Winter & Respritory Issues

December has arrived and in many parts of the US the weather has been unseasonably warm and wet….this can be a dangerous combination for increased illness in our flock. Respiratory problems tend to be on the rise and questions have been coming in regarding prevention!  The best thing one can do for our birds is to keep them dry with a good coop that has adequate ventilation as well.  This can be confusing to some folks because they feel the coop should be completely closed, sealed or draft free and this can lead to increased health problems if we don’t provide good ventilation.  Having some air flow prevents increases in humidity or dampness and therefore keeps our bird dry and warmer when the temps drop at night!

Second, proper nutrition is critical and this includes increased vitamins and minerals.  As winter approaches we tend to feel our birds are going thru a slow down phase as laying tends to decrease this time of year.  However, our birds may be experiencing more stress, having just come off their moult our flock is in need of better nutrition.  Increasing vitamins and minerals can be easy to accomplish simply by adding a supplement to our drinking water.  Adding some Black Oil Sunflower Seed (BOSS) to their diet can also increase fat and protein that is important during colder weather, too.

Finally, make sure your flock is mite and lice free, if they are not make sure to give them a good dusting with your favorite remedy.  Some chicken owners use liquid medications that are applied to the birds skin to control pests just keep in mind “dipping” is not a good idea this time of year!  If we use a little common sense our birds will be fit and ready for breeding season which is just around the corner!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

What happened to October???

Yes, it is November 2012 and hopefully most of you in the "Buckeye Nation" have ALL the winterizing chores completed and are thinking about the coming spring hatching season already!  October came and went so rapidly I don't believe we posted a single comment in the BLOG but the Facebook page and Yahoo Group keeps us ALL very busy to say the least.  Here in SW Ohio we have had several heavy frosts and one or two hard freezes but so far not "busting ice" just yet.  The big storm (Hurricane Sandy) came into Ohio and combined with an upper level cold front that dumped snow across the Buckeye state the last few days of October.  Halloween was a cold, rainy and windy event for most of the kids in 2012!

Speaking of "Sandy", our thoughts and prayers go out to the folks on the east coast who were hit much harder than Ohioans and we wish them well with the pending clean-up and rebuilding efforts.  Lots of homes were distroyed and people lost family members and loved ones along the coast of New Jersey, Virginia, New York and other New England states.  Tragic events like a hurricane can have an impact on millions of people and the GREAT thing about America is the way people pull together in these difficult times to help one another!  God Bless all those who are lending a helping hand, too.

In closing, November is a good time to start thinking about your breeding pens. It won't be long before we will be pairing up mates for the coming late winter, early spring hatches!  Make sure you have everything ready and build a few extra breeding pens just in case.  There are still a few Buckeye breeders selling some fine breeding pairs and trios out there so if you have the bug to add another "family" or some new "blood" it might not be too late.  We hope everyone has a super November and remember Thanksgiving is just around the corner so if you didn't raise a turkey place your orders early for a wonderful Bowman & Landes gobbler, "Farm Raised & Free Ranged" right here in Ohio ( http://www.bowmanlandes.com/ )....some of the best in the midwest!!!

First Day of Autumn....Time to Prep for Winter!

It’s hard to believe, but another season has come to an end and Fall has arrived early in SW Ohio, we have already had temperatures in the upper 30’s and a few of our neighbors to the north have had frost!  By now many of us have culled our flocks back to pre-winter numbers, processed a few birds for the table or freezer and are preparing for the cold days to arrive.  Now is a good time to make sure ALL of our birds are in peak condition to survive the coldest of days and this means they may need more fat in their diet.  Adding a little FLAX seed can help in that area and also improved the Omega content of your eggs, Black Oil Sunflower Seed (BOSS) is also a great source of protein and added fat for your chickens.

Another thing we do at Crains Run Ranch is clean out old pine shavings, dust for mites, and double up on our deep litter base.  This seems to help our Buckeyes to stay warmer, increases their desire to scratch and actually improves our laying production during the shorter, colder days of late fall and winter.  Ventilation is still very important in your coops as the cold weather approaches, excess humidity can be a sure fire way to cause sickness or death in a flock.  Therefore, it is important to have a relatively draft free environment but plenty of ventilation to prevent roosting fowl from getting too damp.  We have found vents near the ceiling or roof to be the best solution for providing good winter ventilation in our coops. 

Generally, our Buckeyes are de-wormed one last time in late September or early October as well and this helps the hens and roosters to remain strong as the cooler weather approaches.  A boost of vitamins and electrolytes is provided to any birds that are showing signs of weight loss or poor condition after molting.  The end of summer can be a stressful time for chickens, especially those that are molting or just completed their molt so keep a close eye on your older breeding stock this time of year. 

Finally, now is a good time to clean and disinfect ALL of those watering containers and feeders!  Prep everything for the necessary water heaters or heater bases as you go, too.  If you use the deep litter pine shavings as mentioned above pay close attention to avoid potential fire hazards, heat lamps can be very dangerous and we know some folks use them to keep water from freezing.  Fresh water is just as critical in the winter as the summer, your birds will drink less in the winter but they can’t survive on ice so make sure you have established a plan or system to keep water available for your fowl.  There are many methods available and some work with metal watering containers and not plastic so he cautious and seek advice if you are uncertain what to use.
 

We hope everyone has a GREAT autumn and your Buckeyes lay well ALL winter long!

Buckeyes win BIG at the Montgomery County Fair

Dayton, Ohio – September 1, 2012 - The Montgomery County Fair in SW Ohio was the place to be for the 4H Jr. Poultry Exhibition this past Saturday.  Many area kids representing various chapters of 4H clubs like Miami Producers, Happy Farmers, Sunset Riders, Tom’s Run, All-Star 4H and the Green Pride were on hand showing their Market fowl and Fancy chickens.  One local winner was Ally Whitaker, of the Miami Producers 4H club, and on this particular Saturday she took 15 first place Blue Ribbons home, showing everyone hard work pays off!  The largest class of “Fancy” fowl this year was the American Class where Ally took top honors with her Buckeye Cock winning Champion American and Reserve Champion Large Fowl. (see picture below)
 

                                                     Ally Whitaker and her Champion Buckeye

During the competition the judge was very pleased to see Ally showing a total of Four (4) Buckeyes at the fair and her Buckeye hen received high marks from the judge as well.  In addition to her award winning Buckeyes, Ally won Champion Small Duck and Champion Waterfowl with a Black East Indies hen.  It was a GREAT day for Ally and Whitaker Farms of Miamisburg, Ohio and The American Buckeye Club wishes to congratulate her for a GREAT victory!

                                                  Judging Ally Whitaker's Champion Buckeye

Fair Season is in FULL SWING all over the Buckeye Nation!!!

Here in Ohio and ALL over the USA County and State Fairs are taking center stage.  With many of our American Buckeye Club members and their families involved in 4H we have been seeing a lot of smiling faces with trophies and blue ribbons alike in the poultry competition!  Yes the Buckeyes are doing very well it seems and with any luck we will be seeing more happy kids in the coming weeks.  Below are just a few of the BIG winners during the 2012 fair season;

Rebekah Zeigler’s daughter Emily took 2nd place with her pullet and 3rd place with her cockerel at the Hartford fair near their home in Central Ohio. The judge said she had the best Buckeye pullet in the barn!!

 

 
Jason Barnett’s daughter took a first place for her Buckeye in the LF fancy division at the Clark County Fair in Ohio.  She was one happy girl (and so was dad);

At the Weld County Fair in Colorado back in July, the Kanzler Family did very well with their 4H projects including their poultry!  Below is a photo of the Kanzler gals and their tropies;

 David Schneider of Milan, IN reported his boys, Logan & Hunter did very well with their RED fowl in their 4H county fair recently.  They knocked down FIRST & SECOND place ribbons for their RIR hen and pullet!  David recently purchased some Buckeye Pullets from Shumaker Farm’s of Wilmington, Ohio so watch for his boys to win with another RED fowl in the future!!! Logan & Hunter are happy poultry owners in the picture below;

Congratulations to ALL the 4H kids and their parents for helping them get started showing poultry and raising Buckeyes!  If you are an ABC member and have photos of your child or grandchild participating with their poultry at your local county or state fair please share them with us an we will see they get posted.  4H is a GREAT way to get a child started in poultry and it helps build their self esteem as well as teaching them life long lessons!  The American Buckeye Club is a proud sponsor of the 4H program and we encourage our members to support 4H, too.

Buckeye Grand Champions at Ohio & Iowa County Fairs

It’s County Fair Season and all over the USA the young men and women involved with 4H are showing some very nice poultry!  The American Buckeye Club is always interested in hearing success stories involving children in the poultry world but this was a special week for a variety of reasons.  We received news about 2 members with children participating in 4H that did extremely well with their Buckeye Large Fowl this week.  In Cedar County, Iowa the Jensen family is proud to announce Parker Jensen had the Grand Champion American with a Buckeye Cock and the #1 Buckeye Cockerel in the Large Fowl Junior Division (see picture below).

                                                   (photo courtesy of Lisa Jensen)

The American Buckeye Club would like to congratulate Parker and his family for a job well done!

In addition, the Clinton County Fair in Ohio is home to the Shumaker Family and Sydney Shumaker had an outstanding day on Friday July 13^th.  Winning 15 Blue Ribbons and 5 Trophies in ALL, Sydney took Grand Campion Male and Overall BEST of Show with her Buckeye Cock (see picture below)! 

                           (Sydney Shumaker & her Grand Champion Buckeye Cock)

She also won the BEST Trio and top honors for Egg Production with her Buckeyes.  Sydney made a clean sweep of the American Class having not only the #1 Cock but the #1 Cockerel and #1 Hen (both Buckeyes) and the #1 pullet, a Rhode Island Red.  This pullet went on to win Grand Champion Female, too!  Below are pictures of Sydney with both Grand Champion fowl and the BEST TRIO at the Clinton County, Ohio event. 

                                             (pictures courtesy of Amy & Joe Shumaker)

Congratulations again to Sydney Shumaker and Parker Jensen for helping promote the Buckeye breed and we hope more members will provide photos of their winning Buckeye’s in the coming months!  4H is a GREAT place to get kids interested in raising poultry and a super way to introduce them to Buckeyes.  If you want to get your children involved contact your local county 4H club, generally you can find more information thru your county fair or their website.

           (Sydney Shumaker's Grand Champion, Overall BEST of Show Buckeye Cock)

Ohio county fair season underway....Buckeyes are winning, too!

It's hard to believe, but county fair season is already underway here in Ohio and every year we are seeing more and more Buckeye chickens entered in the poultry shows.  Both 4H junior exhibitors and the open classes in many Ohio counties are seeing an influx of Buckeyes!  This is GREAT news for the Buckeye breed and it reflects the efforts and hard work by the American Buckeye Club members who are doing ALL they can to "Preserve the Breed".

For example, just this week on Monday, June 18th at the Pickaway County Fairgrounds near Circleville, Ohio we witnessed one of the FIRST county fair Buckeye winners!  Gabrielle Rybinski and her Buckeye pullet took the "Blue Ribbon" for BEST pullet and the Rybinski family is very proud of their daughters accomplishment.

The American Buckeye Club would like to congratulate Gabrielle Rybinski and thank her family for keeping the Buckeye heritage alive and well in Pickaway County, Ohio!  In addition, the ABC is providing a link to ALL the Ohio County Fairs below and we encourage EVERYONE to visit their county fairs this year and look for the Buckeyes. http://www.ohiofairs.org/listoffairs.html

Please help the ABC by supporting the 4H chapters ALL over Ohio, after all the 4H program began here in Ohio back in 1902 and children are the future of poultry keeping!  If you have a child or children in 4H and participate in a county fair with Buckeyes please send us pictures or post them at the Facebook group.  We will be posting ALL the show winners that we receive throughout the 2012 fair season!