Blog Posts - Bellecross Hens

Moving On

15/9/2017

Our first job on the top of the 'to do' list each weekend is to clean out all the poultry houses, once done we work through the never ending list of chores.As new more pressing jobs come along other less essential things get move down the list.This weekend we need to move all the birds 'along one'
Several growers in the nursery pen are now old enough to be moved to the yard, making room in the nursery pen for the bantam and her guinea fowl keets, who are desperate to free range. I was hoping to cut the grass in the pen before moving them in but today is wetter than I was expecting, so I'm not sure that will get done.

On Sunday several Exchequer Leghorns from this years breeding pen are being collected so we will bring those birds home from the yard on Saturday night and pen them ready for collection.
On Monday four of the older growers are off to a new home in South Wales so they too need to be penned ready.

The breeding group of quail have already gone and the young ones reserved to be collected next weekend.With the quail going a house and run has been freed up, this will now be used as a quarantine quarter for a trio of French Black Copper Maran pullets we are collecting on Saturday.

Sometimes moving the birds around is rather like a puzzle we had as a child where you had to move all the squares to the correct place to complete a picture.

Autumn Stock take - Birds for Sale

13/9/2017

Now I have broken up the breeding pens it's time to take stock.Sell any surplus young stock from this season, assess the birds I have in mind as replacements for the breeding pens next year and sell on some of the older birds from this seasons pens.
I really prefer to take the birds through the winter and assess them in early Spring but with the possibility of having to house the birds again this Winter I'm aware I need to keep my numbers down.

I have sold some of my Exchequer Leghorn hens and have a nice looking group ready to replace them.My next job is to sort through my Welsummer flock to make room for their replacements. Although in moult I'm happy to sell the Leghorns as I know they will come back into lay before too long.I'm more hesitant selling the Welsummer as once they've stopped laying that tends to be it until the following year. I'll see.
I may also sell on the 12+ month old layers earlier than usual as the new pullets have already started to lay and between them and my pure breed pullets I may have enough eggs to meet orders throughout the Winter months.

If you are interested in buying either this years young stock or some of my older birds who still have plenty of laying life ahead of them, please contact me.

Weekend Chores and Family History

11/9/2017

Sorry no blog entries over the weekend, the time just went. Weekends are generally taken up with cleaning out all the poultry houses, stocking up with feed and supplies for the week or so ahead plus all the other jobs that we never seem to complete. This weekend, top of the to do list was cutting the grass and hedge growth back from the electric fencing and sorting out and cleaning the feed store in readiness to commandeer for extra poultry housing over winter should lockdown be implemented again.

As some of you may know, my birds are split between two areas of land. All my chicks, growers, broody hens etc I keep at home where I can check on them regularly and give all the attention they need. The older growers, breeding groups and my laying flock are kept on an acre of land in the neighbouring village, which means just popping out for an hour or so to get the odd job done isn't so easy.

The land backs onto the house which was my husband's family home and where my eldest son now lives.You will often hear me refer to the land as either the platt or the yard. It has been in the family for over 100 years.The 'yard' is the buildings etc for the family's building business, the platt the paddock which was originally used for the work horses, at a time when the work vehicle was a pony and trap.
Over the years and generations, livestock of all description - poultry, sheep, pigs, donkeys, ponies have been kept and the land and housing adapted accordingly but at the same time staying much the same.

Be prepared

8/9/2017

Today it is wet, windy and thoroughly miserable out - dark too.Frustratingly the forecast for the weekend is more of the same.Frustrating because we had planned to (and probably will still do so) clear out the feed store, which is part of an open fronted shed attached to the stable.
With the very likelihood of lockdown being imposed on the poultry again this winter, in an attempt to reduce the risk of avian flu, we are looking ahead for suitable housing for the poultry.If we empty the feed store, white wash the walls, creosote the woodwork and make a few adaptations we will have extra spacious and airy housing if needed.
We have also purchased another 6mx 3m polytunnel as last year the polytunnel proved to be ideal housing for the Exchequer Leghorn flock.
Already DEFRA are reminding us of the biosecurity measures we should have in place. They have also recommended everyone signs up to receive 'alerts' / news of the current situation.

Day 1 of Blog challenge - Guinea Fowl and Broody Hens

7/9/2017

Two weeks ago the quail eggs in the small incubator hatched.It was supposed to be my last hatch of the year and in a way it was as the incubators have been switched off and the breeding pens have been broken up for the winter.However since then two hens have gone broody, the frizzle Pekin and the Goldtop, Both have raised a brood already this year but I know from experience even if I manage to 'break' them this time, in a couple of weeks they will be broody again.So last night I set the Pekin on eleven Guinea Fowl eggs To be honest I'm not expecting great results, the eggs are from the lad next door, his birds are quite young and I haven't seen the male Guinea Fowl treading the hens but we have nothing to loose.

Guinea Fowl are new to me, I've not kept them before but earlier this year I was given some fertile eggs. They were from a mix flock of Guineas or Gleanies as they are referred to locally who were free to range on a small holding.
I split the eggs between the incubator and a broody hen, fertility was low but hatch rate was 100% and I ended up with thirteen keets. I managed to foster all the keets onto the hen and she has done an amazing job rearing them.
I love them, completely taken with them.They are so different to chicks, they move en masse, always together as a group, what one does they all do and they grow so fast, almost as quick as quail.
For now they are in an ark and run with the hen but this weekend I plan to let them free range the nursery pen. We intend to keep some of the keets as a future breeding flock.
What to do with the broody Goldtop, I haven't yet decided.

I have posted several short video clips of the Guinea Fowl keets on my youtube channel

Challenges

6/9/2017

A few years ago, when blogging was all the rage I posted on a blog almost daily recording the day to day activities of our 'small holding / self sufficient' life but with the increasing popularity of Facebook and the ease of posting on there I'm afraid I lapsed somewhat. Recently I have been reading over a few of the entries and it has been good to look back, so yet once more I have challenged myself to write a short post daily.
With the strong probability of having to keep the poultry under DEFRA restrictions again this winter due to the threat of Avian Flu it will be interesting to record and share our experience.

So here it is my personal challenge.

If you would like to look back at my old blogs the links are below
A Year in the Life of Annie
Bellecross Hens

Happy New Year - 2017 year of the rooster

3/1/2017

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year.

With Christmas over and everyone back to work we can look forward to the year ahead and hopefully put into place a few new plans, once DEFRAs restrictions have been lifted. Having to keep all the poultry housed hasn't gone down too well with many of the hens, they are all use to being able to free range and forage.We have done our best to keep them busy with extra greens, straw and scattered corn but egg numbers have dropped, especially amongst the hybrid layers.However the younger pullets have started to come into lay and the Exchequer Leghorns are laying well enough to consider setting the incubator.So hopefully soon we will have chicks again.

Many thanks for your support and custom over the past year.We look forward to sharing the antics of the Bellecross Hens with you again this year.

Winter is almost upon us

19/11/2016

November and many parts of the country are already experiencing the first snowfall of the season Here in 'sunny' Devon we have only had the odd wintry shower and a few morning frosts.However it is now time to prepare the birds for winter.Most birds can cope with the cold (they do have feather duvets after all) it is the wet which can be more harmful.Your birds will need somewhere they can shelter from the worst of the weather and where they can get up off the muddy ground.If your pens are muddy keep a careful watch on any birds with feathered feet and house them indoors during the wettest of weather, if possible
Despite the colder nights the hen house must still have plenty of ventilation, a build up of condensation in the house can lead to respiratory problems.
An afternoon treat of corn will help them keep warm through the night.
If your birds have restricted ranging, hang greens etc up in their runs, it will keep them entertained and the yolk of their eggs (if you are still getting any this time of year) a deep yellow.
During the winter months I have found the rubber trugs you can buy ideal as drinkers.They can stand up to the coldest of days without cracking and as they are flexible, if they become iced over are easily emptied, a godsend when your fingers are as cold as the water.
Rats can also be a problem during the winter months, removing any feed from the pens overnight and storing the bags of feed in rodent proof containers reduces their chances of a free feed.I keep my bags of feed in plastic dustbins,each hold a 20kg bag of feed and seem sturdy enough to keep mice and rats at bay.

Chat, chicks and camera

2/2/2016

The last weekend of January saw the arrival of the first chicks of 2016. Just 21 days earlier I had set the broody Silkie hen on clutch of 9 eggs, 7 were Pekin 2 were her own and are either pure Silkie or Silkie cross Pekin. All 9 eggs hatched although I must confess to going against my own advice and placing the last egg in the incubator after the hen had left it behind in the nest.This isn't unusual, if the majority of eggs have hatched and the chicks are ready to leave the nest a mother hen will choose to care for the hatched chicks rather than unhatched eggs.I was going to remove the egg but it was peeping so I popped it into the incubator where it duly hatched.The little chick is now back with the mother hen and its hatch mates.

We have set a remote camera in the broody pen enabling us to watch them 24/7. It has given us a fascinating insight into the behaviour.of a mother hen and her chicks. We are trying to set up the camera as a live webcam on here but are having a few difficulties at present.

With the start of the breeding season and the promise of finer weather many hens have started to go broody, this has brought about a succession of questions from those new to poultry keeping, with this in mind I have added new pages to the Information section. I have also set up a new Facebook group Chickens: it may be a silly question but... a place to ask question and to share tips and information. So if you are on Facebook please do join in. We would love to see you there.

Well I did ....

8/1/2016

Well I did relent and have settled the little Silkie in the brooder shed on a clutch of eggs, mostly Pekin eggs but also a couple of her own. The setting is primarily for testing fertility as this year I am using a new young frizzle cockerel but It will also be interesting to see what percentage of the Pekin chicks are frizzle. I'm not sure of the parentage of the Silkie eggs as she hadn't been running with Silkie cockerel for very long before she went broody, previous to that I had the older smooth feathered Pekin cockerel running with her. In just under 3 weeks time all will be revealed.

Photo: The three potential fathers. Lavender Cuckoo Pekin. Frizzle Pekin and Gold Silkie