Chanta-lot was a lonely rooster
we got the chicken pen done
and got some honeys for him
big looney....
& little nutty... the cuckoo marans
dulce....the mixed red pyle game chicken
& henny.... the ameraucana
she'll give us BLUE eggs!
Chanta-lot was Soooo happy
well 'little nutty' died... of what we don't know, so we couldn't put her in the stew pot...
and after months & months Dulce 'showed his stuff' & turned out to be a rooster after all
he is such a pretty boy with a fairly calm disposition that i thought i should get him his own hennys.
but because i don't know really what he is & because Chant-a-lot is a mix of Rhode Island Red
and Silver Bantam
i cannot use them for breeding purposes.... not and sell fertilized eggs or chicks as a specific breed, anyway.
but.
i want to begin raising our own meat birds also, and have decided that Dark Cornish hens are the way to go.
Dark Cornish were developed in Cornwall, England. they are muscular birds & are the beginning of todays commercial broiler industry. one defining characteristic of the breed is that males and females have nearly the same conformation. cornishes do NOT do well free-range or without supplemental feed. they tend to be quite docile. hens go broody and are protective mothers. they produce small brown eggs and their egg production is poor. they are raised for meat.
avg mature weight: roos-10.5 lbs. hens-8 lbs.
this is the breed that the super-fast growing cornish-cross breed originates from. the cornish-cross eats so much & grows so fast that they can be slaughtered at anywhere from 8-10 weeks old. (for camparison-most chickens mature at 20-26weeks old) they also have problems with walking & holding themselves upright because of their rapid rate of growth. :(
i think i'd rather have my birds grow at a more natural pace, thankyouverymuch!
so Dulce & Chant-a-lot will be roos for the dozen or so cornish hens. this will be my meat flock.
henny is an Ameraucana
and i just love her blue eggs!
& the grandkids also like having 'green eggs & ham' at ria's house....
so i want to get 5 or 6 more hens like her and a rooster.
Ameraucanas are commonly known as 'easter egg chickens'. they are good layers are produce medium to large eggs that range from olive green to turquoise blue. they are an active & friendly breed. the hens often go broody. this breed was developed in the US in the 1970's using Araucana birds from South America. Like their eggs they come in an assortment of colours and are large enough to be used for meat as well as egg-layers. they do well in confinement or free-range.
Avg mature weight : roos- 5 lbs. hens- 4lbs
this will be my 'blue' flock.
i also want to get some more brown egg layers. i want to get several varieties of birds for these & get just one roo for them all.
our loony is a cuckoo Maran
i want to get two more cuckoo marans....
Marans are a rare breed of chicken that originated in Maran,in western France. the original French birds have feathered legs, but this characteristic has been bred out of the British and American lines. the French recognize 8 varieties: 1. Silver Cuckoo, 2. Golden Cuckoo, 3. White, 4. Coppered Black, 5. Black, 6. Wheat, 7. Black-tailed Fawn, and 8. Ermine
(silver) cuckoo marans have black & white banded feathers, similar in appearance to a Barred Plymouth Rock. the males are lighter coloured than the females.(i have never seen any golden cuckoo marans- anywhere) cuckoo marans are good layers that produce large eggs of a distinctive chocolate brown colour. the hens are NOT very broody. these are active birds that do well in confinement or free range.
avg. mature weight: roos-8 lbs. hens-7 lbs.
i also want to get two Black Copper Marans hens and a Black Copper rooster.
Black Copper Marans are good layers of large eggs. they have darker eggs than the other Maran breeds, almost a mahogany colour. they are calm, quiet & gentle in disposition. they do well in confinement or free-range.
avg mature weight: roos-8.5 lbs. hens-7 lbs.
i'd like to get two Welsummer hens.
Welsummer are rare chickens of Dutch origin & are sought after for their large deep dark reddish-brown speckled eggs. they are a soft or loose feathered breed. they are good layers who are occasionally broody. they have a docile friendly disposition, are cold tolerant & do well in confinement or free-range.
avg mature weight: roos-7 lbs. hens-6 lbs.
i'd love to have two Penedesencas hens in the partridge colour.
Penedesenca is a Spanish breed that almost went extinct until in the 1980's when efforts were made to save it. Penedesencas lay the darkest eggs of any chicken variety. in the Partridge variety the hens are golden brown with a fine double laced/penciled feathering. the roosters resemble the colourful feathering of a brown leghorn. they are very good layers of small to medium very very dark brown eggs. penedesencas are very heat hardy, active chickens, well suited to free-range.
avg mature weight: roos-5.5 lbs. hens-4.5 lbs.
last on my wish list is two Speckled Sussex hens.
Sussex chickens are a heavy breed developed by the English more than a century ago. this variety is called 'speckled' because of the white spangles on the ends of its otherwise dark mahogony feathers. these are dual-purpose birds, raised for both meat & egg production. they are very good layers of large light brown eggs and are often broody. they have a calm disposition and are very cold tolerant. they do well in confinement or free-range.
avg mature weight: roos-9 lbs. hens-7 lbs.
this would be my 'brown' flock.
i'm hoping to rebuild the shed by the garden, divide the interior into four sections-one for each flock & an area to store food, have a spigot, etc. & put up three outdoor covered pens, one for each flock. this way i could alternate letting the flocks out to eat the buggies from the garden & having all the coops under one roof will make feeding & collecting eggs easy.
the breeds that i want are in high demand in several different ways. i can raise chicks & sell the baby birds; i can sell fertilized eggs (which is why Dulce & Chant-a-lot will not do! ); i can sell blown eggshells to crafters (& eat the eggs myself!); or i can put a sign at the end of our driveway & just sell the "fresh eggs".
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