Cream Legbars

[cotton54321]

Hi,
Thinking about hatching some cream legbar eggs (can't have any cockerels so the autosexing element appeals!). Anyone have any? What's their egg production like? We do have a variety of 6 different chickens - pure and hybrid at the moment but no experience with this breed. Any experiences??
Thanks :-)

[chris]

Don't have any, but love the look of them. Thinking of getting a couple, or maybe three - space dependant.

Where abouts are you based if you don't mind me asking?

[RichmondHens]

I currently have two (did have three but lost one last year) who are now 18+ months old and they lay extremely well. Small eggs to start with but as the first season progressed the eggs got bigger and were a good size by end of their season. They stopped laying in September and recommenced December so a relatively short period off lay. And this season the eggs are huge for only little birds.

Like all light and flighty birds they need a lot of space and I let mine free range. If I pen them up one continually escapes anyway so there is little point in confining them. They are well behaved enough though to make it back to the hen house to lay - well most of the time!

Presume you will despatch the cocks at hatch then? There may be quite a few .........! My hatching experience for this breed was out of 12 eggs I got 7 cocks and 3 hens. 3 of the cocks went to other breeders and the rest we ate at 6 months old. Trawling the other poultry forums it seems like a lot of people got a heavy cock to hen ratio when they hatched, so be warned.

[Suechooks]

The lady I'm getting my eggs from hatched 5 cocks to 4 hens - all hatched, and that was 1st Feb. Hoping the theory of more hens hatching later in the season works here - I'm waiting on a broody or 2 before I try!

[cotton54321]

thanks so much guys. May try 12 eggs then?! Maybe will try putting in the incubator rather than under my poor little broody bantam light sussex. Don't think she'd cover 12 eggs! I'm really faltering in the dark here...never done this before!!

[Nicos]

Te he cotton..you''re in for an exciting/stressful time if our experiences are anything to go by!!!

....But VERY rewarding to do!

[petal]

they are great, best to despatch cocks as chicks as they are bit too scrawny to bother with. I suppose they might make a good stew or soup.

[RichmondHens]

We got ours up to about 4lbs oven ready, but they were a good six or seven months old and had been crowing for ages. Not practical if you can't keep cocks where you live so better to despatch at hatch. Hope you can do this Cotton, or know someone who will do it for you.

Please don't hatch if you can't despatch!

[chris]

You know if you hatch (curious, I'm not intending to - too much on, as we're incubating one of our own in the boss's tummy!) outdoors, I guess in a brooder (is it called?) - do the chicks need heat there, or do they get that from their mother hen?

Does the mother hen eat the chick crumb? Or do you have to feed her when seperated with pellets or what not? Do they eat whatever pellets you feed, or is there a special feed you give them?

[RichmondHens]

Chicks raised under a hen need no extra heat. The hen does all the work. They can be outside in a broody coop and perfectly warm underneath her.

You feed chick crumb to small chicks, moving onto grower pellet after 3 -4 weeks. The hen will eat what the chicks eat. After 6 or 7 weeks the chicks should be fully feathered and able to cope with the weather and you can take the hen away if you wish. If I have a situation where there is only one or two chicks however I leave the hen with them a little longer. A bunch of 10 or 12 fully feathered chicks have no problem keeping warm all snuggled up together.

[chris]

I see, is that grower pellet the same pellet you feed for a meat bird? Or if you're having them for eggs, switch over later before they're POL? interesting to know - thanks for taking the time to reply.

[julesapple]

We've got on CL - Hattie. She is my most favourite chook, just love her. She's friendly, inquisitive and very bright. In fact, I took one of her eggs to home base and they matched the colour to make paint for my kitchen!

Jules

PS It's egg-shell paint too.......I may be in danger of becoming a little too obsessed...

[RichmondHens]

I see, is that grower pellet the same pellet you feed for a meat bird? Or if you're having them for eggs, switch over later before they're POL? interesting to know - thanks for taking the time to reply.

Yes, same stuff.

[cotton54321]

Am now getting quite excited about the whole process! We're away for a week over easter so think I might leave it til then.
No problems despatching - will do it as chicks. My husband has had to despatch quite a few of the birds in the past.
If you had a choice, would you hatch in incubator or wait for one of the hens to go broody? Just wondered if one has more of a success rate than the other??
Thanks so much for all of your replies!!
Mel :-)

[julesapple]

Am now getting quite excited about the whole process! We're away for a week over easter so think I might leave it til then.
No problems despatching - will do it as chicks. My husband has had to despatch quite a few of the birds in the past.
If you had a choice, would you hatch in incubator or wait for one of the hens to go broody? Just wondered if one has more of a success rate than the other??
Thanks so much for all of your replies!!
Mel :-)

Broodies win hands down everytime! Nature knows best.

Jules