Officialish Chicken Photo Thread!

[RhondaLynn]

I have about 24-30 free ranging chickens. I started out with "game"(you know the fighting breed) chickens because we have hawks and other preditors here so bad that everything kept getting eaten!!

I mostly got them to turn my horse manure into dirt quicker. I now have more laying breeds and love getting and giving the eggs.

One good thing about free ranging hens.... it makes the horses less spooky about something flying around them.

Some days the horses will come into the barn when I'm feeding and the chickens are scattered all about.. the hens will fly up and swak loudly.. The horses spook slightly but nothin like they use to!

Rhonda

[Lockwood]

Once my girls reach 18 months or so they usually go through their first molt. After that molt is yearly and I have never had a hen not lay again after molt was done.
I always have a hen or two that will still lay during molt so I just wait it out and before I know it I'm knee deep in eggs again. Most of my girls are heritage breeds and they are tough birds. I haven't had to use heat lamps or anything for them.

Here is a Speckled Sussex and Americaunas...



Baby turkeys....


Sorry, couldn't resist!

[tinyliny]

I love chickens. So beautiful. I am looking for a really nice, colorful photo to use as a reference for a paiting with my watercolor pencils. Post away, ladies, and guys! I like the RIR rooster, and hope to see some other good ones.

[kait18]

I will have to post pics of my 3 girls :) they are so friendly its disgusting... lol they come running when you get out of a car or they see you coming down to there shed.. then once next to you they squat and wait for you to pick them up... what loive bugs they are and all 3 are still laying all winter... no problems... free range plus some meat and chicken feed is a good source for my girls lol

[Lockwood]

Here is my Welsummer roo watching over the hens as they take a dust bath. A Welsummer rooster is a heritager breed and is the original rooster featured on the box of Corn Flakes.

[FlyGap]

Lockwood! Your flock is beautiful!
I wanted Americaunas so bad but hub is traditional and insisted on rir's.
Ducks??? What do you do with them? Sooo sweet!

[Delfina]

Originally Posted by FlyGap    

I wanted Americaunas so bad but hub is traditional and insisted on rir's.

I didn't ask the hubby... just brought home chicks that I let the girls pick out, so we ended up with some of each.

2 Buff Brahma
1 Partridge Cochin
1 Black Cochin
2 Production Red
1 All White Americauna
1 Americauna
1 Speckled Sussex

I'll have to get pictures, it's the most random, hilarious bunch of chickens.

[FlyGap]

Pictures! Pictures!

[Delfina]

I can't get pictures in the dark!

Well I could.... but I am not about to walk across the yard since there are packs of Coyotes out there! Don't worry, chickies are safe.... they have a fenced yard that gets closed at night as well as the coop being locked up.

I'll get some tomorrow!

[waresbear]

Great, now I got a craving for hot wings!