Messages

46

Housing, Health & Hatching / Re: Cold hatching egg

« on: February 04, 2013, 09:54:23 AM »

You should candle the egg to make sure it did not freeze and have a cracked shell otherwise it should be good.
I use to put my surplus eggs in the refrigerator for up to two weeks and take them to an auction till I found out people were buying them at commercial eggs prices and hatching most of them.  I now feed them back to the chickens instead.

47

Breeding / Re: Hen productivity

« on: December 14, 2012, 09:50:36 AM »

Dak,
   My black split to lavender old hens were 3 or 4 years this past season and I hatched some nice chicks from them.   The only reason they were kept that long was because of loosing birds to preditors for two years and luckily I did not cull them before the preditors did my culling for me. 

48

Ameraucana Marketplace / Re: Looking for trios

« on: November 01, 2012, 05:17:27 PM »

Check with Larry Clionsky,  Will Kitcsh and Heather(?) from Pennsylvania. 

49

Breeding / White feathers on Day old Lavs

« on: May 01, 2012, 04:29:21 PM »

Mike,
   That nice you give them away but remember your name is associated with them.  That is why I KILL everything now that is not at least breeder quality.  You will see them advertised somewhere that they came from you.  Even the hatching eggs that hatch and the people keep the culls to breed will use one\'s name.  IMO

50

Breeding / Genetic discussion of slow Feather (K) and tardy feather (t)

« on: April 11, 2012, 11:11:51 AM »

I believe this thread was originally talking about the K gene in the Lavenders.  Since I have been getting several inquiries I believe this thread definately needs to be bumped up.

Cindy,  thank you again for your offer.  I have been hatching some lavender chicks lately and looks like I am going to rebound.  I do not leave them free range anymore since it is so difficult to replace years of effort to improve them and the preditors seem to like the rarest birds which means they taste the best.  

51

Exhibiting & Promoting / CHICKENS May/June 2012

« on: April 08, 2012, 12:31:26 PM »

Wow Mike,
   I believe I seen the pictures in that Magazine and put it back on the shelf since they did look like EE\'s and would not interest me.  I will have to check it out again at TSC if they still have some left.

52

Breeding / Blacks carrying lavender gene

« on: April 03, 2012, 05:51:28 PM »

Well the toe puncher does not always function the way you expect.  I have found the utility knife is more accurate.

53

Ameraucana Marketplace / how to determine pricing?

« on: March 16, 2012, 09:27:50 PM »

Well after being haunted by my culls that went to auction they will all be put down now even the day old chicks.  I have already started to cull the older birds the old fashion way.  I do not want to see these culls to come back into the breeding pool and a lot of them will be used and the offsprings sold as SQ IMO.   Especially the black split lavenders of all the breeds I have I see people using them as pure bred but they are not.  

54

Housing, Health & Hatching / NPIP certification is it worth it

« on: March 11, 2012, 03:04:28 PM »

In the 1970\'s the state technician use to come to your property  and do the birds for free.  I still have one of my old NPIP certificates.  Here in Pa they still have a state program plus there is the NPIP federal program which ever one prefers but they try and talk you into doing the NPIP program.

55

Housing, Health & Hatching / Leg Bands vs. Wing Bands

« on: January 30, 2012, 08:49:56 PM »

Well to set your mind at ease.  The aluminum wing bands stay on the best.  Even when the chickens are ran thru the pickers at the slaughter plants very few are pulled off,  they have to be cut off the wing to remove them.  

56

Breeding / What causes shafting

« on: January 20, 2012, 07:24:14 PM »

John,
   OK, looked on the ABC chick pictures and Classroom @ The-coop has the first thead with chick pictures.  The pictures I see are black chicks with white/cream underparts from the chin down.  The only problem is the one on the-coop shows a chick called penquin colored as an E and the color of an ER as very similar.  Would you say the chicks that are pure black at day old should be culled immediately.   As far as the ones black with white/cream under parts could possibly be E chicks but not necessarily.  

57

Ameraucana Marketplace / Hatching egg prices?

« on: January 08, 2012, 10:07:08 PM »

Clare,
   Thank you very much for your offer.  I am in fine shape since I have 12 birds to work with.  I just will not be offering too many eggs or birds this year.   I generally don\'t offer birds unless they have some quality all the rest go to the auction hopefully to be soup and not put back into the breeding pool.  

58

Breeding / Genetic discussion of slow Feather (K) and tardy feather (t)

« on: January 08, 2012, 01:09:48 AM »

Crystal,
   Your percentage for a project sounds about right.  Since they are only line bred for a few seasons and there are many various genes from many families so consistancy will not rule.  I feel good to get 1 out of 10 as keepers from my flocks of various breeds.  The only one consistant is my white Orps since they were from a fellow that did not add much over the last 20 years and the female I used was from the same previous breeders line.   My only culls from them are because I crossed colors and I get black legs on some of the white Orps.  
   Your blacks will improve them eventually.  

59

Ameraucana Marketplace / Hatching egg prices?

« on: January 07, 2012, 07:00:33 PM »

Beth C,
    That is a fair price for hatching eggs.  I charge the same $35 for a dozen shipped with extras.   The only problem is I had some killer Lavenders but a fox killed only the best.  Then after that I had my best chicks in one pen and a weasel killed them.  Nothing seems to kill the mediocre birds/chicks for some reason.  
    So this year I only have 12 birds to use.  Male Lavender and 3 splits which only one lays a very good color egg and the other two are minty green and a greyish color.  Luckily I have 3 of the old hens from the original male and a male black split from the original also.  4 pure blacks for next year and this year upgrading that I bought off of Will Kitsch who also had birds from breeders from the original blacks I had to upgrade my lavenders.  So eggs will be very scarce possibly here especially since the older hens go broody alot.   Extra eggs will possibly be on Ebay but I have plenty of incubator room to hatch them all if I have brooder space.  

60

Housing, Health & Hatching / Hen has large crop issue - Any suggestions would be appreciated.

« on: January 03, 2012, 09:57:01 AM »

Sorry, but the best cure I have found is a hatchet.