More Eggs Please

Friday 3rd February 2012

Just hovering above zero, but a pleasant day which felt deceptively warm with little wind and the sun shining strong all day.

More Eggs Please
For the first time in a long time we've only had 3 eggs for each of the last two days. Egg production has slowed down a little of late, but the onset of this colder weather, especially the biting winds, seems to have sent the chickens off lay. Having said that, most people would be very happy with one egg per three layers at this time of year.
One factor in the reduction in eggs is that Elvis has definitely gone broody - again - for the third time in a year. She is sitting tight on two eggs and gives sharp, forceful pecks if disturbed. Poor old Baby Guinea has not yet accepted the situation, standing forlornly next to her mother wondering why she is now being ignored.
I have decided to take the opportunity to put some eggs underneath Elvis, but plan to introduce some rare breeds to our flock. I am looking to introduce some breeds which give some exotic variety to my egg colours. Either Cream Legbars or Araucanas for their blue eggs and maybe Welsummers for dark, chocolate brown eggs.

Mostly though, I want to begin raising some chickens specifically for meat. To this end, I have been searching for some Cornish Indian Game chickens. Ideally, I want females which can mate with our trusty cockerel. We will then collect their eggs and hatch them to produce chickens for the table. For the moment, any cockerels which emerge from the eggs I order will probably be raised for the table. To keep them within the flock as mature cockerels would only result in stress for the hens and the cockerels alike. It would also lead to in-breeding.
I have found a company in Cornwall called Cornish Poultry and contacted them via e-mail. Although Luke was on holiday, he replied to my e-mail and so this morning I spoke to his brother Jon, who was most helpful.

http://www.cornishpoultry.co.uk/

Their chickens, too, have gone off lay to some extent, but they can provide at least a couple of Indian Games and top the half dozen eggs up with Araucanas or Welsummers. I am keen to establish a way of producing table birds, but what else I get doesn't matter too much as there will be plenty of opportunities to build the flock in the future. This company can provide all the rare breeds I aim to keep, so I am sure I will be able to buy from them in the future. They are also not run as a business to make profit, but as a way of funding a hobby and preserving rare breeds. I could use an incubator to purchase eggs and increase my flock, but I prefer the natural way, letting Elvis do all the work! If we get any Araucana hens, they may well grow into good broodies too.