out for them and repeat that 3 or 4 times then slow get up and go about my way. At first they just run. Once they get use to the call they will start meeting you at the pen door. I really believe it is one or two that get them going not the whole group.

 

[cmom]

I more or less do the same thing. I take a milk crate out into the pen and take my scratch treat mixture in a small white bucket and toss out some treats while using a special call. At first one or two come up and test the waters and shortly more will start coming up. I do this every day. The birds get used to my call and the bucket and before you know it they come running up for their treats. When they come up I eventually try to get them to take the treats out of my hand and some will. I reach out and give some a pat. They do get a little discombobulated when I move them to another coop and pen but in no time they settle into a routine and the treats and call continue. They won't forget that.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

If I catch it in time and the chicks are still somewhat smaller than the adult hens I'll add in a pair or trio of hens to try and teach them how to free range and when to run scared and when to beg for treats. If that fails or if I somehow miss out on getting the chicks in a pen with a few teacher hens, I'll put the chicks in with my female laying ducks. My ducks are bossy and they won't let a chicken get their way.

 

[cmom]

After the birds have been in a coop and pen for a few days, I will let them out into the pasture but they really don't go too far from their coops. When I want them to go back into their pens I go out there with the treat bucket and when I make my call and the see the bucket they come running and into their pen for their treats.Once in awhile one will be stubborn so I get my yard tractor and chase them with it. I'm old and can't run like I used to. I chase the stubborn one around and she gets tired and then I pick her up and put her in the pen. Yesterday I had a stubborn one. She would not go back into her pen. I was feeding so I continued to fill the feeders in the coops. After I was done feeding I couldn't find her and looked everywhere. I figured she had found a hiding place. I finally found her in the garden hiding in the arugula. Every once in awhile she would poke her head up to see where I was and when I saw her duck back into it I got her. The birds can be amusing too at times.

 

[cmom]

I have eggs available. http://www.hilltop-farm.info/store My chicks are due to hatch on Thursday.

 

[cmom]

Most of my Reese/Mohawk chicks hatched today. Here are some of them. More are due to hatch on April 30th and May 14th.

 

[Beekissed]

Nice, big and beautiful chicks! Good color too. Can't wait to see them all grown up and with their full size and plumage!

 

[RIR-YELLOWLEGS]

I just recently purchased some Rhode Island Red chicks from a feed and seed store in fairburn Georgia my hubby didn't get just a few he purchased 20i found out this a.m.that these chick came from a brood farm in in Texas called Ideal Poultry hope this is a good thing so far so good and the chick do look like rhode island reds just hope they are the teal yrue heritage breed.as this chicken very hardly exist anymore as i grew up with the old breed and i can see the different in the bird of today.