What do think about cable ties and beads?

[needmorechickens!]

Mrs. AK-Bird-Brain :

I found some colored plastic beads at the bead store... look like short colored elbow-macaroni. I use the smallest white zipties that have the safety zip... the ends lie flat against the band instead of sticking out like all the others. I use pink for identifying girls on breeds I can't tell the difference (like chukars) and blue for boys. The permanent marker is not permanent... it rubs off in time. So I use combinations of colors if I need to. I use a different color each year so I can tell at a glance which ones are older. At least now that I've got so many birds I can't tell them apart.

You'll want a low-profile bead... plastic is better than wood (trust me), and if you can find the safety-ties, those don't leave sharp edges sticking out.
Good luck!

I am gonna have to look for some of those safety ties. This sounds like what I want to do.
~Rebecca​

 

[moduckman]

Hey, leg bands really are not that expensive. The plastic numbered one can last a few years. There are also colored bandettes and my favorite, the metal numbered leg band. Check them out, I'm sure you'll be happy with them.

 

[the1much]

Quote:
their not expensive if you just buy 1 of the 25 packs,, but with so few colors, and soooo many birds, it would cost 100 bucks to band my birds

 

[allen wranch]

Let me clarify. I don't use cable ties on all my birds, just the ones I want to identify. If a bird has bumblefoot and I need to check on it, etc.

 

[Laskaland]

Cable ties come in neon colors too- pink, yellow, green and blue (Menards) as well as red black white yellow and orange(Home Depot). You can take a permanent marker and write on them, too, to label birthday or whatever you ware needing/wanting to do
good luck!

 

[cmom]

I buy leg bands. The birds grow so fast I just order the adult size of what ever breed I want to band. I have read of some one using nail polish on the birds toenails. Here is where I get my leg bands.

http://shilala.homestead.com/tags.html
"The Easy Chicken Poultry and Supply"

Kelly Chewning
1602 Salem Road
DuBois, PA 15801
(814)-583-5374
Email: [email protected]

Guideline Chart for Bird Leg Band Sizes
No. Band Size Physical Size Fits
2 1/8" Canaries, day old Quail
3 5/32" Parakeet, 1-4 week old Quail, Doves, Cockatiels, Guinea keets
4 1/4" Baby Chicken, Coturnix Quail, small Pigeon, adult Bobwhite Quail
5 5/16" Pheasant hen, Tumblers, medium Pigeon, Homers, Wood Duck
6 3/8" Pheasant cocks, month old Chickens, large Pigeons, Chukar Partridge
7 7/16" Ringneck Pheasants, Mallards, Wild Ducks, Bantams, Feather Leg and Runt Pigeons
9 9/16" Wild Ducks, Pheasants, Leghorn hens, Ancona, Silkie, Gamebirds
10 5/8" Wild Turkey, Minorcas, Cross breeds, adult Guineas
11 11/16" Rock hens, Wyandottes, Rhode Island Red hens, Leghorn cocks, medium Ducks: Runners, Swedish, Harlequin
12 3/4" Wild Geese, Rocks, Turkey hens, Geese, Jersey Giants, Orpingtons, larger Ducks: Pekins, Rouens, Muscovy
14 7/8" Canada Geese, Turkeys, Honkers, Jersey Giant Cocks

 

[needmorechickens!]

Quote:
Thanks, I'll check this out too.
~Rebecca

 

[moduckman]

Quote:
their not expensive if you just buy 1 of the 25 packs,, but with so few colors, and soooo many birds, it would cost 100 bucks to band my birds

I currently have over 150 birds. I don't show them all, so I don't band them all. But I do have several hundred bands and bandettes to choose from. They were not that expensive.

 

[CalicoFarm]

I thought about using the zipties also but was worried about them tightning. Has anyone ever put a drop of super glue on them to keep it from happening? Or, maybe a touch of silicone. Wonder if that would work?

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

needmorechickens! :

I am looking for something to use as leg bands on my birds. I have heard that some here on BYC use the cable ties (zip ties) like these...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/12638_cableties.jpg

I have only found a few different colors of cable ties which means I would have to use multiple ones on a bird to identify them.
So I was thinking about using a cable tie with a series of craft beads on it like this...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/12638_web-cabletie-chicken.jpg

Disclaimer: No chickens were harmed in this experiment.

Do you see any problems with this?

~Rebecca

Haven't read through the other replies...but I thought I'd let you know that I use these in my breeder pens. Instead of colored beads, I use a black magic marker and write numbers on the beads.​