The Omega Rocks: The Last & Ultimate Barred Plymouth Rock Flock

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Hoping you have more females than males. I'm sure if you need to you can find some homes for the gorgeous boys. Tell Bodie he needs to get better so you can have that pen available again. They are going to love all that extra room.

 

[speckledhen]

I figured out how I will handle the pen situation. The small front pen will be their grow out pen for awhile, at least until they outgrow it. Then, when that time comes, I will put Mace and his three BR hens in that pen and move the Omegas next door into Mace's pen, which is the second largest pen. Bodie will just stay where he is for the time being. I have no idea how long he'll go on, but at least he can see his former flock face to face at a hardware cloth screen (used to be an old screened pop door). I may have to make other arrangements, but for now, that seems a decent solution.
I vacuumed out the front pen, disinfected some with Oxine solution, let it dry and now, it has new shavings. I found an extra small hanging feeder in the barn storage, though there is a PVC feeder already in that pen; I just thought the hanging one will work better until they get a tad taller and can reach it better than they can now.

 

[Ponypoor]

I took some pictures just awhile ago. The Omega Rocks are 10 days old today and I had to change their leg bands to larger ones.They're doing great, the little (not so little) hoodlums! I was trying to decide on the sex of a few confusing ones, but I'm about to just wait and see, which always works. The exhibition types seem are generally harder to sex than the hatchery ones, traits not always as distinct to make the call on a few. I think I have four or five pullets, hopefully five, but a couple have me on the fence. Here are some pics of them, outgrowing their brooder already. I have a pen for them in the barn almost ready. They are getting too rowdy and big to keep in this brooder. I saw that I was letting Hector's bunch outside by a week old, though that was in June, not April, a bit cooler now than it was then. Jamie Duckworth just emailed me to ask how they're all doing.

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Awwww they are so adorable! It looks like you have a marvellous hatch their - they all look wonderful!

 

[1muttsfan]

The Playpen

 

[speckledhen]

The Playpen

At least out there, they can be as rowdy as they like and I don't have to get out the vacuum cleaner.

i asked Jamie what he feeds his breeders and this is what he said:

I use a local feed that is a mash and mix in Fertrell breeder supplement and add 2 cups of cod liver oil. I mix it up in a cement mixer.

I don't own a cement mixer. The Fertrell supplement is about $95 for a 60# bag, not sure what his percentage is for the mix. I can get cod liver oil, though, which I used to hear about all the time as a breeder supplement. I have used Red Cell as a supplement sparingly, which is mentioned in the booklet Jamie wrote, but it's pretty high in iron, made for horses. Right now, the chicks are on the Tucker Milling Nature Crest GMO-free 18% chick starter/grower mixed with 24% protein meat bird starter/grower because 18% starter really is not enough for these larger framed exhibition Rocks. I just need a good vitamin/mineral supplement I suppose. Not really sure. My good 22% Super Layer feed I fed for many years is now called Show Flock and no longer has porcine protein which is why I switched to their non-GMO stuff, still not satisfied with that for my adults. I'm amazed that any feeds leave in animal protein after the brainwashing about vegetarian feed, which not the best for chickens nor humans. Give chickens some good old ground beef and they go nuts for it.
Sorry, I can't keep ranting about feed here, but I'm thinking ahead to what these will eat. I certainly could mix the Show Flock with the GMO-free with animal protein because my birds all get some green forage/free range time, but that will lower the protein content of the 22% feed. Lord knows, they'll eat all the mice and snakes they can find. I'll have to tell you a mouse story from a few days ago, proves chickens can be avid hunters!

 

[EmmaDonovan]

What's the reason for the cod liver oil?

 

[speckledhen]

What's the reason for the cod liver oil?

Vitamin A, Vitamin D, which helps absorb calcium (shell quality), feather quality, bright eyes, lubricated oviduct (Vit E helps that, BOSS), etc. It is most used, I think, when they don't get green forage, so mine are not likely to really need it, at least not regularly. It would probably be of more benefit in winter for my free range flocks when there is not really anything green out there to eat. It is not something you generally do regularly, only periodically. If you overdo fish oils, you'd probably end up tasting it in your eggs. i know of no local mills so I have to do commercial feeds as their base nutrition. I would say mine have done very well on Tucker Milling feeds and some free range time or I don't think I'd have had such terrific longevity in my flocks, right?
I think some Nutri-Drench or similar vitamin/mineral supplement would be as beneficial to them. I don't know if Jamie even eats eggs. He is all about breeding to standard and preserving the breed in its proper form. He does not free range his flocks, of course, can't afford to do that with the $$ he has in them.

 

[Rusty Hills Farm]

Those images are positively arresting! Some amazing chicks you've got there!


Rusty

 

[speckledhen]

Those images are positively arresting! Some amazing chicks you've got there!


Rusty

Thanks, Rusty. I think they're a great bunch. Today, though, I have about decided that after tomorrow's cold morning, they will be going out to the grow-out pen. I was going to wait an extra day, but it's insanity in that brooder!
They had an absolute rumble this morning. It was like WWE Wrestlemania with all the sparring and tag team matches! They are fearless and it's becoming a challenge to change the shavings and refill their water. They have to be allowed more room to groove so tomorrow afternoon, they will be transported to their new quarters and we can reclaim our dining area (barring complications, of course). Should be some rip-roaring fun in Omega World!

 

[Hillbilly Hen]

I have my little chicks in a brooder out in the coop. They are all 2 weeks old and younger. This morning it got down to 20 degrees here . They all seem to be doing well. I, however, don't like going out in the dark to readjust the heat lamp. I'm afraid I might run into a bear or something lol. I have a camera in the brooder that helps me to keep an eye on the temperature and the silly little chicks.
I'm sure you're awesome little ones will be fine.