The Welsummer Thread!!!!

[Bridebeliever]

I'm thinking maybe the fear part with the first batch? (Though my grown chickens are super friendly and run to me today.) But anyway, first batch, wire cage right in our living room saw humans and dog all the time. This time chicks right in our living room but in an open box with high solid sides and don't see us unless we come over and peer in at them.

 

[CuzChickens]

Is anybody near SW VA looking for 1 year old Welsummer hens? They will be a year old on March 17th and I do not want to part with them, but I'm looking to get Black Copper Marans and I need to make room. Out of the four hens I have, I usually get 3 dark, chocolate brown eggs a day, and they are BIG too. Message me if you are interested.

 

[simplify]

Hello bridebeliever,
I am like you with chicken experience. Yes, to your question. They were quiet and skiddish. Then when they were old enough for living in thier offical coop and run they didnt do much foraging which I thought was strange. They did finally forage just took than time to get there. They are pretty quiet even with egg laying as well. I did get a roo last spring and hope that nature will increase my flock. My rooster is so calm around me so i can work in thier area and not worry being attacked (my slw roos are agressive). The girls have been laying few months now and the eggs are increasing in size and frequency. But havent got 6eggs in one day from the hens, usually getting 4 one day and 2 second day. Looking forward to doubling my hens, i just love them.

 

[igorsMistress]

This is Nugget, the only Welsummer in my flock. Love this little girl. She ends up with the worm over in the corner while everyone else wonders where the worm went. Super smart and fast!

 

[CuzChickens]

This is Nugget, the only Welsummer in my flock. Love this little girl. She ends up with the worm over in the corner while everyone else wonders where the worm went. Super smart and fast!

How cute!

 

[kadavis08]

Hachi. Our welsummer, Hachi (I've posted a few times about her) was a very aloof young bird. Didn't want to be touched, picked up, but there was no nosier being on the planet. She started laying beautiful speckled eggs at around 7 months of age and now wants to be picked up all the time. SO, the weather is improving and my husband wants my girls, Hachi and her BO sister, Willow, confined so that he can fertilize our backyard and not have them eat the fertilizer granules. I put up a 2 foot tall fence and gave them a 50 foot run around their coop. Willow, the BO, apparently grasped that I meant to contain them and busied herself in their new yard. Hachi, of course, saw this as no obstacle and got out daily. This past Monday, I put in a four foot tall fence. Hachi, again, was grazing in my backyard when I got home yesterday. I told her that she was the worst chicken, but she didn't seem to care.



From reading around on the forum, it seems my options are now to clip her wings or cover the coop. I take them warm water each morning (it was 19 last night) so covering their coop wouldn't be the most convenient thing but I don't want to clip her wings...basically because I have no idea what I am doing.






Advice? Thanks!

 

[ronnhill7]

If I felt that she was special to me, I would invest in covering the pen; if not, I would find me another chicken person and clip that girl's wings.

 

[kadavis08]

If I felt that she was special to me, I would invest in covering the pen; if not, I would find me another chicken person and clip that girl's wings.

She's a nut but I love her. Such a character. Runs wide open to me when I get home from work. I'll try the deer netting cover and see how that works. She was actually inside the fence when I got home today. She's just a forager. She walks our yard pecking around, comes on the porch to rest for a while then is back at it.

 

[simplify]

Hey there. I laughed with you on the escape artist. I too had a houdini and clipped her wing, actually 5 of my 6 girls took turns getting out and after i clipped all of them one was still getting out and found she had great skills going under the fence in one area so got that fixed and now everyone stays inside. The clipping works most of the time from what i read from the internet. I watched a few youtubes and was able to clip with no prob. I was a bit nervous but the hen settled down pretty easy and i was able to clip her by myself. What i did...i had my scissors ready,and i have an old bar top table to use outside so its tall. i am right handed, caught her, turned her so her head was tucked under my left arm snuggling her against me. Her feet were resting on the table top to hold her weight so my left hand was free to hold her wing open and steady for the feather cuts. You only trim one wing. It did solve my problem. I think it works best on a full mature hen that is heavier weight than the small birds. I think it is def easier if 2 people do this, one to hold and one to trim. You will be surprised how tough it is to cut through "feathers". You realy need an experienced birder or watch the videos.
Good luck

 

[FreedomFarm13]

Hachi. Our welsummer, Hachi (I've posted a few times about her) was a very aloof young bird. Didn't want to be touched, picked up, but there was no nosier being on the planet. She started laying beautiful speckled eggs at around 7 months of age and now wants to be picked up all the time. SO, the weather is improving and my husband wants my girls, Hachi and her BO sister, Willow, confined so that he can fertilize our backyard and not have them eat the fertilizer granules. I put up a 2 foot tall fence and gave them a 50 foot run around their coop. Willow, the BO, apparently grasped that I meant to contain them and busied herself in their new yard. Hachi, of course, saw this as no obstacle and got out daily. This past Monday, I put in a four foot tall fence. Hachi, again, was grazing in my backyard when I got home yesterday. I told her that she was the worst chicken, but she didn't seem to care. From reading around on the forum, it seems my options are now to clip her wings or cover the coop. I take them warm water each morning (it was 19 last night) so covering their coop wouldn't be the most convenient thing but I don't want to clip her wings...basically because I have no idea what I am doing. Advice? Thanks!

Hachi's eggs are beautiful!! And clipping is easy. Just take a pair of scissors, tuck her head under your non cutting arm, hold her wing out, and clip (it'll be hard, feathers are thick- make sure you have good scissors...kitchen shears are great for this) the long flight feathers, just up to where they meet the smaller wing feathers. You just need to cut the primaries. It'll really help. My speckled sussex girl Libby loves to forage, too, and she kept hopping the fence to get in the garden, so I had to clip her wings. It's a breeze once you do it a couple times. The only bird I've had that this didn't work on was a silver laced polish cockerel who was so good at jumping that clipping his wings (both of them, too, lol) didn't stop him from roosting in the trees at night. But that's the only time it didn't work, and he made a lovely stew If you're nervous about it, watch a couple YouTube videos to help get a visual. Good luck with your sweet Hachi!!!