NannyP's Hens

As I had mention on the France page......I'd been thinking about growing birds for the table.  I haven't written about it here, as I have added it to my Blog somewhere else, and being on dial up makes it quite difficult and slow. However, the story belongs here, so I'm about to attempt to cut and paste to here.  Bare with me 

Posted 4th April 2007

Well, after a week away travelling around the South East of England, I feel knackered. I'm only just beginning to get back to somewhere near normal. Won't do that again in a hurry.

Came back with some eggs for me to grow on for table birds and my brand new incubator. (Mobile phone photo, not good quality)

There are 13 Sasso, Sasso X Maran eggs in here.  After a week, one was not developing, so I composted it. Chicken eggs take 21 days to hatch.

Posted 19th April 2007

Here they are....all hatched by 10.30am this morning.

This is the first one, who was a little early and needed help

Below are pictures of the chicks at about 1 day, they are dry and fluffed up.

Posted 22nd April 2007

Life is so exhausting, all eating and pooing.......so sleep is what's best, even if it is in the food bowl.

So, after another couple of hours sleeping and pooing, it was decided we had to have our room cleaned!

Here we are, our 15 mins in the garden

Fighting over who has the best bit of grass.

Checking to see if the grass is greener on the otherside

The little ones could escape through the bars, which was worrying

Oh yes, this is Greebo, checking out breakfast

19th May 2007

I've been raising chickens, and the ones for the table have needed daily intervention as they poo for France.  Had loads of new eggs in the incubator, but have a very poor result..only 2 chicks, luckily one hen one coq...not for eating.

This is some of the birds in their HenQuarters....we moved them in yesterday...and they seem to like it.

9th August 2007

4 months ago, I hatched out 12 Sasso chicks for the table.

  In 4 weeks time we have planned a killing weekend  4 friends from neighbouring departments are coming to teach and learn how to do this.

This is Mr Peirpoint...who will be teaching Vanessa, Chris and I how to do the deed.

This is them a week ago, and as you can see they are massive.  All the coqs are doing their business, which is pretty aggresive to watch......4 coqs to 8 hens is not fair, so we have made a decision to take these 2 over to Eric's for culling and dressing on Saturday.  They each weigh 4 + kgs, and apparently their dressed weight should be around half that. So, they will be big birds, and plenty for 4 or 5 people. Just as well we have lots of visitors due again at the end of the month...as they are too big for Mark and I to eat.

I have to go out today to purchase a plastic coated apron and some gloves...I feel like Sweeney Todd  I have enjoyed raising them, and have always known that they are for the table and so don't feel bad about doing it, just not looking forward to the actual task.

23rd August 2007

These are posts I have made over the last few weeks on the poultry forum about my experience and subsequent decisions

12/08  I am exhausted, both physically and emotionally...at least I now know what to expect in 4 weeks when 1 more coq and 5 hens are sent to their fate. Hopefully, there will be four of us pluckers to do what's needed after my old friend has done his bit.
I was unable to do a quick kill and felt really bad. So Mojo did it for me, and the other coq.
The bird now in my freezer weighs in at 8lb So, I have an evening in a few weeks time when there are 7 of us to feed, so guess what we'll be having.
I know I wore Mojo out, and he looked very tired when we left. It was a hard day. But we did have a good time, I practiced my nagging because he just asks for it and we planned Christmas.

18/08
Well, after the trials and tribulations last Saturday, I have had my thinking hat on. Thanks to a suggestion from another poultry keeper, I have decided to take them to the abbatoir next week.
I hated the killing bit, and found the plucking incredibly hard going. I cannot imagine doing 6 in one afternoon as it is extremely tiring. My daughter arrives the next afternoon and I want to be awake!!
I will continue to grow on for the table, Itsy is right, they need to be done at 10-12 weeks, this lot are now 17 weeks and too big. The bird I came home with weighs 8lb, so big enough to feed Mark and I all week!
I know going to the abatoir will add to the cost, but if it means I can grow my own birds, and eat my own birds then that's fine. We think it's about 2.20euros per bird, so about £1.60??

20/08

Well, the abbatoir doesn't do birds.....which was a bit worrying.
However, there is a place that does them, a small limited business. Tuesday is chicken day, so tomorrow, bright and early we're off with the 6 birds. They have given me a crate for them and it will be 2,20 per bird. Pick them up ready to cook on Weds.
What a relief.

21/08

Birds delivered at 0815 this morning......it's really odd, he didn't take our name, nor give us a receipt. Asked if wanted to pick them up tonight or tomorrow morning. He says they'll be refridgerated overnight. I saw him writing on a form and slipping it into the crate appeture. How will I know they're my birds I get back?? I am assuming that they know what they doing

I am amazed that I didn't feel bad. I said to Mark, "I didn't even say goodbye!" His reply,
"Well don't worry, you'll be seeing them tomorrow".

22/08

Here are the dressed weights.
2.88kg 7lb
2.56kg 5lb 10oz
2.54kg 5lb 9oz
2.34kg 5lb 5oz
1.60kg 3lb 8oz
1.43kg 3lb 5oz

The box they were packed in had Grande Bretagne written on, and I can tell they were defiinitely my chickens.
I also have the offal in a seperate container (I hate offal) so for now I've put in the freezer along with the birds.

They were very quiet on the way home....Mark thinks they're sulking

So, there you have it, we ended up with 7 birds to eat, as we left one with Mojo.

We've eaten 3 so far, and I am currently defrosting one for tomorrow's dinner. They taste absolutely wonderful, and now I know how, and what I will do with them, I intend to grow more next year.

4 remain, to provide eggs for hatching next February.

 I haven't yet decided how many I will hatch.

Mark has spent the last 3 days, making a better home for them. They moved in last night, and despite it being a familiar building for them, it's larger, drier, warmer and has better roosting and nesting. They are not impressed! I had to push them in last night and tonight, and will they roost...will they heck!!

Here is a link to Photobucket. You can see some photos of the new home, plus some others.

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v707/NannyP/Hens/

This is one of the Sasso X's, she became broody 4 weeks ago, and I set 6 eggs beneath her. 
She lost 3 along the way, but not bad for a very late hatch and new coq. 

I don't expect these to grow as fast as the first ones.  The eggs were smaller, so they start out smaller. Plus it's cold so they will use more enrgy keeping warm, despite being beneath mum. At least she'll do all the work...not too much poo clearing for me   These will be ready possibly in mid March...we'll take them, along with a surplus Cream Legbar coq to the abattoir and have a few more brids until I can set a  large amount of eggs.  I'll wish for a broody hen in Feb, as that would be ideal 
We ate our last bird last week, made 3 meals out of it.  All I have left in the freezer are several carcasses that need reducing down for soup.

So, the 3 chicks are growing, 2 coqs and one hen.  Their growth rate has not been as fast as my first birds. This, I suspect is down to the cold weather, they've needed to use the food intake to keep warm rather than to put on weight.  Add to this, they have been free ranging with mum since about 4 weeks, so have had less access to pellets. 

On Feb 1st, Mark's 60th birthday, we hatched out a few more chicks in the incubator. 4 Sasso X and one marans X and one Pheasant hen X.  Mark's daughter and family were here for his birthday, so the girls were able to watch the chicks hatching (once at 0530hrs )

This is Izzy, before he poo'd on her, which she really was unhappy about! 

Abi, Izzy and Ellie watching a chick hatching.

Abi with her own chick, very damp still..not long hatched

The Marans chick was 4 days later than the others, so for 12 hours, he lived inside this cloche to protect him from the others. They're now 4 weeks old and living outside in the shed coop under a heat lamp, being slowly weaned off the heat.  They're growing quickly, as they are not free ranging, have constant access to food, and are kept warm. 

We have had a major change around in the garden, and I have decided that one of the coqs hatched beneath the broody, will be next seasons provider for the hens.  This means, the original Sasso coq, who has provided the fertile eggs so far, will go to the abbatoir.  This will give the hens a break for a few months, before the younger coq starts treading them.

The heated coop above will be home to the next hatch, and the current residents will move to the unheated coop next door. The two sheds will now be known as The Nursery.

We have 24 eggs in the incubator, quite a mixture.  Some more table birds, plus hopefully some brahmas as we lost our lovely, gentle brahma coq, Trousers, last Sunday.  Just died suddenly, possibly of a heart attack.  The hatch date for these eggs is the Weds before Good Friday, so not quite Easter chicks. Then that's it until September and hopefully we'll have enough chicken in the freezer by the end of the year.

Hmm, better start a new page, this is getting very long