New Additions To The Family

Not what you might have expected.

We keep chickens and one of our hens has been sitting on a clutch of 12 eggs for a few weeks. Went up to close up the coop tonight and heard the tell-tale sound of peeps. 9 so far but she's still sitting on the other 3 eggs. I caught 8 of them in this pic before they scurried back under mom.

 

YUM!

 

That's what will happen to any roosters. We have 4 now and don't need any more.

 

Your yoking aren't you?...............

 

Future YUMS for sure. Eggs and dinner all in the same day

 

I bought a dozen chicks several years ago. Five were roosters. Four of them didn't last too long once they developed attitude issues, but they sure tasted good.

 

Four roosters, I hope you live way out somewhere! Never figured why more than one.
Nice chicks. Looks like fresh eggs for a long time!

 

Yep. 10 miles to the nearest store.

We have 3 separate flocks. Two are contained and one is free-range. The contained flocks are our egg suppliers. The free-range group is two roosters and two hens. They run around and keep the insect population within reason. They also find the hidden stagnant water supplies and eat the mosquito larva.

We've had our own eggs since 2007. Nothing better than fresh eggs ; unless you're trying to peel them after being hard-boiled. Then they are a PITA.

 

2 weeks old now and it's official; there are 8. No more hatched.

 

I gotta ask how you keep the other chickens for killing the little ones? I have had a few hatch, but the rest of the flock takes care of them rather quickly. Do you seperate them when you see a hen sitting?

 

I have a separate section of the coop for sitting hens. I don't close it off until I see the peeps. That gives the hens a chance to go out for a stretch if they feel inclined. A hen will fight off a rooster's "advances" when she's sitting on eggs. It's rather entertaining.

 

My daughter got 4 hens and a rooster supplied by the UofA for 4-H kids to show. Golden Sex-Links, absolute egg laying machines. The 4 hens average 26-28 eggs a week, brown eggs so large the egg cartons don't close well. She has been selling eggs and incubator chicks as fast as she can get them. The flock free ranges on ten acres. She saved 4 more pullets from the first hatch which should be laying soon. I enjoy her interest, insect control and delicious fresh brown eggs that are supposedly much healthier than commercial eggs.

From Mother Earth News, "• 1⁄3 less cholesterol• 1⁄4 less saturated fat• 2⁄3 more vitamin A• 2 times more omega-3 fatty acids• 3 times more vitamin E• 7 times more beta carotene"

Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/homesteading-and-livestock/eggs-zl0z0703zswa.aspx#ixzz3AVyOP79h

 

We keep a small flock of Red Sex-Links as our egg suppliers. Yeah, egg laying machines.

And they a deep orange yolk that is just bursting with flavor; something you'll never get from a store bought egg.

 

Nearly 3 months old now and free ranging. 2 of the peeps died about a week after I took the first pics. A couple weeks ago I went out to close up the coop for the night and noticed there were only 5 in there. We're guessing a hawk must have got one. Here are the 5 that are left still hanging close to mom.

 

We have 2 barn cats and both are afraid of the chickens. They felt the beak early on in life and tend to steer clear.