Saturday, March 26, 2011

Starting over with chickens..

Last year, I lost my flock. =( First, I took in some sick hens. It spread to some of the others. *sigh* Then, I made the mistake of trying to be good to a stray dog that came along. I kept him a while, until one day he got loose while I was gone and it was a massacre! :*( All of my chickens, and my duck.. Gone.

That dog is gone, and i'm starting over again.

So far, I have 3 White Rock hens, a cute little Mille Fleur Old English Game Bantum roo and a pair of Silkies - one white hen and a blue (splash?) rooster. The lady I bought the Silkies from said he is a splash, then she said he isn't a "true splash"....not sure what she meant? But, he's cute. lol Bad on the back for now from her other roosters.....lol....but cute!

In the brooder, I have 3 chicks from the "assorted red pullet" bin at Tractor Supply. I'm thinking they are Golden Comets. 3 "Ameracauna"/Easter Eggers....they were straight run...hoping they are all 3 girls!! ..Or at least 1-2! lol

4 Amberlinks.. Well, one may not be an Amberlink? She was in the Amberlink bin, but she has a light tan stripe down her back. So, we'll see! lol
2 White Leghorn pullets.. 3 Barred Rocks, straight run..
6 Tetra Tints.. A new "breed" that Mt. Healthy hatchery is getting in strictly for Tractor Supply this year.....and has VERY little information on!
They said they will be white birds, 5 pounds, similar to a White Leghorn.. Some may have darker markings on them. They will be heavy producers of a light creamy colored egg. That's all they know! No photos are available of a full grown Tetra Tint.
It seems like everyone has been asking about them on backyardchickens.com and noone has a photo of a full grown Tetra Tint! Soooo.. I will be sure to keep everyone who comes across here with photos of my Tetra Tints as they grow up! :)
Oh, and I have four little mystery chicks from a bin marked "Commercial black pullets".
Again, noone seems quite sure WHAT these birds are! lol
Some people thought they may be black sexlinks..
But, I contacted the hatchery, and they said "these birds are in no way sexlinks"..
"They will be a lot like an Australorp"!
The first one I got of this type is not getting a lot of bronze coloring on her wings and tail!
Her legs are dark and the bottoms of her feet are pretty yellow.
The others I just picked up from the bin.. One looks just like her when I got her (almost, except she has a beige chin...this one doesn't, I don't think) and two itty bitty almost solid black chicks. They "fur" is very velvety textures, and they has white wing tips and yellow undersides.

Can't wait to see what the little black mystery chicks AND the Tetra Tints turn out to look like!! :)

...and... I have 5 more Amberlinks (love, love, LOOOVE Amberlinks! lol) and 5 Australorps on order, they will be here toward the end of April!!

Now.. The ONE breed I am currently looking for is the Orpington. I'd love to find a Buff Orp hen or chick or two! Doesn't have to be buff in color, but preferred. :)

I will post photos here sometime soon!


22 comments:

  1. Thank you for pioneering the common knowledge on the tetra tints!! I am starting a flock for the first time with my family, and we let our four year old pick them out at tractor supply. In the end, we came out with six tetras and since then I have been trying to find more info on the breed. They are about four weeks old now and look exactly like the photos you posted. I agree they are very friendly and love to jump onto my arm! I look forward to reading more of your posts!!
    Natalie

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  3. Hi Sunshyne! Thank for stopping by. We are almost neighbors! I live in Rock, WV, sort of near Bluefield. I wish I had bought more than one tetra tint pullet. I just love mine. I have now added a broom across both brooders so she can perch or go visiting! She hears my voice and jumps up. I let her sit on my shoulder, but usually get pooped on. Worth it getting pooped on by a bird of happiness. lol

    I bought Last year, on a mixed run I got lucky and got my first black sex-link hen. She is a great egg layer, the eggs are big and brown. And she is hearty. The winter didn't phase her. I am sorry to hear about your loss last year. The same sort of thing happened to me. My brother-in-law moved into a house on our property, and without notice and out of the blue, he started letting his dog out while he was at work. That dog killed my flock, except for my Black sex-link and Rhode Island red roo. I didn't just cry, I wailed! I am still sad. So I know how you feel. :-(
    But! we are starting new flocks. A bit more experienced and a whole lot more appreciative!

    All my best, ~crow

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  4. Hi Willow Crow, sorry to hear that you lost most of your flock, too. Chickens are so easy to love, it's hard to lose just one, but when you lose all or most at one time, it's devastating.

    I didn't realize you were near Bluefield! I guess we are almost neighbors! :)

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  5. Hi Natalie! Yes, Tetra Tints have definitely been THE most friendly of all the breeds i've experienced. Love them, can't wait to see how they look in a few weeks, and a few months! :) I'm really curious which breeds they are hybrid of. lol

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  6. I too thought I was buying red sexlinks but now 3 months later, I've been raising tetra tints, knowing nothing about how they lay, when they lay, their breeding etc...nothing...this is disappointing at best.

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