Quite Simply, Chook Chat

[Glutton4...]

You can still roast them - you wrap the body in bacon and secure with string. I find the skin too tough anyway on a 6 month old bird.

Didn't think of that - cookery is not my department! LOL

The first two are despatched and plucked. My Dad despatched, Mum and I plucked one each. They are now hanging up out of harm's way. Mum will show me how to draw them tomorrow, the other two will be done in the week.

[OverWyreGrower]

Vorwerk are really handsome birds. Lucky you. I have been told - no more breeds.....Our chicks have started hatching in the new chicktec incubator - its great as the top is like a space age dome so my little girl can sit and watch! 23 all fertile(only dubious about one maran egg which is such dark brown you just can't tell) 2 hatched so far. Sooty and Fluffy.

Oooh, babies! Pictures?? I'm saving up for an incubator, hoping to get one around Easter *cross fingers*...

We've got Welsummers and Barnevelders at the moment, so just wanted to add a third breed in (plus the ISA's, but they are the layers, and we're not breeding off them). I'd like to be able to do hatching eggs and POL's eventually - something a bit rarer, you know...

[julesapple]

You can still roast them - you wrap the body in bacon and secure with string. I find the skin too tough anyway on a 6 month old bird.

Roasting bags work well too, if you tie them up really tight to the bird!

Jules

[jessmorris]

..I had rabbit casserole yesterday (with cream, cider and wholegrain mustard) and strangely, it was very hard to skin (fresh - staright after dispatch),is this the same with chickens?... jus' wondered.

[petal]

we had one of our turkeys for dinner last night - a norfolk black = delicious! A little cuckoo maran chick has just hatched as my son's girlfriend was watching - she was delighted! It is called Sophie, after her!

[Nicos]

It is called Sophie, after her!

...fingers crossed it's a gal then!!

[Glutton4...]

LOL - The sequel to A boy named Sue - a Rooster named Sophie!

[Nicos]

....apparently our female cat is named after a male owl!

[petal]

well, the maran chick Sophie is very dark with barely any yellow spot on head - so could be a girl. If its a boy its for the pot regardless of name!

[RichmondHens]

I think you must be the first Grape to have hatched this year Petal. I finally have another broody, will put her in her own coop tonight and see how she gets on, but have some LS eggs lined up.

We have an Araucana cross cockerel called Mima - he was originally Jemima as we were sure he was a girl ........ until he crowed!!

[petal]

I have used my chicktec incubator I got 2nd hand - its great when you have an impatient little girl as they can watch the chicks hatch through the see through dome you see. i am testing fertility of our lot as i have orders for hatching eggs. Cockerels seem to be doing their job but i think the silkie cockerel has been sneaking into other pens somehow........there are some rather suspicious looking legs and toes on some of the light sussex babies........

[OverWyreGrower]

Ooooh.... I think I might have found someone with Vorkwerk POL's.... eeeeee!

[its hilly]

For the last week I have gone to put all to bed only to find one of my Silver Sussex hens running loose. Thier pen is like Colditz, and she's STILL escaping. Trouble is I wont want to hatch her eggs if she keeps doing it, as they'd be Festher x (Hmm, copper maran x araucana x ss? sounds quite pretty ) But if I leave her with the others they beat her up seriously..Even the other SS beat her up, just not as much.
I knew I shouldn't have called her Magrat. (Terry Pratchett fans will understand, Magrat was a bit of a wet hen LOL)
If I shut her in a coop on her own with another useless softy do you think some pot eggs would get them to go broody?

[Glutton4...]

LOL Hilly. One of my little Black Crows is an escapologist - best I call her Houdini! - I found her in the feed room the other morning. Must have gone up through the eaves of the building! Saturday evening she was running around outside the pen, in the dark, and I could even catch her with the net, so I left her. In the morning she was back in with the others!

[Glutton4...]

Well, just to update those who may be interested. We ate the larger of the two Roos this evening. Deeeeeeeelish! Not very much on him to be honest, but the flavour made up for it. I was surprised that it smelled almost gamey, and had plenty of flavour. Also the meat was quite dark; the breast was nearly the colour of the leg meat on a butcher's shop chicken (I don't buy supermarket meat).

I am already looking forward to the next one!