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Dorking

The Dorking is one of the most ancient of all domesticated poultry. Believed to have originated in Italy at the time of the Roman Empire and were taken as far as Britain when they invaded in as early as 55 BC. The Dorking was also described by the Roman writer Columella in his treatise "Of Husbandry in Twelve Books." Breeds such as the Sussex are thought to have been derived from the Dorking.
The White, Silver-Gray and Colored varieties were accepted into the American Standard of Perfection in 1874. Although the Red is the oldest variety, it wasn't admitted until 1995.

Before the Civil War, the Dorking was one of America's most common farm fowl, but now the Dorking is quite rare.

If you are familiar with this product, please update the details list so it is complete!
Detail Value
Breed Purpose
Dual Purpose
Comb
Single
Broodiness
Average
Climate Tolerance
All Climates
Egg Productivity
Medium
Egg Size
Large
Egg Color
White
Breed Temperament
Friendly,Easily handled,Docile
Breed Colors/Varieties
Silver-Gray
Colored
Red
White
Breed Size
Large Fowl

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User Reviews: Dorking

Ranked #46 in the category Chicken Breeds
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March 30, 2012 at 10:21 pm
Texasfowler
Reviewed by Texasfowler
Pros: Excellent foragers dont mind being held

Well I have had 4 dorkings for three weeks got them at the local feed store(I was shocked too). All 3 hens have 5 toes the rooster has 4 with 2 spots that look they might have been supposed to be toes. These guys are awesome. I catch moths at night with a butterfly net as a chicken treat. None of the other birds stand a chance of getting a moth those little dorky boogers get 90% of the catch. What I do is turn off all of the lights except a bell light located about 18in  off the ground and as the moths circle the lights the little chickies get all excited and jump up and grab em highly entertaining. well I had to seperate the dorkings from the eggers during moth time because not a single egger would get a bug. The dorkings are'nt mean just very fast, impressive, my little dorking rooster theodore grabbed a moth on the fly a good two feet off the ground while it was in flight. All but the rooster dont mind being held.

March 25, 2012 at 8:12 pm
HeritageAcres
Reviewed by HeritageAcres
Pros: Beautiful Chickens, very docile
Cons: Long maturing time, shallow gene pool

These birds are great, but with the rarity of the breed, it is hard to keep hardy gene's.

January 11, 2012 at 2:47 pm
ki4got
Reviewed by ki4got
Pros: Very friendly, beautiful, love to free range
Cons: very scarce, needs work to improve size and conformation.

I'm new to the breed but totally love what I've seen so far. They are calm, friendly, easy going birds who seem to prefer free ranging but do well cooped too. 4-5 eggs per week per hen seems to be average (so far), and they are prone to broodiness, making excellent mothers.

 

I now have Silver Grey adults and 'teens', a few colored hens, and red and colored chicks. There seems to be a lot of color variation in the colored, but I think with patience and careful breeding that can be minimized somewhat. 

 

Every day they remind me why I love these calm friendly birds, and every day I dream for more. My goal is to have 3 quads of each color going (1 roo, 3 hens).

January 21, 2012 at 12:20 pm
tracyjenner
Reviewed by tracyjenner

a calm great dual purpose bird.. I had them in the UK and am thrilled I found them here in the USA

See All 5 User Reviews


Article: Dorking

Chicken Breed Info:

Breed Purpose: Dual Purpose
Comb: Single
Broodiness: Average
Climate Tolerance: All Climates

General Egg Info:

Egg Productivity: Medium
Egg Size: Large
Egg Color: White

Breed Temperament:

Friendly,Easily handled,Docile

Breed Colors / Varieties:

Silver-Gray Colored Red White

Breed Details:

Even though above it says that dorkings are single-combed, the White variety has a rose comb. The Dorking has three unusual characteristics. They have five toes instead of the usual four, six points instead of the usual five, and they have hair feathers extending from their thighs. The Dorking also has a bantam counterpart. Dorkings are said to bear confinement well, but my hens prefer to free-range, and Dorkings love to forage. The Dorking is a dual-purpose breed, meaning they can be used for both meat and eggs. The Dorking has white skin, which is the popular color of skin for meat breeds in Europe, and the meat is exceptionally delicious! The Dorking is a beautiful, dignified, ancient part of our history, blessing us with their presence on our farm! The Dorking breed is in the English Class. The following weights are taken from the American Standard of Perfection: Standard Weights: Cock-9 lbs. Cockerel-8 lbs. Hen-7 lbs. Pullet-6 lbs. *Note* I am awaiting pics of Adolescent stage and chick stage Dorkings to put in those sections. Hope it's no problem!

LL

Rooster
LL
Hen
LL
Egg
LL
Chick
LL
Adolescent
LL