Meet the Wyandottes! - Part 2

Well it has been months since I last had a true talk about my Wyandottes. Since they are the only breed I have that is relatively common, and a topic of discussion of hatchery quality and behavior - Here's how mine grew up to be. Do you remember these 10 ladies when they were younger? They were brats. They always had the nickname of "The Gang," "The Clique," and so on. Their quality was not looking hopeful, their friendliness was just about nil - even to themselves, and they were always in groups. Well, here's them today. Colors, names, maturity, and now laying eggs.

Here's a little walkthrough on how the girls look. They've grown to have better lacing, but still are very thin, have erect, small tails, and almost every single one has a different comb. No, none of mine are bad enough to have single combs as some hatcheries sell - But some of my girls have combs that are too rosy, abnormally grown, or just plain too medium sized and not tight enough. Wyandottes should have small, tight to the face rose combs. Mine range from that to large rosecombs, like on a bantam, to combs so bulbous, the tip is hidden underneath the rest like a bellybotton. Anyway - They're a lot more friendly, and lay a great amount of eggs.



This is the Wyandotte with the abnormal comb. She was always the darkest of them, with the least amount of white. As a chick she was nearly black. Her name is orange, as I have marked all the Wyandottes with colors and given them accordingly names but for one.



This is red - One of the two who, for a while, were the only ones who had really good lacing throughout their bodies. She's got a lovely posture and chest, and I guess that could be where it ends.



This is Lilac, the most perfect of my Wyandottes. She once got sick for a while, and couldn't use her legs too well. She eventually got better, and because of that - Is one of the two friendliest Wyandottes, and one of the two only ones who will voluntarily come up to me without hesitation. Why is she perfect? Her lacing distributes well, her comb is decent, her face has a nice "dark brow" without the sickly and small eyes, and her tail ends pretty well, without too much of long, thin, erect base. She's also very quiet.



This is Umber, note the brown-colored wings for her color-name. She's also quiet, and has some "okay" lacing. She has a very small, tight comb. Pretty nice looking, if it weren't for her small head.


So, I sound very critical and harsh on my own birds - But I like showing the good and bad of things; Judging what is nice and what is wrong or could use improvements. And, these are hatchery birds - They're mainly just to lay eggs, so they're bound to have physical faults.

But, all in all, my Wyandottes have greatly improved. They're not the same "Gang" they used to be. Still biccersome - But not as bad as previous.

Eggs - Day 16! Two days left!

It is day 16 now, and there are only two days left until Lockdown! What is lockdown? It is the last three days of an egg's time before hatching in which you cannot open the incubator, must stop turning the eggs, and increase both humidity and temperature so that the eggs will properly hatch. Soooo exciting!!!

Well, I've learned a couple tricks with my camera, so - Here's our two new goats we got two days ago! The first is Zing, a black LaMancha. The second is Zest, a yellowy striped black LaMancha. They are earless, yes - It is a part of the breed. They are just a month shy of being a year old, and Zing is surely pregnant, due April. Zest may be due in June. Then, we're getting the milk!



These photos were taken just this morning - And as you can see, we got frost. For the first time in quite a while. But, the glorious and rare sun will melt it all down as the day moves on! In the second photo, Zest is standing on a 2x10" board that I nailed between one stump on a hill and another on the ground - And in Zing's photo it is another board nailed between two equally high stumps. Both of these are great fun for the goats - Especially Zest. I just knew all these extra stumps will come into handy! Pretty soon they'll get more used to me not being around them 24/7, and they'll go have fun on the (perhaps 100?) stumps sitting around the pasture!

In other pictorial news - The chickens are not liking the goats. The goats got into their coop countless times, tried eating a couple of the chickens, and constantly head-butt them if they're near their food. It is a bad competition - I have already lost 3 eggs because of the goats. And today, with the frost, the chickens aren't even going out to the pasture yet. It is really cold, so they're all huddled up behind their coop where it is safe. It was a good time for me to get photos of all the girls, though. Including the newly marked and leg-banded Wyandottes. Here's Yellow, one of the two moms to my almost hatching eggs! Isn't she beautiful?

What ARE these eggs?

Here's another look at what the eggs I've got in the incubator are a cross of. Remember that I do not have batteries for my camera yet still, but here's pics from December.

Most of the eggs will be a cross of our roo, Marc Antony, and our Silver Laced Wyandottes. The eggs that the new chicks will lay should be green.





And, of course, a couple are pure New Hampshire Red, Easter Egger, and one is a Brahma / Easter Egger. The only Brahma cross's mom, though, looks like this:



This is Raven, one of my three Light Brahmas. She doesn't really look like one, though, except for her color - But looking past her single comb and very erect tail - She still has the personality, eggs, and feathered feet of one. This is simply hatchery-quality breeding.

Our New Hampshire Reds are an improvement of the Rhode Island Red, and are a bright orange in color. They're a simple looking chicken - No beard, no feathered feet, and wonderful, friendly personality. Here's a pullet named Mahogany.

The Wyandottes

- aka "The Plastics," "The Gang," or "The Clique."


My Silver Laced Wyandottes are the only breed or even colortype of bird that has never died, gotten sick, or been intolerant of a certain weather. They aren't even prone to being a runt, the bottom of the totem pole, or the butt of a joke. They're the perfect girls - Or so they see it. They're beautiful, yes, they're supposedly good layers, yes - But so far all I see are teenaged 5 month old pullets who are always in a group, always arguing amongst themselves, and always pushing around other birds who don't have enough self-confidence. Oh, and they also chase the sparrows, towhees, and Stellar's Jays.


The colors are hatchery-based, so they come in every type - From light, partial lacing to nearly black, and in between are the perfectly laced girls. The interesting bit is that the darker the bird, the most submissive and less agressive of personality she has. At night, when all the Wyandottes go up to sleep, it is usually the darker girls who are picked on the most or, if away from the lighter ones - the quietest. Pictured here is a hardly laced lighter girl, resting at dusk.




Soon, the girls will all have names - But for now it is just Llena who has a name. She's the fullest and most adultly looking pullet, so I chose a name that fits it. (translates to "full") Here is a photo of her doing what she does best - Endure thick frost and hang out with the "cool kids."












Now, I'm not saying that people shouldn't get a Wyandotte or so, I'm just illustrating the amazing personality that my little group has. Since all of my other breeds have experienced a casualty or nine or so, these are different. Also, they're not exactly as forward and friendly except for food - But this is a single case. These are hatchery bought birds, and had a slightly rough childhood of being chased around by the older girls (the Brahmas and Polish) Also, they're only 5 months old - They haven't even given us eggs yet. My "Bearded Babe," Tufted, was the most skittish, flighty, and panicky chicken I have ever known until she started laying - She mellowed right down and became the pride of the family soon after.