Naked Neck/Turken Thread

[DesertChic]

I wouldn't discount the smaller gal too soon. She could be your most prolific layer and they have away of having growth spurts. She may never be as big as her mates but she could come very close in a few months.

I can second this! My two smallest NN pullets lay eggs like crazy, and their eggs are pretty big for their size too, ranging between 1.85 and 2.1 ounces consistently at 10 mos. of age. And one of those "little" pullets wound up filling out very nicely....she just did it more slowly than the other girls did while still laying 5-6 eggs per week.

 

[DesertChic]

Daylight hours/temperatures is part of it, for example peafowl are very seasonal layers.. not so rare for peahens to lay a few eggs in the fall after having stopped over the summer. It seems sometimes their bodies are fooled into thinking it's spring time.

Wow....I just never stop learning about these guys. Love it!

I took her off the eggs last night and placed her on the roost with her flockmates in the hope that the cooler night temperatures would gently break through any broodiness. We had a hard freeze last night, and so far it appears to have worked as she's out foraging with everyone else.

*Chuckle* I remember a year ago when I first started keeping chickens I bought Silkie chicks because I wanted to have ONE potentially broody hen. Well, that little Silkie did go broody a couple times, but so far my White Rock and Naked Neck pullets have clearly outdone her. I feel really fortunate to have so many potentially amazing mommies.

 

[Kev]

Wow....I just never stop learning about these guys. Love it!

I took her off the eggs last night and placed her on the roost with her flockmates in the hope that the cooler night temperatures would gently break through any broodiness. We had a hard freeze last night, and so far it appears to have worked as she's out foraging with everyone else.

*Chuckle* I remember a year ago when I first started keeping chickens I bought Silkie chicks because I wanted to have ONE potentially broody hen. Well, that little Silkie did go broody a couple times, but so far my White Rock and Naked Neck pullets have clearly outdone her. I feel really fortunate to have so many potentially amazing mommies.

The faster a broody is stopped, the faster she quits and goes back to laying.. many a hen forced to stop after a day or two can start laying within a few days or within the month. The longer they are let to set, the longer it takes for them to come back into lay... also another thing, a broody forced to stop in the fall often goes into a heavy molt and takes much longer to come into lay again.

silkies are overrated as broodies IMO. Let's just say I was using araucanas, NN, asil and mixes- even many project chickens, to hatch peafowl and chicken eggs with far greater success.

 

[DesertChic]

The faster a broody is stopped, the faster she quits and goes back to laying.. many a hen forced to stop after a day or two can start laying within a few days or within the month. The longer they are let to set, the longer it takes for them to come back into lay... also another thing, a broody forced to stop in the fall often goes into a heavy molt and takes much longer to come into lay again.

silkies are overrated as broodies IMO. Let's just say I was using araucanas, NN, asil and mixes- even many project chickens, to hatch peafowl and chicken eggs with far greater success.

I agree about the Silkies. I only have one little buff hen and she's very cute....but if I had it to do all over again I probably wouldn't have bought any Silkies. The only surprisingly good things about her is that she's actually a very consistent layer of eggs when not broody (even though they're small), and now that I've hatched her Bielefelder fertilized eggs I've got half a dozen people wanting to buy "bantam Biels" from me. I never knew anyone would even be interested in the combo, so I'm now contemplating this is a long-term project. The chicks are pretty darn cute and unbelievably sweet, affectionate, friendly and hardy. Here's a sampling of how they looked at 4 weeks:

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

I wouldn't discount the smaller gal too soon. She could be your most prolific layer and they have away of having growth spurts. She may never be as big as her mates but she could come very close in a few months.

Yeah, I thought of that - also thought that she could end up being the best mother, too. I think I'll be keeping all the girls. It's the boys that will have to be cut down in number...

- Ant Farm

 

[ochochicas]

Just want to put this out there - it is never "too late" in the year for a broody to hatch eggs. We live in the mountains of Washington where it does get very cold and we also have snow. I've let my broody hatch in December. Those tiny babies were out on the icy ground at 5 days old free ranging with mom and learning how to forage. She didn't lose a single chick. That said, I wouldn't hatch in winter with a broody that isn't "tried and true". My Marans hen can hatch and raise anything in any kind of weather. Too bad all her babies end up being cockerels.

 

[hellbender]

Just want to put this out there - it is never "too late" in the year for a broody to hatch eggs. We live in the mountains of Washington where it does get very cold and we also have snow. I've let my broody hatch in December. Those tiny babies were out on the icy ground at 5 days old free ranging with mom and learning how to forage. She didn't lose a single chick. That said, I wouldn't hatch in winter with a broody that isn't "tried and true". My Marans hen can hatch and raise anything in any kind of weather. Too bad all her babies end up being cockerels.

Interesting and funny!

 

[Kev]

I agree about the Silkies. I only have one little buff hen and she's very cute....but if I had it to do all over again I probably wouldn't have bought any Silkies. The only surprisingly good things about her is that she's actually a very consistent layer of eggs when not broody (even though they're small), and now that I've hatched her Bielefelder fertilized eggs I've got half a dozen people wanting to buy "bantam Biels" from me. I never knew anyone would even be interested in the combo, so I'm now contemplating this is a long-term project. The chicks are pretty darn cute and unbelievably sweet, affectionate, friendly and hardy. Here's a sampling of how they looked at 4 weeks:

It also surprises me how some things become popular and what doesn't..... to be honest some of the things that have proved popular or even selling for $$ uhm.... I've been culling for years... oops? lol

Do those show any barring? I don't see any in those pictures?

 

[Kev]

I think I might have hatched a bunch of roosters, oh no!! Poor Marshmallow is the only chick with no comb growth. Hamster doesn't have much. The black boys Werewolf and Tugboat though, they have plump combs to match Pork's, and nice red cheeks whenever they get excited. What do ya'll think?

Werewolf

Tugboat

Hamster

Marshmallow

Pork

Whoa I missed this! They look to be in great condition.

I think I recognize certain hens being mothers of your babies.. Tugboat is crested(small one tho). It seems to me Marshallow is rose combed?

I agree with the person who said too early to be sure. I also mostly ignore comb size and wait until first flush of pink on the combs/wattles. Blushing on the face/neck when excited is normal for both sexes.

 

[Skink]

Whoa I missed this! They look to be in great condition.

I think I recognize certain hens being mothers of your babies.. Tugboat is crested(small one tho). It seems to me Marshallow is rose combed?

I agree with the person who said too early to be sure. I also mostly ignore comb size and wait until first flush of pink on the combs/wattles. Blushing on the face/neck when excited is normal for both sexes.

I am learning stuff all over! I had no idea it was normal for both sexes, but then I never see the skin on my other chickens haha. Marshmallow indeed has a rose comb, I thought it might be cushion or pea, but I don't know the parent stock and have raised very few chicks that didn't have single combs. If the rose comb has a leader, can you see that young or does it grow in?

If Tugboat is crested I haven't noticed, they looked just like Werewolf for a long time. Werewolf only recently started being the bigger of the two... Tugboat is also feathering out much slower, so I've started putting in two feeders just in case. Werewolf might just be something else, though, they've gotten huge and are feathering out head and shoulders above the rest. I'm glad they seem to be in good shape!