Japanese Bantam Thread!

[Westguy]

Cedar,

Undesireable traits cannot be bred out. If you get pinched tailed birds or extremely leggy birds, then you will not want to breed from them. If you want quality breeding birds with representative traits, then I highly recommend purchasing breeding stock from an established breeder. It all depends on your goals in the long run.

Chris

 

[jenjscott]

I have to agree with Chris. If you want to show, start with stock from show birds. It took me almost 2 years to find my first show quality Japanese bantams, but there is no way I could have gotten that quality in even 5 years of breeding from inferior chickens. HOWEVER if you just want some cute little birds that blend well with the rest of the flock, hatchery birds might be for you. I started with the hatchery birds from ideal and they were great little birds that I could coop and brood with the other chickens. My show birds i keep separate because they are unable to compete for food and space, etc, with the other lf chickens.

 

[CedarCluck]

So this has nothing to do with JB, but I am just super excited. I candled the eggs I have in the bator and I can see movement in all but two of the eggs!! I am sooo ecstatic!

 

[moomoodiddy]

yay!!!!! congrats im excited cauze my eggs are due thursday yay for spring time!!!!!!!!

 

[chicken pickin]

These are my new Japanese Bantams I hatched from my own flock. The parents look to be gray but the chicks hatched 4 different colors. So they arent true grays. Any Idea what the babies may end up looking like.

 

[Cynthia12]

Ok, I think I figured out what I got at the store! lol...I thought I was getting a serama when I picked up the baby, but, I have been informed, that hatcheries don't usually mail out seramas. But, then I thought, Japanese bantam. I needed a buddy for my Bantam Faverolle outside..hopefully ~ girl~ buddy. I sure hope this is a girl! And, I hope I have figured out the breed! lol..pretty sure I have. She's teeny tiny!!

Thinking this will be a black?

These guys aren't even that far apart in age! OE, and EE's

That silver one is my miracle baby. Struggled for two days after hatching out of a lot of
goop! So, what do you think..Japanese bantam..girl? Too early on the guess for sex?
I tried to get one that was more feathered out. Crossing fingers.

 

[AraucanaAnnie]

Looks like my jap at that age, except mine is white. That size difference is incredible!

Does anyone else have insane broody hens? Do they make good mothers?

 

[jenjscott]

Mine go broody at the drop of a hat and make excellent mothers. I let two set together one time and all went well untill about a day after they hatched and they about killed each other fighting over the chicks!

 

[Westguy]

I have had mixed results when mine go broody so I usually pull the eggs prior to the hatch. I realize it's less responsibility to have the hens hatch the chicks but sometimes they don't always accept the chicks as their own.

Chris

 

[jak2002003]

I always leave it up to the hens to take care to hatch and take care of their own chicks. I tried rearing chick in a brooder once, too messy and noisy!

I have been lucky that they all get along. I once had 3 broody hens all sharing a huge number of chicks between them. Hens and chicks all would pile up each night in the corner.

My birds are totally free range, so perhaps that helps. If they were in a cage or small run maybe they would fight.