Poultry Ireland » Considerations Beforehand

For Sale – Runner, Moscovy, Call Ducklings and Hybrid Layers

Connor McCarra — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 22:45:35 +0000

Update: All birds shown in this post our now sold to good homes!

We have young runner ducklings, muscovy ducklings, and call ducklings for sale. Also young Daisy Belles, and Bluebells, both hybrid layers.

Here is some information on the the Breeds:

Muscovy Ducks

Originating from Brazil, Muscovies are the only domestic ducks that is not derived from mallard stock. Wild muscovies coloration is black and white, but domestication has produced many different colors. These colors are; blue, blue and white, chocolate, chocolate and white, white, black, black and white, lavender, and calical. The males can grow to be quite large, weighing 10-15 lbs. Most of the females are 5-7 pounds but can reach up to 9 and sometimes 10 lbs. Their feet are equipt with strong sharp claws for grabbing tree branches and roosting. Muscovys are unique because of their bright red crest around their eyes and above the beak. They do not swim much because their oil glands are under developed compared to most ducks. Muscovy hens can set three times a year, and the egg clutches can vary from 8 to 21 eggs. The egg are incubated for 35 days.

Indian Runner Ducks

Indian Runner ducks have a distinctive type, the long, flat, straight head and long, slender neck forming, in shape, and umbrella handle and stem, the back should be long, straight and carried upright, and with the body should take on almost horizontal bearing. At present the colour range is still expanding with the Black Chocolate and Blue often losing colour especially in females with age and the males succeptible to throwing odd white feathers after injuries / fights with other drakes.

Call Ducks

The Call Duck is an energetic and active duck. It is small, weighing around 0.68 kg (1.5 lb) with a plump bowl-shaped body; a wide, rounded head; tiny, broad bill and short legs. It is vocal with a high pitched call. The Call Duck comes in a variety of standard colours including White, Gray, Blue, Buff, Pastel, Khaki, Butterscotch, Chocolate, Snowy, Spot and Black & White Magpie. Nonstandard colours include Blue Fawn, Nutmeg, Self Black, Cinnamon and Crested. It produces 25–75 eggs a year.

Daisy Belles

Daisy Belles are a newly developed hybrid with a high laying capacity.

Bluebell

Another Rhode X . This is a beautiful looking bird, laying brown eggs and a typical hybrid with great production. Very scarce and a great seller.

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All these birds are growers and were growers at the time of the photo and will continue to grow into lovely birds. If you are interested in any of these growers contact us by email or phone (check out the contact page for details).

The number of hens and cocks

Connor McCarra — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 12:55:19 +0000

How many hens and cocks you are able to keep depends on what you want to do with the birds, the amount of space you have and the breed you choose.

Do you just want a few animals as a pastime, without intending to go to shows with them or to breed them? Then it does not matter whether or not all of the eggs are fertilized. In that case, you can get a rooster with at least two or three, but possibly even more hens, depending on the breed and the space available.

If it is indeed important to you that the entire clutch is fertilized, then you should probably get no more than six hens to one rooster. Regarding light, temperamental breeds, you can increase the number of hens to twelve, but with large, heavy breeds, like the Brahma or the Cochin, three to five hens are more than enough. There are also breeds that are still very close to nature and are practically monogamous. This is seen with the Asiatic game breeds. (The Complete Encyclopedia Of Chickens by Esther Verhoef & Aad Rijs)

Preventing the annoyance of your roosters

Connor McCarra — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 12:53:41 +0000

If you want your birds to have offspring, then getting one or more roosters is necessary. In that case, it is good to know that any potential noise pollution can be largely prevented. Most people who are irritated by crowing basically have a problem with the early hour at which a rooster starts to herald the new day, for they normally crow at dawn. A blinded and sound-proofed hen-roost may prevent a cock from crowing in the early hours of the morning and causing trouble. This insulation however has the disadvantage that not much fresh air can get into the henhouse, which is in fact crucial to the animals’ vitality and health. So this is only wise if you have a sizeable roost with few birds. Apart from that, a cock may occasionally happen to crow in the middle of the night. In that case, the animal has almost certainly been disturbed in its sleep. A door slamming or a car starting is usually more than enough to get him to crow once or several times. The advantage of this it that you have a cheap burgular alarm, but your neighbours will probably appreciate it less. Another possibility is to separate your cock from your hens at night before they go to roost, putting him in a box or some special, well-insulated cage in your barn or elsewhere on your premises. After nine o’clock in the morning, the rooster can be placed with the hens again. However, there are breeds of rooster which are known to crow less shrilly and also more briefly than the average cock. The Old English Game Bantam is one of them. But whatever measures you may take, you will never be able to stop the crowing entirely, as it is a natural quality of roosters. By doing so, the animal lets its rivals know where it lives and what its territory is. (The Complete Encyclopedia Of Chickens by Esther Verhoef & Aad Rijs)

Annoyance from roosters

Connor McCarra — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 12:44:34 +0000

Most breeds do not need a lot of space, and any garden or even a balcony is able to accommodate a few small chickens. If you keep their coop sufficiently clean and your chickens stay on your own premises, few neighbours will object to your hobby. Only when you do not clean your henhouse well will this attract flies and vermin, for which neighbours may quite rightly blame you. But most people like chickens as their scratching around creates a positive atmosphere. This may however take a very different turn if your neighbours are confronted with the crowing of one or more roosters. Although many people actually enjoy the sound, there are unfortunately also those who find that it gets on their nerves. That is why it is sensible to inquire beforehand whether your neighbours object to your keeping a cock. If you expect problems, it is better to just have hens, otherwise you might find yourself involved in a law suit and a neighbourhood quarrel. For that matter, hens also tend to cackle when laying an egg, or when startled by some noise or other. A chicken, whether cock or hen, is never entirely silent. (The Complete Encyclopedia Of Chickens by Esther Verhoef & Aad Rijs)

Is a rooster necessary?

Connor McCarra — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 12:41:57 +0000

If you don’t want to breed your birds, then strictly speaking you need not get a cock. Hens do not need a rooster to be happy, and the pecking order within a flock is usually not a problem either. Often one of the hens takes on the cock’s role. She becomes a bit more dominant and starts behaving in a ‘testy’ manner like a rooster. Thus, very dominant hens sometimes even make a modest attempt at crowing. But if you find roosters handsome birds and it is possible for you to keep one, then you will have to take into account that he is going to fertilize your hens. That is of no consequence, as long as the hens don’t sit on the fertilized one, so you can simply eat it and not taste the difference. Still, it is something else if the fertilized egg has been brooded on for a couple of days. The developments in a hardset egg go very quickly: within a couple of days a system of blood vessels is already evident, and on the fourth day one can clearly distinguish an embryo. If you are aware that you occasionally tend to forget to gather the eggs for a day or more, then it is best to select a breed that is rarely, if ever, broody (‘non-sitters’). Otherwise you might happen to break a set egg over the frying pan. Many an inexperienced chicken buff can tell you horror stories about this. (The Complete Encyclopedia Of Chickens by Esther Verhoef & Aad Rijs)

Breed-related qualities – Find the breed for you

Connor McCarra — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 12:41:25 +0000

There are chickens of all sizes, shapes and colours, with all kinds of feathers, and with a variety of characteristics. Thus one finds noisy chickens, chickens that love to fly and are constantly escaping from their run, chickens that by nature are very calm and docile, and those that are known for their jumpiness or even for being quite aggressive. If you yourself are rather lively and excitable, then you will do better to settle on a calm breed. Your animals will actually reflect your disposition, resulting in your temperamental chickens growing agitated, and when you walk into the coop, literally all hell breaks loose, leaving you in a cloud of feathers. There are also differences in laying capacity: there are breeds specially selected for laying relatively large and many eggs (even in winter) and breeds that lay very few indeed. Besides, hens of some breeds are broody at the drop of a hat, while others almost never are. Frequent broodiness is a nuisance if you chiefly keep chickens for their eggs, because a broody hen is not in lay. So if you want hens for the eggs, see to it that you get a breed of prolific layers that are not prone to broodiness. As both the external and inner qualities are usually fixed in a breed, it is clear that one does not only pick a breed for its attractive appearance. The best thing to do is to carefully consider beforehand what qualities you would like in your new pets, choosing the breed that complies with the best. This way, you will prevent the enterprise from turning out a disappointment. However, do remember that character not only depends on breed, but is also connected with stock. Thus a breeder, by consciously or unintentionally selecting certain traits, will embed them in his or her stock, so that chickens from this breeder might be more placid than is normally the case, or just the opposite. (The Complete Encyclopedia Of Chickens by Esther Verhoef & Aad Rijs)

Appearance and care of poultry

Connor McCarra — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:34:12 +0000

If you have to make a choice for a certain chicken breed, then please consider, before simply going out and buying ‘just’ a few chickens, that every standard breed tends to have its particular physical features demanding specific care. If you for instance want to let a few chickens wander about your backyard, then you had better not buy a breed with crests,beards or lots of feathers on their feet. After a few days of scratching around, or even sooner, they will usually look pretty bedraggled. If you don’t want your poultry to upset your garden, you can put a check on this by choosing chickens with feathered feet. These are less fanatic diggers, but then again you should see to it that they are able to roost in dry conditions, so that their leg feathers can dry, A short-legged breed like the Japanese Bantams cannot get about very well in a yard, nor can frizzle-feathered breeds that have a problem with rain. If you got a very little space, then needless to say you should pick some bantams or else a bigger placid breed that does not need a lot of room. If you don’t know much about chickens and you do not intend to look into the matter very deeply, you will do better to get a hardy breed instead of a rather delicate one needing special care. If you are of a slender build yourself or if your kids also like taking care of the chickens together with you, then don’t settle on a large, heavy breed, but pick a more manageable size instead, Also consider the fact that big chickens produce more droppings than small bantams do. As a rule, large chickens take more work in cleaning the garden or henhouse, and of course having many chickens is also a lot more trouble than just keeping a few. Thus all breeds, types and sizes have their own specific features, making the birds either suited or not to your situation and requirements. (The Complete Encyclopedia Of Chickens, by Esther Verhoef & Aad Rijs)

Why choose standard breeds when buying poultry?

Connor McCarra — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:28:51 +0000

Many people have chickens that they have bought at a market or from some local dealer. Such animals are usually crossbreds between several breeds, or they are white, black or brown ‘egg layers’. It regularly happens that owners are disappointed in their birds, for instance because they keep on getting into neighbouring gardens, crow very loudly and often, lay poorly or absolutely refuse to be tamed. This is in fact the disadvantage of animals that are not purebreds -it is hard to predict how their behaviour is going to develop and what qualities they may either have or lack. With standard or true-breeding birds, not only have their physical features been fixed, like build, type of plumage and colour, but also qualities like broodiness, whether or not they are good layers, and the colour and average size of their eggs. Furthermore, the breed also determines those features that may be best described as ‘character’. There are breeds with which an owner can easily form an attachment and which, when well treated and cared for, will follow him or her around like little dogs and sit on his or her lap. But there are also breeds that react rather agressively or shyly to people. Furthermore, you find breeds that can fly quite well and those that never do so, and there are roosters with a rather soft voice and ones that crow really loud. The fact that such qualities are ‘fixed’ in a breed is very handy for people who have certain requirements or wishes as to their new pets. Some folk simply want chickens because they are decorative, just to look at. They have the space to let the birds run free safely and it does not bother them if they do not get very tame. And there are others who have a small backyard where they would like their chickens to go about freely, expecting them to remain at the right side of a low garden fence and not to scratch about in the flower beds. Or there are those who only have a balcony, where they would nevertheless like to keep a few bantam hens in a space no larger than a mere square metre (10 sq ft). Though keeping chickens on a small balcony area is not recommended. Still, all this is possible. But should one have such wishes, then the chance of success is far greater if one picks a breed that has qualities corresponding with one’s requirements and possibilities. Apart from that, it is an old wives’ tale that hybirds are stronger than purebreds. There are indeed some breeds that are a bit more vunerable to certain diseases and parasites, but this is usually easily prevented by vaccination or adapted housing. Most breeds are downright tough. (The Complete Encyclopedia Of Chickens by Esther Verhoef & Aad Rijs)

Look before you leap into the world of poultry!

Connor McCarra — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 23:15:57 +0000

If you are thinking of keeping chickens, make sure that you have the time to give these birds the care they need, and that the work involved appeals to you. Chickens are far less demanding than most other domestic animals, but they do require feed and fresh water every day, and a henhouse requires regular cleaning. If you are away for a couple of days or more, then you cannot leave these animals to their own devices. In that case, you need a reliable person to take care of them during your absence. Keeping chickens need not be expensive, certainly not when you only have a few birds. Whatever the case may be, you will have to consider buying or making a solid and durable henhouse, which as a rule is not cheap. Also, your chickens might contract a disease for which they must see a veterinarian, and although this could be expensive, your animals should not go without because of the costs. As chickens can live ten or even fifteen years (and sometimes even more), it is sensible to carefully up all the pros and cons beforehand. You should realize that your chickens cannot choose whether to live with you or not, and that they depend entirely upon you for their well-being. There are a few examples of municipalities prohibiting chickens within a residential area, or of fanciers having to get rid of their chickens because neighbours complain about the noise. So, before acquiring chickens, it is wise to inquire about such matters. (The Complete Encyclopedia Of Chickens, by Esther Verhoef & Aad Rijs)