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Barnyard Buddies:  Chicks Chicks Chicks!!!  |
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mudpony farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
57 Posts
Jo
USA
57 Posts |
 Posted - Feb 29 2012 : 07:26:59 AM
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| Is anyone else getting excited about hatching season! Getting a few more layers and a few more ducklings.We're getting meat birds for the first time this year, and are considering Barred Rocks or Orpingtons. Any of you ladies raised these for meat before? Did you like one better than the other? |
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RedHoopWoman
True Blue Farmgirl
513 Posts
Kathryn
Yoder
Colorado
USA
513 Posts |
Posted - Feb 29 2012 : 11:23:03 AM
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Jo I think both Barred Rocks and Orpingtons are both great dual purpose birds for meat and eggs,I have dressed out all kinds of chickens and have had nice table birds from both of these breeds,they won't quite be like the Cornish crosses in dressed appearance and will have a much firmer and darker leg and thigh meat than the commcercial hybrid birds but all heritage breeds are just so much better tasting in my opinion.
Good luck on all your chickens,I had so many barnyard mix chickens hatch out from my laying flock this past Fall that I haven't ordered in any new birds but am getting around to culling out all the cockerels for the table,I think I will raise some Cornish cross broilers this year though they are not as fine tasting as the heritage breeds it is nice to raise some birds quickly for a good supply of table birds all at once.
good luck with your poultry flock this year!
"Today's Mighty Oak is just Yesterday's Nut" |
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Feb 29 2012 : 12:37:10 PM
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congrats on chicks. we are gearing up now it is sooo exciting. i will do the fryers here. cornish are what sell best for me. i need hens too. i will raise them separate. the cornish grow too fast for the layers. let us know what you order. fun ahead sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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Dusky Beauty
True Blue Farmgirl
1108 Posts
Jen
Tonopah
AZ
USA
1108 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2012 : 06:56:00 AM
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I got my goslings in last month from Ideal because they were the earliest to offer them. We fell in love with our African gander and had no luck finding an adult goose so I orderde 10 x hatchery choice and I think I got a lot of females... I'm going to get a farmgirl friend to give me a second sexing opinion!
I also got feed store turkeys- and my naughty pup chewed a couple up. I went to the feed store to pick up more meat bird and see about replacements. No turkeys but one thing led to another... and it seems the locally owned most popular feed store this corner of the valley will happily buy as many healthy ducklings as I can hatch at the price she pays the hatchery. I ordered an incubator and 10 more welsh harlequin ducklings, It seems I am in the hatching business!
She's happy with mixed breeds because her customers mainly want variety for pets, but I'm still going to work towards quality breeding projects since I have an endless outlet for ducklings. I got Metzer Harlies... not as nice as Holderread birds, but the waiting list is until may O_O it will start getting too hot to ship to Arizona by then.
I'm shooting for harlies, cayugas and swedish for now since I've got a good black drake and 4 swedish hens, eventually I'd like to switch to anconas.
I wonder how many other nearby feed stores I could supply exotic duck breeds to?
I may not make a ton of money with one incubator, but I bet I cover my feed bill for the aviary and the cow!
Oh, this is the incubator I ordered... hopefully it does the job (and isn't too noisy... it's going on my bedroom dresser!)http://www.chickensforbackyards.com/ON-SALE-Pro-Series-Circulated-Air-Incubator-with-Auto-Turner-FI4200.htm
~*~ http://silverstarfamilyfarm.blogspot.com/ ~*~
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Edited by - Dusky Beauty on Mar 01 2012 07:14:56 AM |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2012 : 07:12:15 AM
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My feed store has chicks right now but I don't think I am quite ready for them. I am going to order Freedon Rangers soon though but need to get a place ready for them to raom a little. And I will be needing new laying hens soon too. Not sure if I want to go ahead and get them a little older and out of the chick starter stage. It's so expensive here. Good luck with yours! They are so sweet and cute when they are little puff balls.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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sissarge
True Blue Farmgirl
502 Posts
Linda
Montgomery
Texas
USA
502 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2012 : 07:15:13 AM
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Purchased 24 red pullets from Tractor supply yesterday, will be in brooder for a while. So I can finished the new chicken house and pen, I have been working on. I have been selling eggs, and decided to enlarge, cause I don't have enough eggs to go around. We have 2 african geese both girls, but lost our gander, we are hoping to find one about as old as these. we get an egg a day from each. I am covering my feed bill and a little extra. But not if I add housing and stuff in to the factor, but one day it will catch up. I love my ducks to Jen. Congratulations on selling them to the feed store.
Have fun! Farmgirl #946 Linda |
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homsteddinmom
True Blue Farmgirl
441 Posts
Brandee
bullard
tx
USA
441 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2012 : 05:02:18 AM
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I got 20 new chicks last week. I got 10 black sexlinks and 10 buff orphingtons.
Jen its about time they make them in a hard case instead of styrofoam!!
Homesteading Mom in East Texas. Raising chickens, Rabbits and goats here on my farm! |
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retasos2
True Blue Farmgirl
272 Posts
Pilar
Centereach
NY
USA
272 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2012 : 06:40:53 AM
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I have 3 ancomas (?) and two red stars. we ordered one day old chicks from my petchicken.com. 2 red stars, 2 plymouth rock and 2 rhode island red. They should be in by Thursday...we are SO excited!
Pilar
Farmgirl Sister #2498
Little Hen House on the Island
" A woman is like a tea bag. You never know how strong she is, until she gets in hot water" Eleanore Roosevelt |
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2012 : 07:29:39 AM
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jen, i was curious about your bator i saw some on line with durable cases. they look great but cost a fortune. could you share with me your reasons for picking this one? i need less expensive to get started. are you going to move the chicks into another bator when they need to not be turned? do you just shut the machine turner off and see if all hatch out my DIL said i need to stop turning a few days before they are born. would love all info from you and my farmgirl sisters. thanks happy day to you all sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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Megan
True Blue Farmgirl
155 Posts
Megan
Hudson
South Dakota
USA
155 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2012 : 09:06:31 AM
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Good luck with a syrofom incubator, they dont hold alot of humidity. we used to have 5 of them, 4 to set eggs and one to hatch, we were luck to get a 65% hatch rate. we spent the money and bought a nice GQF incubator, they work so good now that the farm went from 60 birds to 600 we know have 7 of them, some are used some new. My dad has one that was homemade out of redwood and it works great! if you are good at building things, it would be easy to make, all the parts are sold by GQF.
Some ideas of humidity are to take wet stripes of a sock like fabric and set them on the eggs, daily misting of the eggs, and trying to get a soaked peice of wood in there. it may help, ducks and geese need around 55% humidity.
one other tip is to turn your eggs daily before you put them in so that the embryo doesn't stick to one side of the egg or the other causing a deformed or hard to hatch ducking.
Good Luck a hatchery is alot of work but very fun!!
www.rockriverexoticsandkennel.net |
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Dusky Beauty
True Blue Farmgirl
1108 Posts
Jen
Tonopah
AZ
USA
1108 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2012 : 09:53:43 AM
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I chose it because my budget was under 150$ (for now, I will have a bigger budget to put towards a nicer one in the fall) I consulted Backyard Chickens forums and this one was deemed fairly reliable in the low cost range, but I have to keep an eye on the hydrometer-- that was the weakness of older models. It was a really tough decision between this one and the hovabator or the genesis, I've heard people having success with all 3.
I would have considered building one, but my "builder" is at school and work full time and his scheduler at work can't seem to get both halves of their brain to work properly. He's been scheduled in alternating days of closing or opening for months now so it seems like we're always tired from getting to bed after midnight and getting up before the sun every other day.
So whatever I use has to come premade, and with an autoturner! lol. I also had one of my harlequins go broody, probably with others to follow, so hopefully the incubator will be a back up for extra hatches.
I'm starting to stockpile fertile eggs right now.. how should I store them? is room temp on the kitchen counter ok, and how should I clean debris off the shell without damaging the egg? For eating eggs I normally rinse in lukewarm water,spritz with white vinegar and buff it dry and clean.
~*~ http://silverstarfamilyfarm.blogspot.com/ ~*~
“When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me.”
~Erma Bombeck |
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2012 : 10:30:03 AM
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when i am saving eggs i do not wash you can wipe off icky stuff no moisture. you need to check but i think its a low temp to store the eggs. something like 55 or maybe a little higher. for code for fda you wash eggs for food with water slightly warmer than the egg. they do not allow wiping with a cloth. cloths are unsanitary. eggs should be dried on a rack in clean air. stored in the fridge since they have been washed. as far as hatching i have never done it i had one and i loaned it. well its broke. so need new one. happy days hatching sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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mudpony farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
57 Posts
Jo
USA
57 Posts |
Posted - Mar 05 2012 : 09:00:59 AM
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Just placed the order for our pullets and ducklings for this year! We went with half Orpingtons and half Barred Rock, and Khacki Campbells for the ducklings! Can't wait to pick them up!
Still debating about which breed to go with for the meat birds, does anyone know much about California Grey Leghorns? |
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Megan
True Blue Farmgirl
155 Posts
Megan
Hudson
South Dakota
USA
155 Posts |
Posted - Mar 06 2012 : 12:55:45 AM
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the California birds are flighty little egg layers, they lay good eggs. Dad is trying them this year because he thinks that they will be flighty enough to escape critter problems
www.rockriverexoticsandkennel.net |
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tribalcime
True Blue Farmgirl
2963 Posts
lisa
lexington
ky
USA
2963 Posts |
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Crystal Koelzer
Farmgirl in Training
44 Posts
Crystal
Cosby
MO
USA
44 Posts |
Posted - Mar 11 2012 : 06:14:04 AM
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| This week I am getting my first chicks too! I have been waiting for three years for chickens and we are finally in a place where I can have them. Barred Rock and Buff Orpingtons are the plan for me as well. Oh how I love spring. |
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homsteddinmom
True Blue Farmgirl
441 Posts
Brandee
bullard
tx
USA
441 Posts |
Posted - Mar 12 2012 : 09:03:08 AM
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I really didnt want buffs since they go broody. I dont really want them too. I went with cornish rocks for meat birds since the turn around time is so short!
Homesteading Mom in East Texas. Raising chickens, Rabbits and goats here on my farm! |
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Barnyard Buddies: Chicks Chicks Chicks!!! |
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Chicks Chicks Chicks!!!
