The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[delisha]

all though this blue has a small cut on her leg (the Judges miss nothing) she placed very well.

He was in full moult and did well also. I did not expect it since there were over 30 English entered







This is Champion LF and not my bird! She was absolutely stunning and deserved the win. I did not mind loosing to her at all and was quite honored to place under her.


This show had over 2300 entries!!

 

[Sally8]

[quote name="delisha" url="/t/729605/the-natural-chicken-keeping-thread-";

This show had over 2300 entries!!
[/quote]

That's wonderful! Congratulations!

 

[Sally8]

Although I've never admitted this to very many, I've attended a cat show and dog trials, but never chickens; can you explain a little what they are looking at or for when you take your chickens for show?

 

[delisha]

Although I've never admitted this to very many, I've attended a cat show and dog trials, but never chickens; can you explain a little what they are looking at or for when you take your chickens for show?

They Judge on the SOP (Standard of Perfection)
The American Poultry Association publishes a book that has specific breed standards. Anyone interesting in showing or breeding should own a copy of the SOP. (See my link in the bottom of my profile for purchasing a copy).

For example: the bird must weight 10 lbs and have black legs with about 100 other necessary elements. Each bird looses points for every thing that is wrong with it. For example:
Combs are worth 5 points. An Orpington must have 5 points and follow the curve of the head. Be red and smooth. Like this fellow. His comb fits that, but it is not perfect. The spikes are not perfectly spaced not perfect even height. His blade is a bit to upward and should not curve as much, but slightly up. (He still has a nice comb, but it is something i would like to prefect).

His chest should be fuller in the lower quadrant. He has a huge chest, but it should be larger. He has perfectly spaced toes. Wide as can be. Many large birds have crooked toes or swollen joints. He is almost perfect in his feet and legs. See those ragged feathers on his tail, he was marked down for those. He is in moult. Moult is a normal biological event, however he still lost points because of tail condition. These are just a few examples of what a Judge goes threw with each bird..a daunting task.

A few birds were DQed for condition..that is bad news. A few were even ejected from the barns for having mites. (Thank goodness) They check for health right after check in and all unhealthy birds are marked and asked to be removed. The cards are also marked for the reason.

 

[Gramma Chick]

Quote: Cool I like that they tell why ...they had to leave ..
There was a outbreak at the New york State Fair this year ..
No mention of what it was or any news in the paper about it Hush Hush
A lot of birds died ...I guess they dont test for everything there

 

[Jewelwing]

You wouldn't need to have anything with holes. Just scoop it out and put it in their dish. Or you could use a strainer if you want to strain out some of the liquid.

How many birds are you feeding? I have 10 adults and 3 chicks. Still using the 2 gal glass container easily. It holds quite a bit. I scoop our with a large spoon then sometimes put it in a strainer to get a little of the liquid out and sometimes not. Works fine for me. And if you need something way larger you could get a big crock and do the same (be sure it's lead-free before purchasing.)

Here's what I'm still using:


I got it at Walmart; cost 9.99 I think.

I may get a second one and rotate which one I feed from if I ever need larger amount. They're small enough to keep on the counter and large enough to hold a good amount of feed.

If I had 30 birds I'd probably go to a 3 or 5 gallon, lead-free crock but they are HEAVY. Maybe I'd just stick with a couple of these for ease of use.

I have 9 birds, so probably the 2 gal container would work for me too. It looks so pretty on your counter! Walmart, you say? I'll check. Maybe I could scoop out the solid food with a slotted spoon.

The 1/2 cup must be of the already fermented feed. I know my production hens did not get that much when I had them free ranging. My heritage birds get close to that on average but I have lots of roosters and they eat more. I used soaked Rural king feed or feed I can buy from Rural king.

I looked at Rural King, but had trouble figuring out their food. Which one did you buy? Is it pellets? Not organic, but no GMO, right? At least that's what they told me - they don't sell any chicken food with GMO.

 

[Jewelwing]

I have a new one that I LOVE - What do you think of this one? I also love seeing all the different colors. It's a happy "party on the counter"!

My chickens aren't laying yet, so I don't have anything to store the eggs in yet. I was going to get a wire basket to collect eggs in and store on the counter. Is there a reason I should get one like this instead?

 

[lalaland]

total personal preference I think, unless you are hatching then you might care. I like the wire basket I use because it lets stuff like hay, feathers, and dirt fall through. I'm always forgetting to take something to the coop to carry the eggs and they end up in my pockets or my tshirt pulled up like a basket.

 

[Pozees]

total personal preference I think, unless you are hatching then you might care. I like the wire basket I use because it lets stuff like hay, feathers, and dirt fall through. I'm always forgetting to take something to the coop to carry the eggs and they end up in my pockets or my tshirt pulled up like a basket.

Right there with you! LOL

 

[aoxa]

I still think Al is overfeeding. were going through 50 lb bag in a week and we have like 30 birds max close to 40 but I cant even see having that many. And we soak our feed...

That is way too much for chickens.. but ducks and turkeys eat a lot... Do you watch them finish their food? You could have mice or rats getting a lot of it.

Hey guys question regarding livestock guardians. What would be the best against fox? Im still debating on what Id like to get. Im planning on getting geese and I already have turkeys(Though their still a bit small yet). Would Alpacas ward off fox? Or would I absolutely have to get livestock guardian dogs?

You could get a llama!