[mamashango184]

Hi ladies, how are you all? Ive not been on for ages, as im glued to my door step every day watching chickens. I love them! Anyway.....
I have been talked into getting a trio of barnevelders by my husband and my friendly chicken pal/supplier. Its the first time i have had a male and i have 4 ex bats already.  My questions are how will the 4 ex bats cope with having a male around? I plan on eating any eggs weither fertilised or not, but how do i keep them in tip top condition when storing, i dont want to crack open an egg for my breakkie and out comes a half a chick!? Also my husbands idea was to keep the cock for making more barnevelder chicks that we can sell on as Dundee has very few chicken suppliers for the garden enthusiast.  If that all goes pear shape, then cock is Christmas dinner! Has anyone had any experience with barnevelders.  I have just had my ex bats, are they any different to them, ie behavour, freindlyness, egg laying, size etc? How are they too breed, i would be relying on the girls to hatch there own eggs, do hens have seasons like cats and dogs?
Any info would be great......
Kerry

[nzdunn]

hello, sorry carnt offer advice on storing eggs but just wanted to say i have a barnevelder and shes a great girl, very friendly and confident, they are absoutley gorgeous birds to look at aswell with there feathering and i just adore there yellow legs.   nickyx

[mamashango184]

Thank you for replying, im dead exicted about getting them, and i hope they will be as freindly as the ex bats. My sons who are 8 and 4 love to pick the girls up, so im hoping with a few tit bits, the barnies will be the same in time.

[Foxy]

How old are the trio? If the cockerel is a young lad, you might find he is bullied by the exbatts. Eventually he will stamp his authority on the flock.

[mamashango184]

The trio is 6mths old, the cock a little older as he is unrelated to the hens.

[dizzylizzie]

OWWWWW, i love barnevelders. Your right about availability of them , i have tried and failed to get myself some, so now i have a friend who has some eggs in her incubater for me...fingers crossed they will hatch!
dont forget photos...its the law,you HAVE to post photos

[Sassy]

If you store the eggs in the fridge it will stop any fertilised eggs from developing.

Re breeding you would need to wait for one of the hens to go broody, I doubt till next Spring now. It is very unlikely but not impossible that your ex batts will go broody. good luck