What do you have in your flock?

[magicstorm]

Yeah. I figure if next year i dont find any then i might also.

 

[yoda47]

We have:
2 RIR
2 barred rocks
2 Auracuna

 

[Sylvester017]

Quote:

Depends on breeding origins with black sexlinks, I've heard from most that they are much nicer than leghorns (w/c I have 2)and yet great layers. I just got 3 black sexlinks 6 wks ago, so we will see.

So total of 38 (3 generations of Plymouth barred rocks, Wyandottes, Leghorns, Black Copper Marans, Blue Marans, Rhode Island Reds, Black Australorps, Black Sexlinks, New Hampshires, Amerecaunas, Easter Eggers, & Speckled Sussex) of which the 1st gens will be camping to Freezer Mountains

when the 3rd gens start laying in June or so.

I would think just about any heritage breed is nicer than Leghorn temperaments. I did have a nice tempered White Leg for 3 years and then she went bonkers on her flockmates. She didn't like new additions to the flock and got way too assertive. We gave her time to calm down but nothing worked. Our Buff Leg at one-year-old immediately started cannibalizing the gentler hens. I won't mix Legs with gentle breeds any more. We re-homed the Legs to an egg-seller. I love Legs but not in a mixed flock. I got 50/50 pros/cons re Red or Black Sexlinks so I didn't chance trying them. Leghorns lay well into their 5th, 6th years and some beyond but Sexlinks I heard get spent after just a couple years. Since we don't freezer camp any of our hens (pets) I don't invest in heavy layer breeds that get spent too soon. I have some 4 and 5 year hens that still give us eggs and have gentle temperaments - not dynamo layers but enough to keep us two in eggs for our needs.

 

[Sylvester017]

Would love a couple of australorpz but no one around me has any. As ive had no losses so far do not want to try shipping

i know how you feel. I want some welsummers, but cant find them anywhere local. I think im going to try meyer hatchery for them. Im nervous with shipping chicks as ive never done that.....but i might not have a choice

Many private breeders wind down hatching before the hot summer months hit. Hatcheries will ship chicks from April to September but many private breeders are selling off their juveniles/adults by Fall. Order from a private breeder in advance so they can plan filling your order. I always know there is a wait for quality breeders since they don't over-hatch birds the way hatcheries can. I've waited as long as 7 months before getting a bird from a private breeder because I order juveniles rather than chicks.

 

[Spartan22]

Would love a couple of australorpz but no one around me has any. As ive had no losses so far do not want to try shipping

Ordered 15 chicks thru the mail last February for the very first time, non were lost. They're now 12 weeks old and pretty healthy. I guess got lucky.

 

[magicstorm]

Congrats on your successI know a lot of people don't have an issue with mail order and there is a hatchery that's closer that can have mine here in 24 hours so next year if there are no local breeders I will try that. there is a lady who has Australorp orpington mixes and hopes by next year to have a pin just forAustralorp.

 

[silkiechickens8]

I may have already posted on here, but if I did, since then I've gotten more so here it goes
2 BOs
2 RIR
1 Black Sexlink
1 Red Sexlink
2 Barred Rocks
1 Partridge Rock
4 EEs
2 White Leghorns (one of them lays double yokers all the time!)
1 Black Maran?
3 New Jersey Giants
3 Black Sumantras
2 Blue Cochins
1SLW
1 GLW
1 Cuckoo Maran
4 Naked Necks
2 White Rocks
2 Speckled Sussex
1 Black d'Uccle bantam
1 White Polish
1 White Crested Black Polish Bantam
1 Blue Partridge Silkie
2 Black Australorps
2 Sicillian Buttercups
2 Buff Brahmas

May 2nd MPC order-
2 white Silkie females
1 Mille Fleur d'bantam female
1 Mottled Cochin bantam female
1 Silver Spangled Hamburg female
1 Dark Cornish female

Also, going to be picking up a free leghorn listed on Craigslist.... Poor thing was probably going to be eaten after she's done laying. Not looking forward to the quarantine though.....


Roos-
1 Mille Fleur Cochin Bantam
1 Black Breasted OEG Bantam
1 Silver Lakenvelder

Ducks-
1 Blue Swedish Drake
1 Welsh Harlequin Drake
(Planning on getting some pekins, calls, and maybe even a goose this year)

Guineans-
1 Lavender Male
1 Lavender Female
1 Pearl Male
2 Pearl Female
(Maybe we'll hatch some this year......)

I think that's all. Also, is anybody knows any ideas for companions for my 2 drakes (they live to together and absolutely ADORE each other, but I want them to have some other friends in case something happens to one of them) that'd be awesome! Thanks!

I have more now (who can resist those little cheepers?).......
I got another Golden Sebright and a RIR (the RIR has no tongue and was being picked on so of course I had to get her).
I also got and order from MPC a few days back, two did not make it (Mille Fleur d'Uccle and Silver Spangled Hamburg), but the others (2 White Silkies, 1 Mottled Cochin bantam, 1 Dark Cornish) are doing great! Picked up a 3 week old Mottled Cochin bantam hen the other day from the breeder I got some silkies from a few years ago, really excited about her! Going to be picking up 4 female Pekin ducklings on the 18th to put in with my drakes and a few Houndans. Anconas (the chicken breed not the duck breed), and some Langshans.

 

[NomanChicken]

That's an odd assortment for a smaller flock

. Are they still young or have they been around each other for a few years?

They have only been together for a couple of months but they all love to be together and are very friendly with each other, so it seems like they have been together their whole life.

 

[Sylvester017]

They have only been together for a couple of months but they all love to be together and are very friendly with each other, so it seems like they have been together their whole life.

All my different breeds as pullets were sweet and non-combative and were free-range in the yard. Some went as old as 3-years before starting to display assertive or aggressive behaviors. My dual-purpose or egg-layer breeds - White Leghorn, Buff Leghorn, and Cuckoo Marans - became so insanely aggressive, vicious, or cannibalistic toward the gentler breeds (Silkies, Ameraucana, Breda) that we no longer keep the heavier or assertive breeds and re-homed the bullies to an egg-seller's flock of dual purpose or egg-layer breeds. It puzzled us because our White Leghorn was a nice gentle alpha leader for 3 years and then one day went bonkers on her flockmates. The Buff Leghorn went cannibalistic on her flockmates at one year, and the Marans viciously attacked a Silkie pullet - not good to have 7-lb bullies around 2-lb bantams we learned the hard way. We caught the offensive bullies before any serious injuries and I no longer tolerate the slightest offensive behavior in a chicken. I wouldn't have minded putting some offenders in a stew pot but my tender DH re-homed the offenders into egg-layer flocks where they no longer could bully timid or gentle birds. After cycling through 13 birds in 5 years we are finally down to our gentle 4 birds all 5-lb-or-under. We tried an odd number of 3 birds or 5 birds but found the 4-bird backyard of gentles the best for us and they've been hanging around together in pairs. When we had 3 or 5 birds there was always an odd-man-out for pairing.

THIS PARTRIDGE SILKIE AND BLUE WHEATEN AMERAUCANA ARE OUR GENTLEST BIRDS AND SEEM TO HANG AROUND EACH OTHER.


WHILE THE PARTRIDGE SILKIE SECLUDES HERSELF IN THE DOGHOUSE, THE ACTIVE BLUE BREDA AND SPUNKY BLACK SILKIE HANG OUT TOGETHER BUSILY FORAGING AND STEALING TIDBITS FROM EACH OTHER LIKE IT'S A GAME!

 

[Sylvester017]

I have more now (who can resist those little cheepers?).......
I got another Golden Sebright and a RIR (the RIR has no tongue and was being picked on so of course I had to get her).
I also got and order from MPC a few days back, two did not make it (Mille Fleur d'Uccle and Silver Spangled Hamburg), but the others (2 White Silkies, 1 Mottled Cochin bantam, 1 Dark Cornish) are doing great! Picked up a 3 week old Mottled Cochin bantam hen the other day from the breeder I got some silkies from a few years ago, really excited about her! Going to be picking up 4 female Pekin ducklings on the 18th to put in with my drakes and a few Houndans. Anconas (the chicken breed not the duck breed), and some Langshans.

Who takes care of this menagerie when you get sick or go on vacation? Curious as to how the chicken with no-tongue can eat? TY for having the heart to take in unwanted or disabled birds because it would overwhelm me to have just ONE disabled bird! BTW - do you keep all the breeds in one flock or separate bantams from large fowl?