You want these chickens? They're free...

[Scooby308]

That's how it started. A fellow down the road offered me a New Hampshire roo and 2 hens along with a White Orpington roo and 3 hens. I scrambled and put together two tractors to separate them by breed. And now I have chickens....

The hens had all been in the same pen with the white roo before I got them and the red roo had been in a pen with another red roo. Since the move, the red hens have each laid an egg a day but not a one from the white hens (3 days since the move).

The poor girls are nearly bare from the breeding, before I got them. I am going to build a larger tractor to put all the hens in to let them recooperate and build smaller, 1 roo only, tractors. I want them on fresh grass every day. They are currently eating an 18% layer feed and on fresh grass every day. Ages are 1 year and bought as chicks from McMurray Hatchery.

Questions:

1. Could the White Orps still be shook up from the move and will start laying later?
2. Will increasing protein intake help them grow back their feathers faster?
3. Anyone else have White Orps?
4. Would a 4x4x2 feet pen be large enough for a single roo if moved every day?

Thanks for any advice.


He has 2 more roos (another one of each breed) and 5 more hens that are a sex link for egg production (not sure of the breed) he wants me to take...........

 

[Scooby308]

Quick pics of the tractors and chickens.

 

[Scooby308]

The New Hampshire Reds

 

[Scooby308]

White Orpingtons

 

[Chickassan]

The hens could be shook or stressed from so much lovin. The protein will be a great help but the feathers won't all come back until molt. Plus, unproven but suspiciously shown to me quite a bit, white chickens are odd if some are going to be off they'll be white.

 

[Scooby308]

The hens could be shook or stressed from so much lovin. The protein will be a great help but the feathers won't all come back until molt. Plus, unproven but suspiciously shown to me quite a bit, white chickens are odd if some are going to be off they'll be white.

Just threw in some comefry for them.

I'm thinking they are over stressed, but the reds were in with the whites and "worked" equally well. The Reds are laying an egg apiece a day. Maybe there is something to your theory on whites.

 

[TheTwoRoos]

Probably over stressed still.Take the extra hens.You may wanna here even more of you want them all to coexist.More hens might help the overbreeding.Protien intake definitely helps feathers grow back,protien is what makes feathers.Any questions on the breeds?

 

[Scooby308]

Probably over stressed still.Take the extra hens.You may wanna here even more of you want them all to coexist.More hens might help the overbreeding.Protien intake definitely helps feathers grow back,protien is what makes feathers.Any questions on the breeds?

Can't really find much on the White Orps .I presume they are like any other Orp? I wasn't sure about the NH reds, but they are fairly docile and laying eggs every day. I love that big red roo.

 

[Mrs. K]

I wonder if your red hens are not production reds, those girls lay eggs, pretty much no matter what. You could feel the pin bones on the white chickens and check their vents to see if they were laying when you got them. I think they will start laying in a few days unless they were not laying when you got them, stress bothers birds differently.

The molt will come at the end of the summer to late fall, then they will grow new feathers. Some hens tend to get bare backed, it is not all the roosters fault. Hence another hen in the group will not be barebacked. One of the posters on here, selected birds for that trait and nearly eliminated it in her flock. Barebacks bother people more than chickens.

Good luck.

 

[TheTwoRoos]

I let be my New Hampshire’s too,escpecially the rooster.

Can't really find much on the White Orps .I presume they are like any other Orp? I wasn't sure about the NH reds, but they are fairly docile and laying eggs every day. I love that big red roo.