Chick to Traeger in 8 weeks **WEEK 3**

March 13-19 (Week 3)

 

Remember when I told you I bought 450lbs of food for these chickens? You were probably thinking that is SO much food, those chicks will never eat all that! Just to give you an idea of how much food these 26 little guys eat, I started feeding 20% feed March 3, and on March 12 they finished off 50lbs of food (10 days)... WHEW! Just think if they were eating 24 hours a day!!

They're growing so fast, it's really hard to believe they're just babies - a mere 3-1/2 weeks old. They're pretty heavy for their age and they're starting to feather out noticeably now. Not sure yet how many cockerels or pullets I ended up with, but won't be long before we will know.

 

March 16 (19 days old)
 

March 16

 

On March 13 we started on 18% feed (remember that I'm switching feed every 50lbs). As you can see, I also upgraded to galvanized water & feeder - actually bought 2 of each as I will be using them in the future for these guys. I snagged a piece of unistrut from my husband - this worked really well to suspend the feeders off the ground. This way the chickens are not able to lay down and eat... they had to work for their food - I made them stand up to eat & drink!

 

March 15 the pen got enlarged to 4'x4' square. See the barn quilt in the back? I painted it (my first one, not my best one!) The name of the pattern is called "Shoo Fly"... think it will work?????  : )

I am really liking the stall pellets for bedding with this flock. It doesn't stick to everything like pine shavings, and settles like dust in the fount, not a matted mess. I use the Natures Bedding brand... i use it in the coop for my laying hens and have been very satisfied with the absorption, ease of use and quick composting qualities.

 

Week 3 complete, and all is well.
Count: 26 birds

PEAS OUT!
~GP

Chick to Traeger in 8 weeks **WEEK 2**

March 6 - 12  (Week 2)

These little yellow balls of fluff are starting to get their feathers and are starting to fade to a more pale yellow (they will eventually be all white). Still cute, they are eatin' & pooin' machines!!

This week over 1/2 the chicks started sneezing; under advice from our local chicken expert (Fran), I started the chicks on antibiotics & vit/electrolytes (7 days).

** Now, for those of you in the local area, if you do not know Fran (or know of her) she is a plethora of chicken knowledge!  She works at Burns Feed Store in Gresham; if you have a question, she has the answer!!

My how fast they grow!!!!
I have an old wooden dining chair set up beside the pen - I hang out with my peeps after a long day of work. They calm me and make me smile!!!  : )

March 6 - 1 week old

Fresh water every day, and cleaning the fount a couple times a week with a diluted bleach solution will help to keep any creepy crawlies to a minimum. And I had to change out their feeder... this yellow flip-top chick feeder was a favorite perching location. I changed out to a hopper-style feeder and gave them a small perch block to roost on! NO POO IN THE FOOD!

 

March 6

March 6



Like any other chick, the heat is monitored as they get older. I started them out at 90-95deg temp for the 1st week, then raised the lamps up to maintain 85-90deg temp (heat should be reduced by 5deg every week until week 6 when the chicks should be fully feathered).  With the rapid growth rate of these chicks, the fact that it is March, and they're location in my unheated greenhouse, I let them dictate the warmth they wanted and adjusted the lamps daily if needed.

 

On March 6th, I starting taking away their food for 12 hrs each night - this keeps them from gorging themselves all night. I want them to put on weight, but would also like to keep the mortality rate down if possible!!



March 9 - 11 days old

March 9 - 11 days old

I was monitoring for "pasty butt", but have seen no signs of that or any other issues (other than the sneezing) that these chicks are under any stress. I think the 24 hour music also helps keep them calm, providing some "white noise" (and a little Mellencamp) to keep them occupied.

 

 

Week 2 complete, and all is well.
Count: 26 birds

PEAS OUT!
~GP

Chick to Traeger in 8 weeks! **WEEK 1**

I think Zac Brown said it best: "Git'cha little Chicken Fried, cold beer on a Friday night, pair a jeans that fit just right, and the radio up..."

Or in my case --- 26 'lil chickens, 1/4-ton of food (450lbs to be exact), chicken poo everywhere, and the radio up!

One of the stops on the 2012 Coop Tour raised Cornish Cross meat birds. They have the coolest "chicken tractors", field rotation schedule, and custom food and water set-up! They raise 60 birds every year - 30 for themselves, 30 for a neighbor. Even though they did not yet have their birds during the tour I was completely impressed with what I saw! They raise their birds during the summer and rotate the "tractors" around their 1.5ac field; the birds get fresh ground every day and their field gets fertilized!
* See pix of the Chicken Tractor on my blog "A Great Day for a Coop Tour 04/21/12 *

Yup, I decided to give it a try this year. It's the most amazing thing to experience - Chick to Traeger in 8 weeks!!!! (and they're yummy, too!)

My neighbor Christina (you know, the one with the "pretty coop" for her "pretty chickens") agreed to go in on the birds with me, sharing 1/3 of the expenses for 1/3 of the birds. I wanted 12 and she wanted 6. I figured I'd start with 24 hoping for a final slaughter of 18 birds. Due to scheduling, I needed to get them right away so I could be done and have birds in the freezer by the 24th of April.

My of research found that the mortality rate was quite high (20-30%) due to the rapid growth rate so I wanted to plan accordingly. Also, I found that average "dressed" (slaughtered) weights on these birds to be somewhere in the 4-5lbs range at 8 weeks (you loose aprox 30% weight at slaughter). I did HOURS of research, went to several chicken workshops in the area, got all my supplies, and I was ready to go!



4'x8' sheet of plywood ripped down to 2'x4' strips to make pen area
starting size: 30" x 48"
2 heat lamps, 2 thermometers, & pine bedding pellets

 

galvanized "L" corners allow for expanding the size of the pen as birds get bigger

note board & calendar to monitor chickens progress and keep notes
(for next time?)

Housing for these critters did not work out as planned so I had to set up shop in my greenhouse. I borrowed my husband's work radio and had the tunes cranked while I cleaned out the greenhouse to make room for the new tenants - and never shut it off (turns out the chickens were quite fond of Pink Floyd and The Cars). I got everything ready and ordered my chicks. I was hoping to get them direct from a local hatchery, but couldn't make the pick-up schedule work so I got them from Burns Feed Store in Gresham.

Friday, March 1st (3 days old/Feb 26 hatch date)
On my way home from work, I picked up 26 Cornish Cross chicks. I had 25 on hold, but couldn't leave a chick down, so took the last one they had!


2 feeders & 1 (3gal) fount

they seem pretty happy with their new digs!

first time I have raised baby chicks
 since I was a kid... cute 'lil peeps!

These birds are sold as "straight run", meaning you will get both male and female birds. As they are raised for meat, they will eat a high protein diet to pack on the weight - no laying hens here!!


The feed store had them on a 20% protein feed, but I wanted to pace myself thru this process.

tuckered out!

I switched them over to 18% medicated chick-starter & vitamins/electrolytes (with probiotics) in their water to ease them thru the transition to their new home. On March 3rd, I started them back on a 20% feed.

When I purchased my feed I got 250lbs of 20% protein feed & 200lbs of 18% chick feed - I got only (1) 25lb bag of medicated feed (just to start them off). My plan was to stagger their feeding schedule between the 18% and 20% feeds to allow their bones to catch up with their bodies, and to possibly reduce the risk of stroke and crippled legs as they got older. Once they were done with 50lbs of 18% chick feed, I switched them over to the 20% grower feed and continued to switch their food back-and-forth for the duration, finishing with the 20% prior to slaughter. It was all about timing, and it made perfect sense in my head at the time...

Day1 - Day 5: 24hr access to food
Day 6 - day before slaughter: daytime feeding only - take feeders up for 12hrs each night, or they will continue to eat like pigs! (increasing the risk of stroke and lame legs).
18 hrs prior to slaughter: NO FOOD (water only) - this will allow most of the food to pass thru the bird making it easier to slaughter and reduce the risk of contamination during the process.

I wish I had taken a picture of the pallet of food I had for these guys!! The food & bedding took up 1/6 of my greenhouse...  I had (5) 50# bags of 20% feed and (8) 25# bags of 18% chick feed.  I also had (9) 40# bags of pine stall pellets - I found these to be quite effective as bedding thru this process.

Week 1 complete, and all is well.
Count: 26 birds

PEAS OUT!
~GP

And 6 are now 3

WOW has it really been a year since I've written?!?!?   (oh, where does the time go!)
There have been some exciting (and not so good) things happening around here. First, let me give you an update on the hens that I got last May:

The 3 white hens - turns out they're White Plymouth Rocks, not Columbian Wyandotts like I had hoped. BUYER BEWARE! Get your chicks from reputable feed store if you do not get direct from a hatchery. This is not all bad as they have been good layers of medium-size light brown eggs. My husband calls them "Ghost Hens" as they are up and out sometimes before daybreak, so all you see are these little white things running around out in the pen!

"Ghost Hens" featured on promo postcards for Coop Tour!

These girls were the "poster chickens" for the 2013 Chicken Chat & Coop Tour hosted by The Wade Creek House in Estacada. Featured on the 2013 Tour Map, they are also on our new promo postcards advertising our event - 15 minutes of fame! I know they would much rather have mealworms and scratch grains...  Who knew they were so photogenic!?  I lost the biggest hen (the one pictured front & center) mid-January to respiratory ailment.



Back of postcard - Christina's coop pictured (pretty coop for pretty chickens!)

If you missed this year's tour, don't worry, there's always next year! I will post a new TAB to highlight the coops that were on the 2013 tour.




"Cyclops" - my lone Welsummer hen!

The 3 Wellsummer hens, did not fair so well. They were picked on by the bigger white hens, so I think that had alot to do with their untimely deaths. I lost 2 before Christmas to some weird respiratory ailment, and I have 1 left - I call her "Cyclops" as she is blind in her right eye. When she started laying her eggs were beautiful stong-shelled terra cotta brown (which was the whole reason I got this breed!), but after about 3 mos they were light brown, very thin-shelled and for 5 weeks damn near every one she laid would break in the nest. Oyster shell was available, but not so sure she was consuming it. It's better now, but shells are still thinner than they should be and I've only had 1 broken in the last month.

There are so many different breeds that I want to try, I will rotate out my flock every 2 years. I tend to purchase dual-purpose birds so that I can have eggs and meat. These 3 hens will go into the freezer next year - if they're still around.

New for 2013!!

• I got 6 new babies back in March that should start laying the end of July: 3 Ameracauna, and 3 Black Jeresy Giants.
• I also raised a flock of Cornish Cross for meat this Spring - what an experience! Chick to Traeger in 8 weeks! 

Check back for more on these 2 stories!

PEAS OUT!
~GP