Virginia

[snoozee-q]

I am in Appomattox co. Anyone by me?

 

[Maggiesdad]

Welcome to the Va thread, JamieW and snoozee-q!

 

[ki4got]

ok this is a multi-multi-purposed post... LOL

Maggiesdad, refresh my memory again what flavors you have? got a possible local interest in eggs (for me to hatch for him) and my memory is shot... (k.i.forgot strikes yet again!)

maybe everyone else can post what breeds they have too, and if they're mixed together or penned by breed? I like comparing what breeds are common/popular in our state, so I have an idea what to hatch out to sell at the swaps too.

for myself, I have Dorkings (red and silver grey), Swedish Flower Hens, blue laced red Wyandottes (lf and bantam) and bantam cochins (blue mottled, Columbian, buff columbian, mille fleur, red and silver laced), and easter eggers and free range mixes.

I only have a couple pairs penned right now, hatching the (very) few eggs I'm getting, trying to build up my own stock for next year's breeding pens. some of my varieties are waiting on pens of their own (and I'm waiting on nicer weather) or I'm waiting on nicer weather to have new birds shipped to me, to replace those eaten by predators. (2 cochin roos, red and silver laced, and 2-3 bantam blrw pullets).

hopefully 2014 will be better than 2013 was in terms of predators, but so far the coons are up 4, taking some of the bantam cochins I just got (Columbians) right thru the wire of the pen they're in! so Saturday's job (the weather's supposed to be decent so far!) is to further coon-proof that pen.

and for the DIY-ers in the group, you might keep an eye open for push up tent frames, where the tent top has died but the frame is still good. I'm planning on wiring around 2 of them as well and putting plastic sheeting over the tops to keep airborne predators out, to use for my grow-out pens, for the ever-increasing number of chicks that keep finding their way into my hatcher! (don't know HOW that's happening!

)

so... along that line of thought... anyone local to sw va have Saturday free and want to lend a hand? i'll pay it back in hatching whatever eggs you provide, or working something else out maybe.

 

[MistyMountain]

@ki4got I have a whole mix of chickens, EE, White and Brown Leghorns, a couple SSHamburgs, a NH all watched over by a SLw Roo. All hatchery stock, so basically I have a bunch of mutts, LOL. I am a big fan of the EE's though, and will be getting a Roo for them this spring. I also have a couple welsummer pullets, a couple cuckoo marans, and 5 partridge silkies coming in April. Breed is not a big thing for me, I just like lots of color-- both in the birds and in their eggs. The plan for the silkies (fingers crossed that I get at least one pullet…) is to head the "nursery" brood babies when I need to replenish my flock. Kinda going for the closed flock thing from here out.

I'll keep my eyes out for tent frames. Sorry you've had such a rough year. The hawks have been abundant around here and got away with one of my SSHamburgs on Christmas day. It hit again on another SSHamburg 3 days later (I kept them locked in the coop for 3 days) but she survived. I hope things get better for you!!

 

[finnfur]

hopefully 2014 will be better than 2013 was in terms of predators, but so far the coons are up 4, taking some of the bantam cochins I just got (Columbians) right thru the wire of the pen they're in! so Saturday's job (the weather's supposed to be decent so far!) is to further coon-proof that pen.

If you are using chicken wire / AKA wire poultry netting it is designed to keep poultry in but won't keep predators out.
A good size coon can chew thru it in about 5 minutes or less. Need at least 14 gauge wire or something
with small mesh so they cant get a bite on it or reach thru and get a hold of a chicken.

 

[ki4got]

Quote:
yup i'm aware of that... this pen was never meant to house bantams/chicks... an adult dorking can (and has) held it's own against any problems in the past, but had to get put into service unexpectedly when I acquired 9 more cochins last Monday... it's welded wire, but 2x4 fence wire. i'll be lining it with hardware cloth on Saturday. too cold prior till then for me to spend any amount of time outside. just feeding and collecting eggs sets my asthma off every time.

 

[choptank330]

@snoozee-q I am not far from you in Bedford Welcome!!!!

 

[Maggiesdad]

hmmm... let's see


Mill run Australorps, from a rescue flock I picked up, nothing special but these girls are going into their 4th year and they've been a mainstay for me as far as a supply of table eggs - 8 or 9 a day from mid Feb to late Oct out of 11 girls. Quiet, laid back girls and a even tempered smooth rooster.

I started a flock of BCMs for my brother, and have 32 anybody's guess in the bator due out groundhog day. They'll be chicken dinners and just dark brown egg layers. After that I'm sticking the best cockerel and two best pullets out of 9 into a pen, and start hatching from them for type. My reserve cockerel goes in a pen with my three blue laying EE hens for some olive fun. The other two BCM boys are headed to the Rival mini jacuzzi unless somebody wants them for a olive egger project. One has lots of white in is tailfeathers, and the other has a tad of white and yellow feet.

My mutt project gets another shot of fun this spring, with a Sussex(s) X Euskal Oiloa(d) cockerel over my best mutt girls. These mutts are selected for meatiest frame and best egg capacity with no regard to color. Parentage looks something like this... Euskal Oiloa(s) X Black Giant(d)... pullets from that hatching under a Barred Rock, so Barred Rock(s) X (EOxBJG)(d) and then this year (Sussex x EO)(s) X (BR x (EOx BJG))(d).

I'm almost afraid to put those eggs in the incubator, but dang their mommas lay like crazy and the cockerels taste just like chicken!

And then last but not least, my real chicken passion, the Euskal Oiloa (Basque Hen). Two pens of them, hatching in quantity for improvement, so I should have lots of pullets that don't make the cut.

...

....you asked!

 

[ki4got]

hmmm... let's see


Mill run Australorps, from a rescue flock I picked up, nothing special but these girls are going into their 4th year and they've been a mainstay for me as far as a supply of table eggs - 8 or 9 a day from mid Feb to late Oct out of 11 girls. Quiet, laid back girls and a even tempered smooth rooster.

I started a flock of BCMs for my brother, and have 32 anybody's guess in the bator due out groundhog day. They'll be chicken dinners and just dark brown egg layers. After that I'm sticking the best cockerel and two best pullets out of 9 into a pen, and start hatching from them for type. My reserve cockerel goes in a pen with my three blue laying EE hens for some olive fun. The other two BCM boys are headed to the Rival mini jacuzzi unless somebody wants them for a olive egger project. One has lots of white in is tailfeathers, and the other has a tad of white and yellow feet.

My mutt project gets another shot of fun this spring, with a Sussex(s) X Euskal Oiloa(d) cockerel over my best mutt girls. These mutts are selected for meatiest frame and best egg capacity with no regard to color. Parentage looks something like this... Euskal Oiloa(s) X Black Giant(d)... pullets from that hatching under a Barred Rock, so Barred Rock(s) X (EOxBJG)(d) and then this year (Sussex x EO)(s) X (BR x (EOx BJG))(d).

I'm almost afraid to put those eggs in the incubator, but dang their mommas lay like crazy and the cockerels taste just like chicken!

And then last but not least, my real chicken passion, the Euskal Oiloa (Basque Hen). Two pens of them, hatching in quantity for improvement, so I should have lots of pullets that don't make the cut.

...

....you asked!

yeah I did.

and glad for the answer. thanks. I just like to see what others are working on, keeping, breeding, etc. and if those cockerels DIDN'T taste like chicken I'd worry.

 

[HaplessRunner]

For my pure breed stock, I have cream legbars, Swedish flower hens, black, blue wheaten, wheaten ameraucanas, euskal oiloas. I also have some cream legbar x EE and x RIR project crosses. You can see these crosses at the link below.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/825092/cream-legbar-hybrid-thread/650#post_12696451


Otherwise, I have a layer flock with red and black sex links, and some Swedish Flower hen crosses.

Will be setting up pens, one this weather breaks, such that I can sell chicks this spring and to build up my breeding stock.