Adding Chickens to the farm... I've got questions!

[Mosey_2003]

Oh, and as a side point - the idea of using a vet for chickens isn’t actually, like, a real thing very often. Because most/many vets don’t DO chickens. They aren’t pets, and they aren’t a kind of livestock that really requires routine vet care unless you’re in the broiler or layer business. My horse vet laughed at me when I asked if she would look at chickens, and said, “You don’t treat a chicken. If your chicken is sick, chop it’s head off.”

Some vets will run fecals, and we all know fecals are a good idea for most livestock. Some vets will even look at a sick bird and might prescribe antibiotics or antifungals. Maybe. Occasionally you’ll find a vet willing to splint a broken leg or do crop surgery. But it’s not like your dog or cat or horse where you can just call most any vet and get an appointment, many won’t see them at all. Or if they’re willing, might not have much they can actually do for the bird.

[4LeafCloverFarm]

Well, just to be clear, I will not be castrating any male chickens myself. And I have no current plan of intentionally getting a rooster, then going and having it castrated by a vet. If we decide on a hen-only flock and were shipped a rooster by mistake, I’d find that rooster a new home. I was simply curious about the caponizing process, since I was unaware of it until yesterday.

I found out several months ago that our large/small animal vet does not “treat” chickens (yes, they laughed when I asked). But they gave me the name of a vet in the next county who does. So in case of illness or accident, I would have a vet practice to call or take a chicken to. Which for me helped to alleviate my concerns, being so new to chickens. Of all the pets I had over my 5+ decades on this earth, I never had a bird. I’ve always had cats, and birds + cats aren’t always the best idea. Although as a child, I always coveted the lovely Mynaha bird they had at Jones Pet Shop in Nashville. So since I have no experience with birds, like I have all my life with horses/ponies. it is comforting to know I do have a vet practice to turn to.

As far as the Rooster angle goes, I haven’t really made a decision one way or the other yet. When I started this thread, I was nearly 100% for just having a hen-only flock - primarily for my odd egg “phobia” (not wanting to eat a fertilized egg). But now that husband is engaged in the idea of chickens, I don’t want to close the door on having a rooster, if that is something he really wants to have. Hence, the questions.

[clint]

I share your feelings about having a vet practice that includes an avian vet. That was my last thing that I needed to get chickens, and when my usual small animal vet hospital hired one, I got chickens. I haven’t ever had birds either. My family had chickens when I grew up, but I didn’t take care of them.

Rehoming roosters isn’t an easy thing to do. My neighbor will take roosters, and she has people from all over the SF Bay area bringing her their roosters from straight run chick orders. I tried one of her rescues, a Buff Orpington, and when that hand raised fellow had been here a couple of weeks, he became homicidal, so he went back to rooster rescue, which I think involves ultimately being dinner for someone. I was rooster-less for quite awhile, but a couple of months ago I took a Brahma rooster who had been hatched by a breeder, and she didn’t want to get rid of him the dinner way because he was exceptionally gentle. So far, he still is and I enjoy watching him care for the hens. In fact, all of the Brahma roosters I have seen when I visited this breeder were very tolerant, even when she was catching hens for me to take home.

[Simkie]

This is the difference, visually, between an unfertilized egg and one that has been fertilized. It’s very subtle. It’s a dot (unfertilized) vs a bullseye (fertilized.)

If you don’t want a boy, then purchase only autosexing or sex-linked birds, preferably from a local breeder. Or purchase from a local breeder who takes boy birds back. Even if you get sex-linkeds from a farm store, bin mix ups are not uncommon…so that “sure to be a pullet sex link” chick might not actually be the breed you purchased at all, and a boy. My neighbor has one like that this year, from TSC. Birds that are not sex linked or autosexing breeds are often vent sexed at the hatchery, and sold sexed, but that is not 100%. But many local breeders will take back unwanted cockerels that they’ve bred, at least around here.

Giving away boys has gotten harder with FB shutting down animal sales, which includes giving away unwanted birds. If you don’t want him butchered, your pool shrinks much further. (And there’s still a good chance he winds up in a pot, anyway…picking up unwanted boys on false pretenses is apparently a good way to fill the freezer, have certainly heard of that happening!)

I had pretty good luck selling cockerels (for money!) but they were birds hatched from out of state breeders and “interesting” breeds.

There ARE people out there who sell sexed silkies (and maybe polish?) chicks. They’re DNA tested at hatch. They’re more $$$ than buying them straight run, but if you MUST have pullets, that’s an option.

Or you can buy started pullets. Then you get girls and you skip the chick stage. You’ll spend $$ on the birds, but save $$ on the chick setup.

[4LeafCloverFarm]

In my reading, in breeds where the distinction in male/female chicks isn’t immediately apparent, sexing chicks is about 93% to 98% reliable. Knowing my luck, I’d get 10 chicks who were said to be female, and 2 would grow up to be roosters. While I might be able to take an animals life that was critically wounded and dying, to put it out of its misery, I’m fairly certain I couldn’t kill a perfectly healthy one, let alone pull the feathers and serve it for dinner. :o

So maybe it would be prudent for me to check around and see if there are any chicken rescues or farms that will take on the odd Rooster or two - since killing one is out of the question, just in case we are in need of re-homing a rooster.

And I think it might be good for DH and I to visit some breeders of the chicken breeds we are interested in too. Husband exclaimed when he got home last night that he wants some of the chickens to lay blue eggs! :lol: So I’m now research blue-egged breeds. The Swedish Isbar I found yesterday looks interesting - but it lays green eggs, not blue.

[Simkie]

Crested cream legbar lay blue eggs (when bred well, lots of greenish in the ones that aren’t ) and are auto sexing. They are nice birds with cool personalities.

Isbar are nice winter layers, lay green eggs, but are not autosexing at all, and IME are fairly difficult to sex until they’re pretty mature.

Finding a farm that will just take any rooster and let them go be a rooster is not common. The risk is huuuuuge that you’re going to introduce a pathogen into your flock. I take back unwanted boys that I sell, but they are butchered immediately, and kept well away from the “chicken” areas of the farm.

Breeders often also have “no visit” rules, because of biosecurity. So keep that in mind if you want to go visiting. You might hear “no” a lot, and really…that’s a good thing.

It sounds like you really need to stick with birds that can be sexed at hatch if you don’t want something you’ve raised to ever be processed. There’s 100% nothing wrong with that–just have reasonable expectations going in! :yes:

[4LeafCloverFarm]

@Simkie

It sounds like you really need to stick with birds that can be sexed at hatch if you don’t want something you’ve raised to ever be processed. There’s 100% nothing wrong with that–just have reasonable expectations going in! :yes:

No - I’d be fine if someone else wishes to eat the re-homed Rooster - I just couldn’t slaughter my own pet myself for dinner! :winkgrin:

[Mosey_2003]

Crested Cream Legbars really would be a good starter for you, ticks both the pullet for sure and interesting boxes. And the pretty blue eggs.

Facebook is a really good tool for chickens, you should join some state/local chicken and poultry sale groups. There’s a lady about 45 minutes from me that would be perfect for you, she breeds a variety of interesting looking plus different egg colored breeds, plus Silkies. Maybe you have someone like that near you that you’ll be able to find :yes:

That’s great that you actually have a chicken vet! After you’ve had them awhile, you learn how to treat pretty much whatever comes up, or if it’s something that even can be treated. It’s nice to have an option though

The excess rooster thing really is astounding. On my FB groups, I could probably fill my freezer to the gills within a month, if I had the time to simply drive around and pick up roosters. They’re usually 4-5 months old and free, so someone has already fed them and everything. Honestly, it would be a good thing for someone strapped for cash. I just don’t eat enough roast chicken or chicken soup for it to be worth my while. I did go pick up a 7 month old Black Sexlink cockerel Sunday, and sold the owner one of my Barred Rock cull pullets. The guy that sold him the cockerel got a deal on all the chicks left at TSC and they were all mixed together, and a Black Sexlink male will resemble a Barred Rock female when young. I didn’t need the rooster, but I felt bad for the guy as it was the fourth he’d gotten by accident and his neighborhood has a ban.

[4LeafCloverFarm]

It did occur to me that we could start with say 3 or 4 chicks - ones that were guaranteed to be girls. Then later, add older chickens of the fancier breeds where you can’t properly sex them until they are older.

The only purpose of getting the chickens as chicks was to acclimate the one dog we think may be a problem (as well as the cats), to show them they were pets, by having them in the house and getting them used to the chickens. Once that is accomplished and the chickens live outside, adding adult chickens (or 6 - 8 month olds) to the flock is fine. They don’t have to always be chicks after the initial acclimation.

[clint]

I have quite a few cats, because that’s what happens to someone who rescues cats. Not one of them has ever paid any attention to my chickens, and they are a little daunted by my roo. I think chicks might be a different story.

This year I have added three different groups to my original chickens. It is complicated to do that, because I do a 30 day quarantine in a coop away from my hens, and then they move to my barn where they meet my other chickens as well as spend a week being sure they know where they will roost. It takes a lot of time and space, so in the future, my additions will be more limited.

[4LeafCloverFarm]

Gosh, I never thought about quarantining new purchases to add to an established flock - though that does makes sense. If they are chicks, they’d be kept in the house for at least a month anyway, so I guess you could call that a quarantine. However, if they are older, mobile and feathered, I’d have to think a bit on where to house them before adding to the flock.

How high can say a 3 month old chicken jump/fly? I do have two barns. But I’m guessing a 4’ high stall wall wouldn’t contain a young chicken - or would it?

[clint]

Since I buy point of lay chickens, I quarantine them. Chicks would be kept separate anyway.

My fences are four feet around my free range area, and none of them fly over it. However, they aren’t very adept flyers.

[4LeafCloverFarm]

I did find a breeding farm that has 55 breeds of poultry (chickens, ducks, turkeys and guinea hens) that is about 1.5 hours from us. They do allow farm visits. With over 30 breeds of chickens (including several I’m interested in and ones that have been suggested), this might be a good weekend outing for us to go take a look and ask some questions.

http://www.poultryhollow.org/

[Simkie]

I’ve had birds go over a seven foot fence, even after clipping wings. A four footer would not keep any of my flock in one place :lol:

[Sparrowette]

@4LeafCloverFarm

It did occur to me that we could start with say 3 or 4 chicks - ones that were guaranteed to be girls. Then later, add older chickens of the fancier breeds where you can’t properly sex them until they are older.

The only purpose of getting the chickens as chicks was to acclimate the one dog we think may be a problem (as well as the cats), to show them they were pets, by having them in the house and getting them used to the chickens. Once that is accomplished and the chickens live outside, adding adult chickens (or 6 - 8 month olds) to the flock is fine. They don’t have to always be chicks after the initial acclimation.

Once I had 3 Phoenix hens that could fly to the roof of the house. Advice - Stick with the fluffy fatties!!!

[GoodTimes]

I haven’t read the whole thread, but I want to point out that there are many fatal poultry viruses out there. Quarantine and biosecurity is so, so important. This is why so many people (including myself) will only get day olds, or will hatch their own. Ready to lay hens from a larger producer is often safe, they have very strict biosecurity.
You’d be rolling the dice getting something older, especially if they let people on to their property.

Another warning, sadly chickens don’t have the longest life spans. And reproductive cancers in layers are fairly common. I have a 1.5yo hen who hasn’t laid an egg since June, but still has a plump red comb. I’ve been assuming she’s been laying internally, and this past week she hasn’t been her usual self. She won’t last much longer. I make SO end their suffering, but I do the necropsy. Morbid, but it’s a good way to learn.

[Simkie]

@4LeafCloverFarm

I did find a breeding farm that has 55 breeds of poultry (chickens, ducks, turkeys and guinea hens) that is about 1.5 hours from us. They do allow farm visits. With over 30 breeds of chickens (including several I’m interested in and ones that have been suggested), this might be a good weekend outing for us to go take a look and ask some questions.

http://www.poultryhollow.org/

This looks to be a hatchery. Which is fine! But I’d not expect the same quality of birds as you would from a breeder that’s focusing on the SOP.

Breed clubs are often a good place to find people who are breeding to the standard. There are a couple legbar people in TN, if you’re interested:

https://creamlegbarclub.com/resources/

[4LeafCloverFarm]

So, when buying locally, I need to have a good working knowledge of biosecurity, so I know what to look for. And that big hatchery I mentioned upthread - was just going to go to see the various chickens in person, not to buy any. That is months off.

[4LeafCloverFarm]

I’m hoping that a trip to a hatchery or two will help narrow down the dizzying assortment of chicken breeds. From there, then we can figure out which we might be able to get from local breeders or TSC/Co-Op and sort of go from there.

[Simkie]

I have admittedly limited knowledge of NPIP requirements, but it’s my understanding that having the general public around your chickens is verboten, because of the pathogens they can bring with them.

This hatchery is NPIP. It may be worthwhile to understand the limitations that places on visitors before you go, so you can eyeball their compliance to the regulations.