Raising chickens. Advice, comments, do's and don'ts wanted.

[Achto 26,573]

Plymouth Rock's are an excellent egg bird. Although after a year or two they will mainly be soup birds as the meat will be a little tough. If you want some birds for meat I would suggest a Cornish Cross or some times just called Meat Type. These birds will give you about a 6 to 8 week turn around from fluff ball to table.

[Ed Kennell 35,833]

  During the summers when I was a 12-14 yo, I raised and butchered approx. 1500 every year.   I raised many breeds, but without question, Silver Cornish was the best meat chicken.

Fast growing, easy scalding , and excellent flavor.         The only real problem I recall was the fear of spring thunderstorms.   Seem the chickens would all run for a corner of the house, pile up and suffocate if you didn't keep them scattered.

[953 nut 51,770]

1 hour ago, Ed Kennell said:

Rooster.. Rooster, Rooster.      Hmm, my boys didn't get bleeped Dick.

 

1 hour ago, WHX22 said:

Capon...capon...capon... mine neither. ..

What the heck kinda boy chickens you got there Richard? !?!

I was talking young boy chicken!

What is a young rooster called?

A rooster, also known as a cockerel or cock, is a male gallinaceous bird, withcockerel being younger and rooster being an adult male chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus). Mature male chickens less than one year old are called cockerels.

[WHX?? 46,810]

My tractor needs a new gas cock.

It leaks so I may have to order a new cockerel...

Nope looks good here Richard .... 

Edited March 16, 2019 by WHX22

[953 nut 51,770]

7 minutes ago, WHX22 said:

My tractor needs a new gas cock.

It leaks so I may have to order a new cockerel...

Nope looks good here Richard .... 

       The PC filter must have become clogged because I said it three times.         

[AMC RULES 36,945]

 

[rjg854 10,747]

8 hours ago, oliver2-44 said:

OK EB here's a true chicken story.

My wife grew up in the country, very country and her dad raised a little of everything, including chickens for eggs and meat.  When it came to butchering time he had an old stump that he cuts the heads off on and would throw the bird into a 5 gallon bucket to flutter its last.  When the kids were around he would cuts the head off and toss the chicken on the ground.  It would run around (with maybe a little blood spurting out it's neck).  Of course the kids would chase the headless chicken and she says he would laugh and laugh.  So the phase "Running around like a chicken with it's head cut off"  is a true statement.

 

Of course today this would be very politically incorrect to expose a child to butchering chickens, blood, etc, and PETA would say it's cruel to chase a headless chicken.

I saw this as a young child,  probably 5 or 6 years old. We would have to go and catch a chicken and hold it while the farmer whose family babysat us during  the summer, chopped off its head. We would then watch it as ran around squirting blood until it finally died. Then its body would be plunged into a bucket of boiling water and we'd have to pluck it, then gutted. Finally baked and on the table for lunch. 

 

Because of this 60 years later I'm, yet, tramatized!

 

 

[Achto 26,573]

We used to raise and butcher 200 meat type chickens every year, for many years we used the two nails on a chopping block method. We later switched to using cones that the birds head would stick through the bottom of, a good sharp knife would take care of business then after their heads removed the cones would keep them in place. No more chasing after them, plus it condensed the mess to a smaller area.

[bc.gold 3,399]

If you need to make a container with heat lamp keep it completely round so the chicks can not dog pile suffocating those below, Murray Hatchery has a good selection of fowl and they send your order via USPS.

 

You can have your bird order sexed ( all hens ) also have any roosters made into capons ( nutted ) there's actually a few good YT videos showing how to do this procedure on the farm.

 

Murray will also prepare your birds beaks so when the birds get older can not peck at other birds

 

If your going to auction some birds the Asians prefer roosters and will pay large $$$ for these - not capons.

 

https://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/index.html

 

Capon https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capon

 Debeaking  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debeaking

 

 

Edited March 16, 2019 by bcgold

[ebinmaine 63,211]

2 hours ago, OILUJ52 said:

They are easy to feed!

 

 

 

 

 

That's just funny right there

[ebinmaine 63,211]

21 minutes ago, Achto said:

switched to using cones

We'd do that or hang the carcass by the feet

[bc.gold 3,399]

If your property is overrun with slugs or ticks.

 

Ducks eat slugs.

Guinea fowl eat grasshoppers along with ticks and make for good watch dogs alerting you to an intruder.

Geese also make for good watch dogs.

 

 

 

[ebinmaine 63,211]

We've been considering ducks as well.

Plenty of water at certain times of year but we'd have to clear out a low area for more dependable water flow.

 

We may get guinea hens in the future but they're so damn loooouuuud.

We don't have a huge issue with ticks so they'll wait until later.

 

[WHNJ701 4,164]

here's some pics of the kids operation

[BPEisenhower 524]

We have had good egg production by feeding vegetable and fruit peelings or even produce that is going to be in the compost heap or trash anyways. Even if you have them free range, it's best to offer Grit, (ground oyster shells) that helps with digestive purposes in the craw and gives a calcium supplement for the chicken and shell itself. Also I feed cracked corn and add in plain oatmeal since it is a good filler on occasion. And the popcorn you don't finish after a movie is welcomed too, chickens don't mind butter and salt!

 

[WHNJ701 4,164]

4 minutes ago, BPEisenhower said:

We have had good egg production by feeding vegetable and fruit peelings or even produce that is going to be in the compost heap or trash anyways. Even if you have them free range, it's best to offer Grit, (ground oyster shells) that helps with digestive purposes in the craw and gives a calcium supplement for the chicken and shell itself. Also I feed cracked corn and add in plain oatmeal since it is a good filler on occasion. And the popcorn you don't finish after a movie is welcomed too, chickens don't mind butter and salt!

 

right on the oyster shells, if they start lacking calcium they start eating their egg shells

[ebinmaine 63,211]

Here's the chicken nursery.

They arrive Thursday.

 

 

 

 

We're leaning towards making the coop under the overhang on the side of the shed. 2 walls and the roof are already there and it has power if we decide to heat the coop.

And it's a space we already snowblow so no additional time there.

 

[bc.gold 3,399]

With square corners on your brooder you might find your fatality rate on the high side also with the placement of your heat lamps your encouraging  the baby chicks to gather in cramped quarters.

 

Round brooders are preferred for a reason.

 

[ebinmaine 63,211]

10 minutes ago, bcgold said:

With square corners on your brooder you might find your fatality rate on the high side also with the placement of your heat lamps your encouraging  the baby chicks to gather in cramped quarters.

 

Round brooders are preferred for a reason.

 

The info is much appreciated.

 

In this particular setup there is only a heat lamp on one end. One of those heads makes light only, not heat.

That gives them the ability to self regulate their temperature.

 

[bc.gold 3,399]

When your chick gather under a heat source that is centered the chicks on the outside want more warmth, in acquiring this heat squeeze out chicks on center to the outside, the cycle continues that is of they have the freedom of moment. Like I mentioned you are forcing them into a cramped corner.

 

Ask me how I know this, I used a square cornered brooder and lost over a 100 chicks in the first  night. They suffocated under the dog pile.

 

Just trying to save you from making the same mistake.

Edited April 16, 2019 by bcgold

[Pullstart 59,742]

How many birds are coming, EB and BBT?

[ebinmaine 63,211]

21 minutes ago, pullstart said:

How many birds are coming, EB and BBT?

12, straight run

[ebinmaine 63,211]

1 hour ago, pullstart said:

How many birds are coming, EB and BBT?

Our current line of thinking is to get the 12 Birds and after a few months keep one rooster and all the hens.

The rest of the roosters will go into the stew pot or freezer.

We are buying them from a local independent farm & garden supply store.

He uses the specific hatchery that he does because they have found a higher yield of hens in any given straight run.

We are hoping to have between 6 and 8 hens.

More or less is perfectly fine. We can adjust the size of the flock as necessary over the next few months.

[Pullstart 59,742]

Are you keeping the rooster for flock protection, or for raising more birds some day, or both?  It might pay off to keep them close, but separated once they mature and begin laying, or you might need to candle the eggs, or find bloody beginnings of a fetus in your skillet.

[ebinmaine 63,211]

15 minutes ago, pullstart said:

keeping the rooster for flock protection, or for raising more birds some day, or both?

It's going to be both.

Trina (BBT) had mentioned keeping a hen or two separate with the rooster to produce their own broods. I don't know when she was thinking about doing that.

She's done this before so she has an idea of what she wants to do and how to accomplish it.

I'm just kind of here to chuck food and  water and enjoy eggs and meat.