The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

[rancher hicks]

I see the trend to now look at our operations to determine if we're giving all that can be given to our birds for their full potential. I caution this knee jerk change things with some history:

The originator of Orpingtons, William Cook, went on to write extensively on poultry care. Orpingtons being in creation just before 1870 and normal poultry management at that time was to just let them run wild, find the clucthes of eggs and grab one when you wanted a meal. They were put on a homestead and thought to forage for themselves in most cases excepting the emerging gentry class of fanciers. The modern thinking of the time Mr Cook was an avid proponent of; such little things as moving them to recently harvested crop fields, rotating them to orchards and for housing he said the best modern way of thinking was to hollow out a shelter in a hay stack for them and even to feed worms to sickly chicks as the idea was the grit inside not only protein aided their recovery. Now really think on this. These measures are providing better shelter and a rotation of good forage. What we humble chicken folk do today far exceeds the care of poultry in the early 20th century.

There's no need to reinvent or recycle the care of birds as it's evolved quite well with modern feed and our somewhat standard coop designs. Obviously if you had access to grain mills your able to greatly reduce you costs. I'm in an advertised agricultural region (New England) that can't even support a mill so that let's you know how inexpensive modern feed actually is. If you can't support the electric, trucking, labor or taxes on a product everyone in your area would purchase then we truly are not so agricultural without government subsidies. Those in the mid-west and redions of the south can take advantage of mills and should. For the true back yarder's forming a co-op of purchasing power, i.e. a person has a truck and drives to get feed from mill and all divide that monthly haul, would be a step in the right direction of limiting cost to enable some sort of profit. Those near farms may even be able to let flocks loose on harvested fields- farmer gets soil airation, pest reduction and limited high end nitrogen manure and you get to move a coop for free feed for a few weeks.

I'm not quite sure I understand what you're saying. Are you saying we shouldn't look at our operations to see if we are giving all that can be given to our birds for their full potential ?

Why do you consider it a "knee jerk" change? My postings are purely educational and not meant to reinvent anything. However there are a few of us here who could learn something from the past.

IMHO, considering we have chicken that is unhealthy and an industry being addressed by the ASPCA, I'd say things have not evolved quite well. I make this statement based on the ASPCA Action spring/summer 2014 edition. "The Truth About Chicken, cruelty by the numbers".

Based on what is written in these papers there was quite a bit of care given to poultry as evidenced by the article of A. M. White of Fairfield county Ohio.

Again my postings are purely for educational purposes not to start a debate about chicken care. What the reader does with it is up to them. Please don't turn this into a negative thing.

Thank you,

Rancher

 

[uphilljill]

I just watched a 12-week-old BR pullet swallow a mouse whole. The barn cat may be out of a job soon.

 

[3riverschick]

References:

1. the science of feeding grit to poultry.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/891051/the-science-of-feeding-grit-to-poultry
With hot link to Poultry Grit Bibliography with abstracts.
Grit for poultry: bibliography and abstract.
by Branion, Hugh Douglas, 1906- Published 1960
http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89043737196;

2. The use of charcoal in raising chicks.
Poultry Breeding: A Complete Guide for Keepers of Poultry - Page 98
Miller Purvis - 1910
http://tinyurl.com/me7brt4
"CHARCOAL FOR POULTRY.—Charcoal is not alone a preventive of disease because of its great capacity for absorbing gases, but it seems to exert a beneficial effect on the growth of fowls to which it is fed. It may be fed in the form of crushed charcoal in a trough where fowls have constant access to it, the pieces being about the size of grains of wheat, or it may be stiH more finely crushed and mixed with soft feed. Four turkeys were confined in a pen and fed cornmeal, boiled potatoes and oats. Four others were confined in the same way and given the same feed with the addition of one pint of finely-powdered charcoal. They also had a plentiful supply of broken charcoal in their pen. The eight were killed the same day and there was a difference in the quality of their flesh, which was very noticeable, as well as a difference of pounds in weight in favor of the birds which had been fed charcoal. If it is not convenient to procure charcoal near home it may be made at home. Corncobs piled up and burned until they are each a glowing coal and then doused with water make charcoal of excellent quality."
I am sorry this is only one reference. I like to give 2-3 but for some reason I cannot
open yahoogroups where I have the others stored. checking "google advanced book
search" shows a plethora of hits on subject : "poultry" , keywords:
"feeding chick charcoal".
3. The importance of sprouted grains ( particularly forage oats) in raising
chicks and supplementing green feed to POL hens and sexually maturing cocks.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/425134/anybody-raise-sprouts-to-feed-the-chickens/230
Pages 24 thru 29.
4. The importance of proper treats for chicks, fed not to entertain but to
improve development.
Honestly, I just haven't pulled my notes together on this. I know it's a need,
but trying to do this without my glasses will have to wait.
5. Systems for determining breeding worth of laying hens.
The inheritance of fecundity in fowls.
by Smart, Oscar. Published 1921
http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=coo.31924003164450;view=1up;seq=3
The call of the hen : or, The science of selecting and breeding poultry for
egg-production
by Walter Hogan and T.E. Quisenberry. Published: (1928)
http://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/009165172

While these two systems address the same subject they have
2 different purposes. The Hogan system is one of prediction and for culling.
The Smart system is one of observation and calculation of hens that are
already laying for future breeding purposes.

Best Regards,
Karen

 

[th17]

Does anyone live in East Tennesse near Roane County, that has birds or hatching eggs?

 

[Yard full o' rocks]

I am about 1 hr south of Chattanooga and will have young birds for sale. Not sure how close that is to you

 

[th17]

I see that you have Columbians listed, I am looking for Barred Rocks, do you have any?

 

[Yard full o' rocks]

I see that you have Columbians listed, I am looking for Barred Rocks, do you have any?

Sorry, I only raise Columbians

 

[Fred's Hens]

 

[chicken pickin]

They are beautiful!

 

[Fred's Hens]