Quite Simply, Chook Chat

[chris]

Good grief, I see what you mean everything is going on!

[Nicos]

Goslings are for the pot RH....sadly.
I actually ( apart from pooping absolutely everywhere 24 hrs a day) think I prefer their character to chooks'. Never any squabbles- just plain friendly, shy and daft.
Still, I have until November to enjoy their antics!

You sound really busy ....good on you!

[Hilary B]

Go on Nicos, keep the best goose and the best gander and hatch your own next year!

[jessmorris]

Quick quessie - my Orloff chicks are 7 weeks old now and pretty well feathered. Do you think they will be ok at night outside without their ma? She's back in lay and fed up with them all now......

[RichmondHens]

JM - Yes definitely put mum back with the other adults especially as she's come back into lay. It's nice and warm now, the chicks will be fine.

Nicos - I too prefer the goslings to the chicks. Mine are still fluffy at 4 and a bit weeks although feathers now starting to come through. They are like huge yellow/white kittens, sooooo cuddly. They tell me off if I walk by their pen and don't stop for a cuddle or stroke! They also have a very endearing habit of nibbling me - fingers, ears, hair, clothes ........

My turkey hen is proving to be a disastrous broody. She is still continuing to squash eggs but is so cobra-like it's impossible to get a look at the nest unless she gets off, and I can't be spending every waking moment watching for her to do that. Doesn't look like I'll be having turkey poults this year.

Bought 10 Ross Cobbs yesterday at 4 weeks old. Ugly as sin, but already very meaty. They have been inside up till now. Already they are becoming acquainted (and delighted) with life outside on the grass, in the sun. I find it terribly sad that intensive breeding has produced these awful creatures who are almost deformed with their massive breasts and feet like dinosaurs. They hardly look like proper chickens.

[RichmondHens]

Update on the turkey poults - managed to rescue three lives ones last night before hen killed them (has squashed a lot more since last post) and three whole eggs. The live chicks spent a while in the incy to warm up then went under a hen. The eggs in the incy are now wobbling around ready to hatch. Naughty turkey hen is now on an empty if rather stinky nest. Will clean it all away a bit later on.

I have learned my lesson, she will not be given eggs to brood again. Next year they will go in the incy or under hens.

[Hilary B]

The reason turkey eggs have harder shells than chook eggs is that turkeys are clumsy B....s. They still aren't really strong enough!
I did have a turkey hatch her own eggs successfully once, but she had 'stolen' the nest, vanished for a few weeks (well she turned up at feeding time, just long enough to stuff herself) and suddenly there she was with 8 babies... getting her and the babies caught up and in a pen was... exciting!

[jessmorris]

Thanks RH. The chickies look a bit lost, and one has run away completely (a hen I believe - of course!) but doubtless they will settle down. Buffy is relieved and has set up base in the coop up the road. She's laying nearly every day, which is fab!

Can you post a pic of your ugly Ross Cobbs? I have to say that my Russian orloffs are quite ugly too!

[Nicos]

Another poor hatching for me

Last year I had 6 eggs under each of 2 broodies.
Only one hatched out of each clutch. ...and of course- they turned out to be males. Hmmph.
( but 3/3 with another hen)

Anyway we were about to cull the males and decided to hatch an egg from our 2 biggest gals( light sussex and a Marans) which had been playing piggy backs with those boys.
2 large eggs didn't look much under the bantie broodie so at the last minute I chucked a tiny bantie egg under her.
Guess which was the only chick to hatch- yup the bantie. Hmmph again!
(OH checked the other eggs- one fertile and died around hatching time- and the other not fertile)

So yet again I have a mommy with just one chick to bring up. What's your bet that it's a boy??????

( have to say it's a teeny weeny little chick and ever so sweeeet!)

[petal]

Well, they can probably take more than 6 eggs under them to improve the odds somewhat- always set an uneven number too.

[jessmorris]

Another poor hatching for me

Last year I had 6 eggs under each of 2 broodies.
Only one hatched out of each clutch. ...and of course- they turned out to be males. Hmmph.
( but 3/3 with another hen)

Anyway we were about to cull the males and decided to hatch an egg from our 2 biggest gals( light sussex and a Marans) which had been playing piggy backs with those boys.
2 large eggs didn't look much under the bantie broodie so at the last minute I chucked a tiny bantie egg under her.
Guess which was the only chick to hatch- yup the bantie. Hmmph again!
(OH checked the other eggs- one fertile and died around hatching time- and the other not fertile)

So yet again I have a mommy with just one chick to bring up. What's your bet that it's a boy??????
( have to say it's a teeny weeny little chick and ever so sweeeet!)

About 10 million to one !

[jessmorris]

..about the same odds that my runaway chick is a hen!

[jessmorris]

Oh blimey, now another hen has run away - from their nice leafy smallholding up the road. My lovely long legged silver birchen modern game. I'm having a rubbish week, the pekin started attacking her own chicks (5 week) so they had to be separated as well.......shall I put the 7 week chicks with the 5 weeks chicks? There's a big size difference.......sigh.

[Mikey]

I had a lovely weekend away camping, at a small site which have a definite like of specialist breeds. They had a number of pekin bantams, and a really delightful silver winged old english game who's cry was comically pitiful. There's nothing more relaxing that watching chooks inquisitively coming to see what you are cooking.

[OverWyreGrower]

I have a broody!

One of my Welsummers is broody, however, I've not got any purebred eggs ready at the moment... however, I've now got some Exchequer Leghorn eggs winging their way to me so I can sit her on them (instead of the 6 random eggs she is on now)....