The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[Leahs Mom]

One of the blacks has thicker legs so that one is suspect.

 

[Pozees]

One of the blacks has thicker legs so that one is suspect.

LOL that's exactly what I was thinking when you posted that one was daintier. I have two SLW, hatched here, either a pair or two pullets with one daintier than the other. They just turned 16 weeks, and only last week I caught the one with thicker legs, and overall a bit larger, grabbing the other by the feathers on the back of her neck. That one is also just now starting to grow wattles. These hatched in the turner - turned out they had apparently been incubated by hens for a week before I picked them up to bring them home (3 hour drive) and put in my incubator. They are not the size I expected based on seeing the parents, at least not yet, but they are beautiful, and since they are my only SLW I'm rather hoping they are the pair I've thought they were for the last several weeks.

 

[Leahs Mom]

I missed this photo of black 2. Cut her crest right off, but this one is the daintier of the 2. A little thinner in the neck and head, and thinner legs.

However, they may look totally different from each other with a Swede father and a BA mom. Parents are both 9 mos old and the BA is pretty dainty in size.

 

[RedRidge]

Quote: How old can they get before they remove them themselves? Will they work for the 5 week olds and older or just for new hatched? I like that very well. I tried putting some vetwrap ones on when they were newly hatched and the next time I'd go out they were off...several times

They were hard to get on well when they were little!

I have never had one of mine come off... ever... and my Rhodebar cockerels who are five months old still have them on because I just haven't taken the time to switch to regular bands yet.
Here's what I use... for what it's worth...

Vet wrap on day old chicks until they are somewhere between 4 and 6 months old.
Use a very thin piece and wrap the leg twice, but loose, with extra out the back... then pinch that extra between two fingernails to make a tiny bump. This pinch compresses the vet wrap and I assure you there is no way they can remove it after it's compressed.

Then... my production flock gets colored spirals based on the year... coinciding with the international standard for queen bees.
Weird, I know... but we keep bees, so it's easy for us to just use the same color since we have always remember that.
Every year our 4 year old production birds get processed in the fall with all the others, so we just have to pull out the color from 4 years prior for that year.

For Heritage birds and breeders... HRIR, Rhodebars, SFH...
I use colored bands with numbers beginning at about 4 months old for the HRIR & RB (to begin breeding selection) and 6 months for the SFH (who are so much easier because they all look different). I like the lighter colors because the numbers are easier to see (same applies for lamb tags - lighter colors). Boys get banded on the right leg, girls on the left. Not that it's hard to tell when they are older, but sometimes as youngsters I make guesses and switch accordingly.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Thanks, RR. Do you have any photos of the colored bands w/the numbers..or where do you get those?

 

[Leahs Mom]

Some food for thought on Blue Kote. I've always wondered a bit about it and haven't used it much. There is a warning on it about using on animals for food, but no testing for chickens. Thought I'd at least put that out and let people make their own judgements.

 

[RedRidge]

Thanks, RR. Do you have any photos of the colored bands w/the numbers..or where do you get those?

I think you can see the bands/numbers in this pic...


I currently have a size 11 on these fellas... they are about 5 months old... the pullets have 9s.
Before they are full grown I will go up to 11 on the pullets and 12 on the cockerels.
I get mine here...
http://www.strombergschickens.com/prod_detail_list/numbered-plastic-bands

 

[aoxa]

I think you can see the bands/numbers in this pic...


I currently have a size 11 on these fellas... they are about 5 months old... the pullets have 9s.
Before they are full grown I will go up to 11 on the pullets and 12 on the cockerels.
I get mine here...
http://www.strombergschickens.com/prod_detail_list/numbered-plastic-bands

These are the ones I use as well. I like them. They look fancy.

 

[Sally8]

For the first time I used green zip strips, very small. I cut the extra off also. Seems to be working fine. My concern was that they would rub against the opposite leg and cause a cut. But hasn't been the case so far. In my case, they will be temporary. BCM grow very fast and I think they will get tight before long.

 

[aoxa]

I don't know if you guys saw this video yet. Thought I'd post it here in case you didn't.. My CX are 12 weeks here. I kept two of the smaller girls who have really grown since the competition for food is much less.