Hello.

Maximus · Post by **Maximus** » Wed May 25, 2016 8:12 am

Welcome aboard Steve. I'm close got the Niagara region. Check out events on the forum. There's a show, buy and sell coming up in Grassie (new barn - smithville - on mud) in June. Not far from you.
I'm sure the local group, Niagara feather fanciers would love to have an addition. Let me know if you're interested and I'll set you up with contact info to find out more.

Cheers!!!

Sandy

Post by **Home Grown Poultry** » Wed May 25, 2016 8:25 am

Good Morning n welcome aboard Steve! We have ALL your poultry needs and then some! HAHA I got into poultry for the exact same reason as you, meat and eggs plus I also Love eggs, all kinds of them cooked every way possible. around midnight last Friday I hard baked a dozen on the fire in my oven at camp... took 50 mins and quite possible the slowest method to cooking an egg, but ever had a hard baked fire roasted egg? mmm they good! LOL

well after 2 years of keeping a few different breeds I finally got my hands on some real heritage standard bred Rhode Island Reds. they aren't very common in Canada with only a handful of dedicated breeders but I am proud to be one. suddenly my objective changed from meat and eggs to breeding to the standard of perfection, keep the best and eat the rest! actually it is a great way to put food on the table because if the bird isnt meeting the SOP it will always meet the table bird standards around here.

I also breed Beltsville small white turkeys, another critically endangered heritage breed and James Marie Farms Jumbo Coturnix Quail. never mind chicken math, I have everything else math going on LOL. I couldnt even tell you how many chickens I have LOL. I also have some ducks n geese.

Ya when introducing new birds to the flock there is a process to follow. quarantine for a month in a seperate coop/shed/dump trailer ect.... just to make sure all the birds are healthy and dont spread something to the other birds. healthy birds can carry stuff that another perfectly healthy birds might not be immune to. theres also vaccinations so knowing the history of the birds is extremely helpful. some vaccinations can infect birds that have not been vaccinated. im not very knowledgeable on this subject though but others on here sure are.

Have a good one Steve!

redninja · Post by **redninja** » Wed May 25, 2016 3:55 pm

Welcome to the group. I find introducing new hens is best at night and sometimes keep the new ones safely caged(you need a roomy cage) for a day or two while the girls work things out. I'm sure other members will chime in on this one.

Post by **Killerbunny** » Wed May 25, 2016 4:51 pm

When you get new birds to introduce to your flock quarantine is essential. It's not just tht your birds might catch something but the new birds won't be used to the local bugs and being stressed by moving you don't want to stress them more. Once that's done I always have a "meet and greet" pen where the newcomers can talk to the established birds for a week. Then when you put them together they recognise each other.

Post by **WLLady** » Thu May 26, 2016 11:15 am

Bayvistafarm · Post by **Bayvistafarm** » Wed Jun 01, 2016 8:36 am

Homesteading.newb wrote:QR_BBPOST Thanks for a kind welcome! I guess the idea of being able to provide, in as many ways as possible, for myself and my family is intriguing to me. i also LOVE eggs! I've heard about chicken math and im pretty sure 5 will be 10 by summers end. Haha. I will be getting 5 isa browns because I was told they were some of the most efficient layers and that they can handle cold climates well. But again, while lurking and learning on forums i have seen some absolutely beautiful birds. Would maybe like to get a few heritage breeds. ... You think introducing them to the flock will cause issues??

Welcome! Lots of us have various breeds to choose from, if you want nice looking heritage birds. And, ya, it will cause issues when you introduce new birds, just make sure you introduce more than ONE at a time.... because one will be mercilessly picked on. Doing it at night helps too. Although in my case, they always know who the new ones are. I recently put 20 new birds in with 40. They still squabble to the new ones.... but there is only one that EVERYONE seems to pick on. You have to watch for those.

kenya · Post by **kenya** » Wed Jun 01, 2016 2:12 pm

Hello and welcome!

Doug The Chickenman · Post by **Doug The Chickenman** » Wed Jun 01, 2016 2:21 pm

Welcome aboard and yes chicken math will be your friend.

We the Enablers will help you grow your flock to a hundred birds no problem.

Flat Rock Farm · Post by **Flat Rock Farm** » Wed Jun 01, 2016 2:47 pm

to PTO Steve

Enjoy your new chickens!! :chicken peck2: :chicken peck2: :chicken peck2: :chicken peck2: :chicken peck2:

Seastar · Post by **Seastar** » Wed Jun 01, 2016 4:23 pm

Welcome.