Dominique Thread! - Page 151

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yellow House Farm 

 

 

Greetings!  We are currently raising out 30 of NYREDS Dominiques, hatched from shipping eggs, which, by the way Bill, are growing out excellently.  Still young but feathering smoothly and evenly, with a calmer disposition.  They certainly remind me more of Dorking chicks than Ancona or OE Game chicks.

 

I'll have a cockerel for you in the fall, if you'd like, provided you don't mind driving down to Barrington, NH.  We're about 30 mintues west of Kittery or rather 25 mintues from Lebanon, whichever is a better reference for you.

 

Cheers,

 

Joseph

They're almost too calm sometimes. I have to push them out of the way with my foot to get to the feeders & waterers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DraigAthar 

Oooh! I don't suppose you'd have more than one cockerel available? Because I might like one, too. :)

 

Amy

I don't see why not.  We'll have cockerels available after we've selected our breeders for the 2013 season.  In truth, I imagine it will be after the show season.  Everything needs time to reveal itself.

Send me a PM so that I don't loose your name and request.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NYREDS 

 

They're almost too calm sometimes. I have to push them out of the way with my foot to get to the feeders & waterers.

I like them.  They're already showing little promises of type.  The neck-back-tail curve is distinct, if yet young.

Have my first batch of Dom eggs in the bator from my breeding trio.

Hoping to have better hatchrate this time.

Is this little cock a runt or a bantam? They came from Sand Hill and I wrote and asked them if a bantam might have gotten in the mix... I think they might have Dom bantams... but have not heard back so thought I'd ask here. If he's a bantam I'll try to re-home him as such.The picture is poor but does show the size comparison. He's the little guy in front. Behind and to the left is a pullet from the same batch. They are @ 10 weeks old.

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Quote:

Originally Posted by flitter 

Is this little cock a runt or a bantam? They came from Sand Hill and I wrote and asked them if a bantam might have gotten in the mix... I think they might have Dom bantams... but have not heard back so thought I'd ask here. If he's a bantam I'll try to re-home him as such.The picture is poor but does show the size comparison. He's the little guy in front. Behind and to the left is a pullet from the same batch. They are @ 10 weeks old.

 

 

 

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It's difficult to tell from the photo, I'm not quite sure even which bird you're asking about. However, I can tell you my own standard Dom roos are fairly slow to mature. At 10 weeks they were still little squirts.

It is a terrible picture. I mean the little one directly in front of the roo... first one on the left. Behind him is a pullet of the same age... he's slightly more than  half all 5 pullets in size. He seems to be pretty nice, except for the size. I've just never had a cockerel that much smaller than all the pullets. I have a 6 week-er in another pen that is larger than he is.

I looked at the picture again... I'll have to try for a better picture...it is easy to get a good picture of him but not of at least two of them so that the size issue shows. I have this one too... not really better though. He's furthest left.

Again, on the left... pullet behind him.

He's behind the pullet in this one.

Ah, I think I see what you mean. Especially when you look at his comb, it seems fairly well developed so he's definitely maturing. But he is quite small! I guess I don't know how to tell for sure if you've got a banty or not until he's full grown, but it sure does seem suspicious.

I wouldn't think it would be a bantam.  CHances are he's just not going to make the cut, which, if one thinks about it, fewer cockerels do than don't.  At least he might make the decision easy.

My dominique project is slowly gearing up as I am still defining how selection process is to operate.  SOP figures into process at multiple points and many birds are culled based on growth performance.  Small, skinny and oversized birds get boot.  Roosters I can largely choose by the time they are a year old.  Hens are more of a problem.  Egg production and broodines characteristics as described by the ALBC are requiring a great deal more investment.  I am following females through two egg production season and look for hens that get broody at end of second which is basically now.  Ideally such females will have yeilded about 180 eggs per season.  Females that have made SOP, growth, egg production, and broodiness cuts get to enter brood pen for their entire third production season.

This is my first such hen of 2012 to make cut.  She is broody at time of photograph and had a rough season in coop.   Another may make cut if she gets broody in next couple weeks. Those two hens will be expected to put out chicks next year by three roosters and I hope to get lots.