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My foray into chickens started with my first batch hatched this year in mid-March.
I have a lot of bantam cockerels that I don't need. I have 13 straight-run silkies and three cockerel frizzle bantam Cochins. The Silkies are starting to make their gender known by their hackles and the longer streamers in their top knot, many are still ambiguous.
I've thought of setting up a bachelor pen until they are bigger, but the Silkies are a lot harder to sex and I think more and more will be identified as cockerels as time goes on. My feeling is that once I set up the bachelor pen, I will not be able to add any new cockerels into it. The Cochins are pretty feisty.
The Cochin cockerels are starting to be problematic. The two I really don't want weigh about 1.5 pounds. They were hatched March 17. I'm tempted to keep one of the cockerels because he has such a neat personality.
Is there any meat on them and will there ever be any meat on them? If I'm going to cull birds, it behooves me to utilize what meat they have.
As mentioned, I have zero experience with chickens/cockerels and could use some advice on when would be the best time to dispatch the bantam cockerels while maximizing their useable meat.
Thanks,
Janet
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Don't know if it would help. We had been loosing a chicken every two days, finally saw a fox, as bold as day running around in our yard. We put snares up and finally caught her/him. We had some 8 lbs RIR disappear so I know they can take a heavy bird. Sometimes nothing seen around the yard, sometimes a handful of feathers. Good luck catching whatever it is.
Doris
--- In CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.com, "DBO" <dboranch@...> wrote:
>
> I do not have an enclosure that I lock my chickens in at night. They have a shelter over their roost/laying area and it is inside a 6' high fenced pen partially topped with barbed wire.
>
> A couple of weeks ago, I happen to notice that 3 of my chickens were missing. I have a large flock and I don't normally take inventory everyday but once I realized they were missing, I started taking a count everyday. Since there were no signs of a struggle, I wondered if someone came and stole them but if that was so, I think they would have taken some of my other chickens instead.
>
> We had access to borrow a wildlife camera that has a motion sensor on it and set it up. About a week later, I discovered a few Cuckoo Maran feathers next to the fence so I immediately took another count and discovered my VERY large prized young Cuckoo Maran rooster (who probably weighed about 10 lbs) was now missing too. We looked at the pictures from the camera and only saw a group of pictures of what appeared to be dust being stirred up.
>
> Now what on earth could come in and take a 10 lb chicken the size of a turkey in the night and for the most part leave no trace and no signs of chicken remains or feathers anywhere else on my property?
>
> I just returned from going out of town for 3 days and had someone taking care of my chickens while I was gone. Before I left, I added more barbed wire to my fence and setup the camera for the first night I was gone only. My chicken sitter said that there did not seem to be any cause for alarm while I was gone but when I came back, I immediately took an inventory and discovered 5 more chickens missing. I looked at the pictures taken on the first day and was shocked at what I discovered… a really HUGE bobcat the size of an extra large dog. Bobcats are very rare in my area and I have never seen one in the wild before. It jumped in the enclosure at 3:56 AM and left a minute later with one of my Silver-Laced Wyandottes at 3:57 AM. That would mean that it came back and took the other 4 chickens over a 2 day period. I immediately took some 6' high field fencing and wrapped their night shelter area. I am tempted to go sit in the pen with a shotgun and wait for him. I don't know if they are protected or not but I am afraid it might come after my dogs & cats or even me!
>
> I have uploaded a couple pictures.
> Jennie
>
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CHICKENS-101/photos/album/4848404/pic/1486579449/view?picmode=&mode=tn&order=ordinal&start=1&count=20&dir=asc
>
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CHICKENS-101/photos/album/4848404/pic/1486579449/view?picmode=&mode=tn&order=ordinal&start=1&count=20&dir=asc
>
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On 2013/07/03 12:43 AM, DBO wrote:
>
> --- In CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.com, Cassie Maas wrote:
>> If you really want your chickens to be safe, you need to completely
>> enclose them and cover them.
>
> I am due for a new chicken house anyway and I'm already working on designing a new lockable nightly roosting enclosure. I would love to see your plan too though so I can compare notes. I have raised chickens for almost 20 years and this is the first time I have ever lost any to a predator but even if I didn't raise chickens, knowing that thing is out there lurking in the night has me thinking twice before I go out in the dark. I also have 2 small dogs and a cat so now I am woried about them.
> Jennie
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------
>
> To post a message to the list go to
> CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.comYahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
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Jennie,
I am due for a new chicken house anyway and I'm already working on designing a new lockable nightly roosting enclosure. I would love to see your plan too though so I can compare notes. I have raised chickens for almost 20 years and this is the first time I have ever lost any to a predator but even if I didn't raise chickens, knowing that thing is out there lurking in the night has me thinking twice before I go out in the dark. I also have 2 small dogs and a cat so now I am woried about them.
--- In CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.com, Cassie Maas wrote:
> If you really want your chickens to be safe, you need to completely
> enclose them and cover them.
Jennie
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--- In CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.com, Cassie Maas wrote:
> If you really want your chickens to be safe, you need to completely
> enclose them and cover them.
I am due for a new chicken house anyway and I'm already working on designing a new lockable nightly roosting enclosure. I would love to see your plan too though so I can compare notes. I have raised chickens for almost 20 years and this is the first time I have ever lost any to a predator but even if I didn't raise chickens, knowing that thing is out there lurking in the night has me thinking twice before I go out in the dark. I also have 2 small dogs and a cat so now I am woried about them.
Jennie
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You need electric fence, too.
On Tue, Jul 2, 2013 at 4:02 PM, Cassie Maas <cassiemaas@gmail.com> wrote:
> If you really want your chickens to be safe, you need to completely enclose
> them and cover them. The enclosure cannot be 'chicken wire' as it is too
> weak and the openings too large. A frightened chicken will try to run and
> end up sticking their head out where it will be bitten off, leaving the
> body inside the enclosure. Sadly, I learned this from experience.
>
> Chickens are vulnerable to all kinds of critters and now that the Bobcat
> has found them, he will slowly come back for all of them. Chickens are also
> very deep sleepers so they are most vulnerable at night. Killing the Bobcat
> is only a temporary solution as some other animal will find them. Coyotes,
> Raccoons, Foxes, neighbor dogs, and even birds will try to take them.
>
> I am in the process of building a very predator proof (and mouse proof)
> coop for them. If you are interested in the design, let me know.
>
> Cassie Maas
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