New Poultry Wish List ?

[flowerpower]

There is an article in Backyard Poultry on the Asils. I thought CFF told me white was not a desired trait.(?)

www.backyardpoultrymag.com/issues/3/3-6/breed_focus-asils.html

[cff]

There's more fiction in that article than anything else

Jan 22, 2009 5:18:40 GMT -5 flowerpower said:

There is an article in Backyard Poultry on the Asils. I thought CFF told me white was not a desired trait.(?)

www.backyardpoultrymag.com/issues/3/3-6/breed_focus-asils.html

[flowerpower]

Jan 22, 2009 6:59:37 GMT -5 cff said:

There's more fiction in that article than anything else

You should write your own article on them. You could definitely get it published in a magazine. You'd make enough money to buy, what, one more Asil? lol

[lavandulagirl]

So - I went and got 5 laying hens today - An Australorp, an Amerucauna, a Golden Laced Wyandotte, A Barred Rock and a Red Sex Link. The Amerucauna (daughter has named her Max) is a feisty little girl, and the GLW is a bit of a bully, although she's the smallest (son has named her Attila the Hen). All have lovely clear eyes, and bright red combs and wattles. Here's hoping I've reinforced the coop enough!


So - technically, I'm not quarantining them, as there are no other hens here right now... if you were getting new laying stock, would you wait through the first round of eggs, before starting to consume them? How many should a bird lay before you considered them "safe"? And would you feed the first lay to the dogs, maybe?

[bluelacedredhead]

The Gold Laced is the smallest? Is she a bantam?

[lavandulagirl]

Nope, just still young - just started laying recently. The Australorp is a monster, as is the Barred Rock. The Red Sex Link is smaller than them, and then the Amerucauna and the Wyandotte are close to the same size. You should have heard the Wyandotte rooster when we took his favorite pullet! Poor little girl was getting a bald spot on her back. That'll eventually grow back, but it probably provides a reason for her attitude!

[lavandulagirl]

PS - there are 2 with leg bands... I don't need them banded, and am wondering if I should try to get these off the birds. What's safest? Just hold her by her feet and use wire clippers to get it off?

[bluelacedredhead]

Lav, are they wide metal bands, say as wide as a wedding ring as opposed to small spiral rings?
I'd hold her under your arm (or have a family member hold the fowl firmly) while you take the cutters and remove the band. Just a precaution in the event that the bird decides to attempt flight while you are attempting to cut metal. One or both of you could get hurt

[lavandulagirl]

Thanks Blue - it looks like they are probably zip tie style bands, so I shouldn't have too much trouble getting them off... I'll get the man to help me this weekend. I'm pretty sure that's what they are, anyway. It was pissing down freezing rain here yesterday (figures, right?) so the birds were wet and angry when I was inspecting them. One of the reasons that I chose these five was that, for the most part (the exception is the Amerucauna/Easter Egger) they were docile as soon as I picked them up. Of course, their feet were also wet and dirty. I purposely got hens from a farm where they were free range birds, because I wanted girls who could take the elements and not be weirded out by it.

So... what do you think about the eggs? The hens were free range, and supplement feeding with layer pellets. The farmer said that any new hens coming on the farm are quarantined for a month, they are only given de-worming meds if there is a large scale problem, and they don't do any meds except on the chicks, for Mareks. BUT... there are roosters there, so the first run of eggs here may be fertilized... the blood/vein spot doesn't show up for several days, right? I don't want the family freaked by a veiny egg in the frying pan. Plus, I only have the guy's word that that was how he handled stuff. He seemed on the up-and-up, but how to be sure?

[bluelacedredhead]

You're freaked out about blood spots? Here I thought you were concerned about the presence of antibiotics or other meds in the eggs, or poultry disease?

The farmer you purchased the pullets from has an eggcellent management program from what you've said. Longer than necessary quarantine for disease; only vaccinates for Marek's which is a nasty fatal disease and uses a minimum of dewormer if he sees heavy parasitic loads. Couldn't have done better if you'd bought birds from me

Lav, there are more reasons for blood in eggs than just fertile eggs. It's common in some pullets, sort of a growing pain type of affair. Poultry PMS if you will.

But if that's all that you are concerned about, then get into the habit of breaking the eggs into a small bowl FIRST before dropping them in the skillet. Or, say one by one into a custard dish then if the egg passes inspection, onto a larger bowl to scramble for eggsample. Takes a little eggstra time, but that way, you don't ruin 6 eggs in the skillet because of one 'Damn Spot'. Oh, and yes, Spot will thank you for any eggs that you don't wish to eat, I'm sure.

[lavandulagirl]

Not little spots, just veins. No sense traumatizing the city-boy husband or the kids, right? I was mostly concerned about the meds, etc. They've seen the blood spots before, just not an egg that's further along than that. So all the other stuff seems good... don't see why I can't eat the first lay then. That's what I wanted to know! Thanks...

[Alan]

LOL, when I first read that I thought you were concerned about chemical dewormers and the such myself, I have just come to accept some amount of bloodspot in the eggs from time to time, though it isn't particularly appealing and the customers don't particularly care for it either!

I'm getting ready to move the next 9 new chicks outside right now, I can tell spring is coming though, the roosters outside are going crazy on the hens, the worst thing is that they seem to all single out one single hen to take their aggression out on, poor thing has no feathers on her back, and to boot the roosters are kicking the crap out of each other, but that's just nature and since they free range over a longer distance now, I don't worry about it too much.

I too would love to read an article by CFF on chickens! CFF is a library of knowledge and wisdom and doesn't even know it!

By the way, I have one rooster out of the nine that were hatched almost six weeks ago now, but he has already learned to crow somehow! It sounds like some one is choking a field mouse! Anybody ever had this happen before?