Chicken breeds

ninnymary said:

Haha, I'm lucky I have 1 pullet laying an egg a day. Sure wished the other 2 were laying also. Oh, and I've had an easter egger lay one per week for the last 2 weeks. What's up with that?

Mary

Click to expand...

Duh Mary, she's waiting for Easter.

thistlebloom said:

Duh Mary, she's waiting for Easter.

Click to expand...

Haha

Mary

Here is my Christmas gift from may daughter's family. My little boys are quite proud of the gift they got for me. I know all of you will appreciate this.

How special! Those little guys sure know their grandmother.

That Is BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Smiles Jr. said:

Hey you guys (doesn't that sound like the beginning of Electric Company - kids show on T.V.) we have only one rooster here at PlayStation and I don't have a clue as to what kind he is. He is very large, very nice to the girls, and friendly. I'm thinking maybe Delaware but I don't know.

Click to expand...

He looks like a red sex link rooster of some kind. Definitely not Delaware.

I keep a mixed flock but am starting to develop a line of Plymouth White Rocks. I have a rooster from Jim Weaver on BYC of heirloom breeding that is a large, wide and docile bird, and a good breeder.

Here he is getting a peck from a BA hen....he doesn't seem to appreciate her attention.





I have the old NH hen in the pic, a BA, an heirloom WR hen out of XW lines, an heirloom Delaware out of Kathyinmo's lines, a few ex-battery RSL hens, and some young pullets from the fall breeding of the WR rooster over the XW hen and an ancient hatchery WR I had then. I also have a young pullet from that hatching that was a result of the WR rooster over the hatchery sourced BA...she is a barred bird.

The heirloom Del is a crappy layer but a great broody mama, so she gets to stay around. Same with the XW hen...not such a consistent all year layer but she goes broody, so she gets to stay.



The XW heirloom hen....



On the roost, sans rooster, which had been penned separately for a time due to being too food aggressive at the feeder.


Broody mama and her brood, all grown up into juveniles...about 4 mo. in this pic. The barred birds in this pic are WR/BA cross birds.

Awww...beautiful birds bee!

I made a grisly discovery in the chicken yard yesterday. One of my lovely Lavender Orpington hens was torn apart. When I found her, other chickens were pecking at her carcass which really grossed me out. When I went to get a bag to remove her I came back and my cat was at her. I handle chicken deaths easily when they just keel over but this was awful to see. I thought it was a rooster at first which would not have been as great a loss. They are so hard to hatch and it was my poor young hen. When I looked around I found these rather haunting wing patterns in the snow. At first I thought is was her killer but it could also have been the poor thing fighting for her life. I saw a large light colored bird near the coup just before the discovery. My husband saw a hawk just a bit ago nearby the chickens. I have not lost one like this in a long time. I am thinking of buying one of those fake owls to scare away the hawks. We need the snow to melt so the hawks can get back to eating mice.

That's awful Cat. Those wing prints are strange. Were there any loose feathers or blood nearby? The prints look clean.