Chicken Breeds, Family Camping and things that make you go aaaaahhhhh!

Hello on a Windy Wednesday!

Sorry about the irregularity at this point, but here in Alberta, it was May Long Weekend, as we all call it. It spans all across Canada with its' own interesting names..... May 2-4, May Long, or as the the working class tax payers call it, "finally getting paid for something I'm not slave driven to do!" Hahahah......

Anyways, we camped with our three kids and our friends and their 5 kids. Don't let anyone tell you that you can't camp with that many kids as all it takes is some creative moms, some setting up and preparing and ALOT of food! I planned all our meals this time so I wasn't taking enough food for the colony again this year, and that worked out GREAT actually. We had chocolate cake baked in oranges in the fire, s'mores, bannock wrapped around a stick, banana boats, etc.... All the good eats! If you would like those recipes I tried that always work without fail, just email me and I will gladly forward those. 

Anyways, today I thought a great topic would be CHICKEN BREEDS. You can get your everyday regular RIR's, Leghorn's, SexALink's, all the 'hatchery' birds that produce regular brown or white eggs in multiple numbers. My choice was far from that. I wanted Heritage breeds that were dual purpose, and after I did all my research, (hours upon hours) I chose Black Copper Marans, Splash Marans, Cuckoo Marans, Blue Wheaton Ameraucanas, Dorkings and a mix breed of Ameraucana and BCM'S. It completely interested me for a good 2 months investigating, talking to 'chicken experts' and just plain ol' reading on every breed before I came to this conclusion. I also chose the route of day olds instead of purchasing layers as I wanted to know what my food was eating for food. 

On Easter Sunday, we picked up our Ameraucanas and cross breeds. The following Monday, I picked up my bakery's dozen of BCM's. All of these breeds are good to eat, weighing in at approximately 8-10 lbs dressed weight, and yet lay 4-6 eggs per week. The Marans lay BEAUTIFUL dark brown, almost copper, eggs, the Ameraucanas green eggs and the Dorking a brown speckled egg. They are all social breeds, which mattered to me as I have the kids feeding them, handling them and cleaning up area them too. Actually, my Blue Birchen Maran hen will jump up on your shoulder when you come into the coop to give them treats or feed them. She's actually very attention needy! 

As you can see this ones' beard, it is an Ameracuana x BCM... Hen to be precise, so I should get green eggs or DARK brown eggs here in August

Our Ameraucana Roo, a real sweet Cockeral who is great with kids and always stays with the hens

 Our Dorking... Easily identifiable by the extra toe

 BCM hens eating their grit. I installed this old cat food tin (washed out of course) to keep their grit in and less on the shavings! 

My beautiful BCMs' feet. Note the feathers that grow on their legs and toes. This is a very young bird too, so ALOT more will develop, which makes them PERFECT for Canadian winters!

In conclusion, my choice of purchasing dual purpose birds from a breeder was the perfect choice for our family for the following reasons:

. I could choose to use medicated feed versus non-medicated, thus going true organic or not. (To label organic eggs, even for the everyday sale for your coop, they must not have had any antibiotics or medications) 

. NO DE-BEAKED BIRDS a cruel and unusual punishment in my opinion, only needed in cramped, mass producing situations that I despise. 

. A variety of egg colors for me to use and to give to my family that look great and 'home made' right from our yard, not the typical mass produced, rolling down the chute egg that you see in grocery stores. 

. I could then know the general temperaments I was getting as they were are all Heritage Breeds, tried and true for years in North America, specifically Canada and our lovely Winters. 

There are more reasons, but those stand out for me. I take care of them like pets right now, socializing the Hens as they will be staying, along with a couple Roos. I give them yogurt to help with their probiotics, Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) to help with lice and the respiratory tract, and cracked grains and clover as a treat. The rest of the boys will become our food in about 2 months, so I will keep you updated to that, as it may be a good day because a couple of them like to think they can challenge me when I go in the coop - back off boys.....the REAL head hen is here and taking no prisoners! 

Next topic? Feather picking! 

Enjoy your life today, and prepare for tomorrow. 

Please don't get any animals if you aren't already set up and have ALL YOU need to keep, maintain and either recover or humanely put down any of them. They may or may not be food, and you are responsible for them while they are here. DO YOUR HOMEWORK and buy ALL YOU NEED prior to getting anything. 

Writings from Carvel Coop DeVille 

6 week old chickens... The trials so far for the beginner chicken owner!

Good morning Everyone! Happy, sunny day here in the yard......other than typical Alberta gusting winds!

Today I figured I would talk about some of the trials of the last 6 weeks of our lives as new chicken owners here at Coop DeVille.

It started out on Easter Sunday for us. I bought a mix breed flock of chicks; Black Copper Marans, Blue Birchen Marans, Splash Marans, Cuckoo Marans, Dorkings, Ameraucanas and some Blue Wheaton Ameraucanas. It's kind of funny because even though they are mixed, meaning maybe a Maran Rooster with an Ameraucana Hen, they definitely looked liked one or the other when they were day olds. Then I added in a baker's dozen of purebred Black Copper Marans (BCM'S) as I wanted the dark brown molasses colored eggs, and they were my guarantee.  

As time moved on for us, the Dorkings where the easiest to identify as they have an extra toe, and the BCM's had furry feet and legs, so again, easy to know what was coming. The rest? Totally a drop in the hat, and they identified themselves as the weeks passed. What I thought at one time was a BCM mix turned out to be a straight Splash Maran, or a Leghorn guess turned out to be a beautiful Ameraucana Rooster and Hen.

One of the Dorkings had what I believe was a Sour Crop at 4 weeks. I investigated all I could via the internet, 'Raising Chickens for Dummies' and Ashley English's 'Keeping Chickens'. After a day or two of research, I took matters into my virgin hands and tried to help her, as she was a hen and I wanted to save her for her beautiful eggs and her sweet temperament. After 4 days, she did pass in the night when I wasn't there. I was very vigilant with her care, but I believe she was just too young to recuperate. Afterwards, I looked at it like losing 1 when I had 34 was a very good ratio and just made sure no one else had any symptoms. (Later on in the posts, I will discuss Sour Crop to help anyone with those issues, or feel free to email me and we can discuss)

Today, I still have 33 chickens of various breeds, both Hens and Roosters, that are feathered in and seemingly happy, other than some feather picking, but we'll discuss that another day....

Back to the baby, garden, dogs and Coop needs..... Happy day to all of you!

From the beginning...

Hello All!
Let's start with an introduction to what you could be listening to, watching and laughing with....
My name is Colleen and I'm a Country Mama of 4 kids, 1 hubby, 2 big dogs, 3 cats, 33 chickens and numerous squirrels and feathered friends who call our land their home too. We all live on 8 acres in Alberta, Canada that is half grass/ pasture and half bush. I wouldn't want to live anywhere else either. We get lots of snow, beautiful falls, wet and wonderful-smelling springs and of course, the fun-loving summers. We chop our own wood for the winter, fish, hunt and do all that we can do on our own without borrowing, begging or stealing! Hahaha.... Self-sufficient lifestyle is how we try to live, and its a challenge, but we wouldn't want it any other way.
 I'm going to talk about my kids, my life at home, my animals, and how to organize all of that and enjoy it to its' fullest with grace and dirty hands. I'm not afraid of hard work, and enjoy the reward of doing it myself. There will be gardening, canning, cleaning, everything to do with chickens, first aid of animals, DIY of everything possible, painting, building, ca,ping hints and tricks, hunting and fishing for women and kids and general opinions, if you're interested.
If you have any opinions or ideas you want to contribute, I welcome and will try all that you say the best I can, and will respond with the results from an Albertan's trial and error (maybe!)
Thanks and REALLY looking forward to it all! Welcome!