Hey.... Lets keep Chickens..!

Frugaldom

You lot are all mad! But can I borrow the OH, too, to build me another hen house? :rotfl::rotfl:

Don, that is a cockeral without a doubt, he has all his hackles growing in (the pointy feathers) and looks really great! Are your hens the same type?

My broody hen that's sitting on the eggs is becoming more protective. I think she must know that her eggs should be due to hatch tomorrow or next day. It's all very exciting and I always get so impatient waiting to find out what colours the chicks will be! She's half spangled Wyandotte and the flock she was part of had white wyandotte cockerals amongst the other half bred ones so I guess it is possible to get some almost pure Wyandottes. My hen that already has the chicks has now been allowed out of her run so she can get her chicks used to freeranging. There are some really lovely colours amongst them but I STILL haven't managed to get any decent close up photographs with them all in it, they just won't stay still for long enough! There is one that looks like it might turn out the colour of Don's cockeral, although I am hoping it's a hen. My favourite looks like it's going to be a cockeral, so I'm not going to name Flash Harry for fear I cannot part with him when the time comes! OOPS! He doesn't know his name yet, honest! :rotfl::rotfl:

Friend's collecting me some more Araucanas this weekend plus a companion for my lonesome Silkie. I know this friend is lurking in here somewhere, reading away, awaiting the day she can come out of lurkdom to announce the arrival of her first chickens. Well guess what? You can come out of lurkdom and have some of my chickens. :rotfl:

If I get chicks hatching tomorrow, I'll do my best to get a photo.

DON79

hi nykmedia, nope the hens are different to my cockerel! They are Rhode Island Reds which would make an interesting combination with a Barred Rock cockerel!

Donna

KAAT_LADY

nykmedia
my OH is good at making things like that ,,

cant wait to see piccies

Frugaldom

Hmm... somehow I hadn't closed the gate properly on the 'teenagers', so when I went back out to check, Captain Beaky was wandering around looking very pleased with himself at his first ever sampling of free ranging! He'd taken Yellow Legs and one of the Araucanas with him but, fortunately, the others were still eating their dinner and hadn't notice 'Gateway to Freedom' was showing at the Frugaldom Movie Theatre! Phew to that! Ned is such a hooligan that I'd never have got him back in! But I don't name my chickens, I tell you, I don't! :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

I just ordered a 4' rabbit hutch for keeping the chicks in between coming off the heat and actually going outside. HS is going to be delighted when he gets home - a massive hole pecked in his shed insulation, chickens perched on his wheelbarrow and another huge rabbit hutch sitting inside the shed. :rotfl:

Don, Maybe your cockeral crossed to your hens would produce something similar to Rhodebars and you could tell the sex of them as soon as they hatched, just by their colour!

angelavdavis

Must be the day for breakouts! I caught my four crawling under the netting barrier which I put up temporarily yesterday like something out of the Great Escape!

They didn't get far, just to the spinach crop which they attempted to decimate in less than two minutes!

They were very very annoyed when I scooped them up and put them back.

Five minutes of freedom in the veg garden.

A close one for me!

Frugaldom

Oh, chickens and veggie patches, what a near miss that was! :eek: I've had to net over my tubs of spinach and lettuce now, too, as 'someone' keeps jumping into the middle of them. This free ranging lark isn't easy when you're trying to grow enough veggies to keep you going for a year. No wonder people fatten up the cockerals and then eat them! (Shhh... don't tell Don's Barred Rock about that, he's far too classy a bird for the pot!)

DON79

nykmedia wrote: »

No wonder people fatten up the cockerals and then eat them! (Shhh... don't tell Don's Barred Rock about that, he's far too classy a bird for the pot!)

:rotfl: he is definitely not for the pot! but seriously, if he does start crowing, then I am putting him up for adoption! He is not going back to bro in law who would have him in the pot as he has too many cockerels.

Frugaldom

If you lived anywhere near us, I'd offer to adopt him, I think he's gorgeous. Unfortunately, I think all mine are gorgeous too and don't know what I'll do when I start finding out they're all cockerals. You could probably sell him as you know he's pure Barred Rock. They are supposed to be excellent crosses for loads of other types of chickens from what I can gather.

DON79

Thanks, I would not have a clue about how to go about selling him and I don't really want to, would like to keep him but may not be possible to.

I doubt I can list him on Ebay lol! My sister lives in Scotland and we are coming up for a visit in June, to Fife. Is that near to you?

Donna

Frugaldom

DON79 wrote: »

But.... my sister lives in Scotland and we are coming up for a visit in June, to Fife. Near to you?

Donna

You'll pass within about 100 miles of us, sadly that's as close as you get to Frugaldom en route northwards. You could try in some of the chicken forums, there are quite a few hen keepers up that direction. This is quite a good site for chicken stuff - The Accidental smallholder Quite a few from Fife on there.