B.Y.C. Dorking Club! - Page 164

THANK YOU!!! GREAT information.

 

 Just a thought on the PVC tractor....this has NOT been tested yet, but we plan to fill the bottom frame pvc pipes and the 4 corner pipes with sand/gravel to help weigh it down.  We hope it works.  

 

I plan to keep only a Dorking roo.  I will check into the Delaware!

 

Thanks again for all your time and input.  I really appreciate it   You can "read" all the articles you want but it is sooo much better to get info from people who are liven the life.

 

Lisa

If you only keep one cock, you'll quickly run into the end of your program.  Can your coop space be divided into, say, three spaces in which you could keep a male and three or four females?  This would give you much stronger biodiversity and longterm breeding capacity.

Sorry Lisa, I should have said I found my Dorking roos were fine with each other, they just get beat up by the other roos. I've sadly lost my other two so am down to just one temporarily.

Yellow house is right, you want at least two roos for biodiversity and because if you only have one and lose him you have a big problem.

For anyone interested my Red Dorking eggs from Dick Horstman started hatching, here is a pic of a few of the chicks:

 

Very cool!  Now we just got to get you showing down here in the low lands

 

You have Dominiques, too? 

Yeah, I need to join the NH Poultry Fanciers.  I do have Dominiques... I am working on improving my stock there, as well.

And this year my son is getting into Nankins... a friend of mine is giving him a trio... he is psyched.... well, for now anyway... I give it until he has to clean out their coop the 1st time ... lol

 

snapped a quick pic this afternoon...  thought i'd share. excuse the non-dorkings in it. my black/lavender cochin bantams.

 

don't know if i'll ever get my bench back tho...  it's going to need a good refinish before you can sit on it again.

oh!!!  cross fingers, I might be getting some red and red/colored eggs soon! 

Fingers crossed for you K!!!! And I LOVE the pic of the bench thieves

 

Here's a bit better pic of the Dorks from above. A little bit of taper, but I can work with that. The cock is STOUT. If I could ever snatch him up, I plan on getting him weighed. Need to delouse them one more time and that should do for awhile, I hope.

 

Edited by X2Farm - 1/31/12 at 4:33pm

I'm sorry to ask what seems to be a newbie question, but what percentage protein do you feed your Dorking chicks? I have read people recommending high protein to all meat bird chicks, and others saying Dorkings don't do well with extremely high protein, but recommending I add special ingredients to standard feeds.  My best local feed store offers Purina products, and will special order 19% organic chick starter in 50lb bags. Other local feed stores also offer Nutrena products. What do you all find works well?

Thanks, my first Dorkings are due to arrive in April.

Keeping my fingers crossed,

Angela