Ducks are ringing
Nov. 17th, 2009 06:02 pmThanks to the 'egg-celent'
keastree, I now have duck-sized poultry bands. I'm working on a system for organizing the ducks so I know at a glance who is who.
Rings on the left leg denote flock identity, i.e. home flock KCs (light blue) vs. new additions (Lucy, Ethel & Esmerelda = white), health problems (egg binding, lame = brown) and likelihood of becoming dinner (black). Since some of my home flock gals are "onlys", I don't worry about them, i.e. I have only one Black Swede (Babs), Runner (Luca), and Rouen (Nera). The home flockers that are harder to determine are the KCs (Lucky Penny, Madame & Bianca) and the new Silver Swedes (Granny & Nanny)& Silver Swedes/KC mixes (Agnes & Tiff).
Rings on the right leg denote laying ability. Each day I palpitate the abdomens of the gals with the 'droopy diaper' effect, a swelling that generally denotes the presence of an egg. Those gals get a ring. At the end of the week, I'll add up the rings to see who my performers are. Consistent non-performers will be scheduled for processing.
Friday - purple
Saturday - blue
Sunday - green
Monday - yellow
Tuesday - orange
Wednesday - brown
Thursday - black
Rings on the left leg denote flock identity, i.e. home flock KCs (light blue) vs. new additions (Lucy, Ethel & Esmerelda = white), health problems (egg binding, lame = brown) and likelihood of becoming dinner (black). Since some of my home flock gals are "onlys", I don't worry about them, i.e. I have only one Black Swede (Babs), Runner (Luca), and Rouen (Nera). The home flockers that are harder to determine are the KCs (Lucky Penny, Madame & Bianca) and the new Silver Swedes (Granny & Nanny)& Silver Swedes/KC mixes (Agnes & Tiff).
Rings on the right leg denote laying ability. Each day I palpitate the abdomens of the gals with the 'droopy diaper' effect, a swelling that generally denotes the presence of an egg. Those gals get a ring. At the end of the week, I'll add up the rings to see who my performers are. Consistent non-performers will be scheduled for processing.
Friday - purple
Saturday - blue
Sunday - green
Monday - yellow
Tuesday - orange
Wednesday - brown
Thursday - black