Developing My Own Breed Of Large Gamefowl For Free Range Survival (Junglefowl x Liege)

[AGeese]

What a prick.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Last night a Wyandotte and Easter egger that share the coop woth Azog had very bloody combs. I took it as rough breeding from Azog.

This morning while feeding the coop he grabbed that Wyandotte, held her down with one leg, and began tearing at her neck. She got away and he then proceeded to flog the Easter egger.

I turned both of those hens out to free range. He seems fine with others. I am starting to think his limping and the limping of the Fayoumi has more to do with Azog fighting the hens and rough breeding. About the time the limping started the Wyandottes were pushing him around. Now he’s asserted himself and is dominant in the coop.

 

[I Like Turkeys]

This morning while feeding the coop he grabbed that Wyandotte, held her down with one leg, and began tearing at her neck. She got away and he then proceeded to flog the Easter egger.

Was he trying to kill her or breed her?

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

I was watching and expecting him to mount her but instead he just held her down with one leg and starting tearing feathers off her neck. After I saw him flog the Easter egger I figured his actions were aggression based more than breeding, but he’s also young enough that his hormones may be sending mixed messages.

 

[Bigtom Turkey]

How old is he now?

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

He was 7 months old around Christmas. So he’s going on 8 months.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Lanky has treated the Wyandotte in question the same. I watched him tear at her neck and flog her face when she squatted for him. He refused to breed her. I wonder if something is wrong with her? She will be 4 years old in a few weeks. She is a good survivor and free ranger so I am not going to cull her unless her fault is obvious to me.

There was no wire fighting today between Lanky and Indo that I observed.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

A random thought I had watching the turkey hen drink out of the pond this evening; I need to put giardia on the list as a potential source of the sickness some of my chickens get when free ranging the first time. I bet my ponds and swamps are full of it, and may explain why I notice the occurrences with rain. They may drink out of contaminated puddles all over the farmyard. I have some low spots that will hold hot, stagnant, water for days or even weeks after heavy rains.

 

[genesis1verse1]

I've seen roosters be cruel to hens that were initially mean to them. They don't forget it and as soon as they have asserted their dominance and ascend to the top of the pecking order they get their revenge. Breeding is secondary to maintaining their position. Maybe that's what is happening here.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Following up on the observation about giardia, I have read literature today that chickens can get giardia and that ivermectin is very effective at treating giardia. It appears I can test for it without subjecting my chickens to regulatory overreach (I don’t believe in mandatory culling for certain antibodies such as bird flu). I’m going to reach out to my local agg office and see about testing for it in my pond.

My hypothesis is that giardia is the mystery pathogen that gets a percentage of my free rangers sick and to the point of death as soon as they’re turned out to free range, while the survivors either have little effect from it or (in the case of most) can live with it with reduced mass. I further speculate that ivermectin clears it up, and that the reason my birds responded so well to ivermectin in terms of weight gain is because the parasite was still present in the survivors and interfering with the absorption of nutrients. Giardia is known to be common in my area to the point that it is a danger for people who utilize the river that is a mile from my homestead that the creeks on my property drain into. I have a front yard pond that would be a good place for giardia to thrive in addition to many seasonally wet areas around the barnyard.