Chickenology

[Benjamin]

Well, that time again, out of the 15 birds I kept I'm down to 6 having recently lost 4 to a Bobcat. Its early but Stromberg's is taking orders and I ordered 28 more and I'll just have to keep them in the shop until it warms up and their feathers grow in. Last time I sold 10 of 25 but I think I'll keep them all this time - no big deal if I have top throw away some extra eggs I guess. This is the new lineup:


Barred Plymouth Rock Chicks: Female
LC-886
5
$3.85
$19.25
Cream Legbar: Female
LC-671
5
$9.40
$47.00
Salmon Faverolles Chicks: Female
LC-932
5
$4.05
$20.25
Speckled Sussex Chicks: Female
LC-914
5
$4.05
$20.25
Blue Polish: Straight Run
LC832
3
$4.25
$12.75
Red Sex Link Chicks: Female
LC-963
5
$3.85
$19.25

 

[kyredneck]

recently lost 4 to a Bobcat

Sorry, but for some reason I thought you had guardian dogs? No?

 

[Benjamin]

Sorry, but for some reason I thought you had guardian dogs? No?

Yeah I do and he usually doesn't miss a thing around the property but apparently this cat snuck in the corner and did his work silently, although I still gave the dog a good lecture for his incompetence!

I suspected a bobcat but wasn't sure until I saw the cat a couple nights later. My dog didn't see him that time either, the dummy, but when I signaled him and started heading that way he ran ahead of me growling and was really interested in what is was. It may be why the cat hasn't returned in about 2 weeks.

 

[David Kent]

My dad used to keep hens during the war. I think he used to buy 'point of lay' birds and one month old. He kept mainly Rhode island Reds. I once bought a Blue Dutch chick from a market and dad later bought 4 of the same as larger birds. My one liked to come indoors and be near us but the new birds used to peck the other one. I did read that the two groups smell different and if you spray them all with deodorant they all smell the same and won't peck the others. Don't know if that is true, though.
I wanted to keep hens when we got married but my wife didn't like chickens so I bought some ducks. 4 Khaki Campbells as layers and a large Aylesbury which are supposed to be table birds but she was an amazing layer. Enormous eggs most of which were double yolks, she often played 2 or 3 a day but the shell was softer for the subsequent ones. Is the skin was soft the ducks would sometimes turn around and break it with their beaks.

Ducks lay more than hens and lay earlier 18 weeks instead of 21 if I remember correctly. Much better for cooking as well, especially for meringues.

Eventually the foxes got ours.

 

[kyredneck]

Well this is the answer to why the chickens crossed the road, or was that over in a truck?

Why did the chicken run across the road?

To get to the other side faster.

 

[Benjamin]

Looks like my chicks are coming in this Saturday. Another issue I have is the chickens eating their eggs and this has gotten worse as time went by. I had hoped that the bobcat had taken out those responsible but it appears not so I wonder if I should start fresh before the new ones pick up on this bad habit. One of the hens is my buddy and I don't think she is involved but my neighbor would be thrilled to have the other 5 for eating.

 

[agedman]

Maybe they’re just establishing a pecking order?

 

[kyredneck]

Sorry. Egg eaters can be a real pain so I hear. I think because ours are free range we've never had that problem. Our problem was hens getting old and shells were so thin they'd break the eggs getting in and out of the nest box to lay and then we'd have a mess in the nest. Got a brand new young healthy flock now, 14 hens, two roosters, getting 8-12 eggs a day, even with these cold temps. ISA Browns are hard to beat as layers.

 

[Benjamin]

Sorry. Egg eaters can be a real pain so I hear.

So, I talked to this guy today who has long raised game chickens for a another guy in the Philippines today and he told me the way to find out who is eating the eggs. He said to inject dye into the eggs and I will soon see who gets colored. Sounds simple and effective to me, ...like why didn't I think of that?

 

[Benjamin]

Got a brand new young healthy flock now, 14 hens, two roosters, getting 8-12 eggs a day, even with these cold temps. ISA Browns are hard to beat as layers.

I'm into getting all different colors of eggs and also like the variety of the different breeds of chickens. My rooster was super aggressive and I got tired of fighting him off so he had to go. Later I picked up a black fuzzy rooster locally and he is harmless as can be and probably pretty worthless but he looks cool in the mix.

 

[kyredneck]

My rooster was super aggressive and I got tired of fighting him off so he had to go.

Yea I've had some beautiful game roosters in the past and were it not for grand kids and small house dogs I'd have game roosters now, but too risky because they are aggressive, with spurs.

 

[RipponRedeaux]

What do you call a hen who counts her eggs?
A mathema-chicken.

 

[kyredneck]

...har, har...

 

[RipponRedeaux]

...har, har...

Do you ever catch yourself counting chickens before they hatch? Or do you count them after they hatch?

 

[kyredneck]

Do you ever catch yourself counting chickens before they hatch?

Yes. Many years ago, candling eggs when using an incubator. Har, har...

Or do you count them after they hatch?

Yes. I count them every morning when we turn them loose...make sure the Anatolians are doing their job...

 

[Benjamin]

Well, when I got an email from Strombergs saying my chicks would be shipped on the 11th I though that was a little odd being on a Friday since the Post Office would be closed Sunday and that the chicks would stuck in their box for so long but when nothing came on Monday I called and found out I read it wrong and the shipping date was 4/11 and not 2/11 so I guess I got a couple months to plan for their arrival and dress things up some I guess.

I think I might call them back and try to add a Cream Legbar Male so I can produce some purebreds of this popular and hard to get breed.

 

[Benjamin]

Yea I've had some beautiful game roosters in the past and were it not for grand kids and small house dogs I'd have game roosters now, but too risky because they are aggressive, with spurs.

My rooster was beautiful but I was having to get pretty brutal beating that psycho off of me every time I went to see the chickens but he didn't care and was willing to fight to the death so before I obliged him I sent him to the neighbor's grandma. She said he was too beautiful to eat but a couple weeks later he crossed the line and she changed her mind and killed him with a shovel.

 

[Benjamin]

I finally got the dye to put in the eggs to find out who's eating them. I'm considering butchering the guilty chicken myself but only did it once before at 12 years old and my job was to cut off his head (a huge rooster) which I was glad to do because I wanted to see him run around without his head. Unfortunately, my machete was really dull and by the time I decapitated him I had beat him so badly he only took a couple steps. I remember Mom boiling a large pot of water but I think she mostly got the feathers off herself.

Kind of seems like a lot of work being I buy a cooked chicken at Sams Club for $5 but its been a long time since I've eaten a naturally raised chicken and seems to me it was pretty tasty compared to the store bought chickens. I might figure this out and I might even have more than one to deal with.

Who knows, I might end up getting into raising eating chickens. Come to think of it I personally only know of one person that butchers chickens these days and very few that even raise chickens. I would think it would get easier with practice.

 

[Benjamin]

I finally got the dye to put in the eggs to find out who's eating them.

Well, the eggs were eaten but none of my chickens have dye on them. The only other thing I can think of is its some kind of rat sneaking in the coop. I really want to settle this issue before my new chicks come. Only other Idea I have is hot gluing some eggs to rat traps. I don't get it, it seems like all these strange creatures are always coming to my place and doing strange things like this. I'm determined to get to the bottom of this...

 

[kyredneck]

The only other thing I can think of is its some kind of rat sneaking in the coop.

Are the eggs eaten in the nest, or just missing? If it's rats you should be able to find their burrows around close, but I've never had rats eat the eggs, only the chicken food. Cow Suckers (snake) will eat eggs but leave little or no evidence. Many years ago we'd never known one was getting eggs had it not been for finding it's shed skin in the nest box, then the wife caught it red-handed swallowing an egg IN the nest box!.

Check this out:

How Do Rats Carry Chicken Eggs? (Or Don't They..) - Chicken & Chicks Info (chickenandchicksinfo.com)

[add]

If the eggs are being eaten in the nest I'd still suspect a chicken is doing it, jmho.