buckeye chickens

[buckeye chickens]

I am new to here but, have had chickens for years.
I have been breeding buckeye chickens for about one year and love them! They and sweet and smart. Mine lay better than a Orpington. Why are these birds very rare?

 

[chickenshadow]

Darn good question. I just hatched a buch from CORancher, a member here. They are
wonderful little chickens.

With so many people having backyard chickens I think many breeds will make a comeback.
We have 1 or 2 of 20 different breeds and we don't breed. We just like to support
people who do.

Let me know when you wanna sell me some eggs for hatching.

 

[moodusnewchick]

I'm getting 10 on MOnday. I love the way they look and I'm looking forward to that "dinosaur like" roar!

 

[Wolf-Kim]

There are many great breeds that are rare. Many times they are just not well known, not like the Rhode Island Reds, Leghorns, or Barred Rocks. Many people are clueless as to how many different and great breeds there are. The other thing about the Buckeyes, is that they sell out really early in the year, so they are somewhat hard to get.

So ignorance of their existance and hard obtainability lead to not many people having them.

Many times a breed is considered rare because the breed counts do not count the little flocks(less than 50) that people keep in there backyard.

-Kim

 

[antiquebuff]

Could we please get a photo of the buckeye chicken? I would love to see what it looks like! Thanks,

 

[Wolf-Kim]

It was one of the first to come up when I googled it. This is not my bird, I don't take credit for it!

-Kim

 

[Blessed Farm]

Any one here use these as a dual purpose bird? I've looked at them, but for some reason decided against trying them (can't remember why now). I gave favor to the Delawares, but so far, am not horribly impressed with the growth rate on the strain I tried. I'll try more lines, but now I am wondering if I should give the Buckeyes a try.

I know heritage breeds take longer to grow out than say a Cornish cross, but I am looking for THE homestead chicken. So far, I like the growth rates on my Sussex, but am not sure how they are going to lay. Of course the Orps are nice, but there seems to be a HUGE difference between hatchery/production stock and 'show' stock. The show birds are looking more and more like a cochin, which really is more fluff than not, and I want something both solid and a decent layer.

Kim

 

[NYREDS]

A lot of the old dual-purpose American breeds have become rare. The hybrids replaced them among the production people and the majority of hobbiest have gone in the direction of raising bantams.
Buckeyes, Delawares, Javas, Lamonas, etc-all great breeds, all very rare & in some cases probably near extinction.
I'm always glad to see someone interested in one of these heritage breeds. Before you ask I raise Dominiques.

 

[Guitartists]

I am considering adding a few Buckeyes to my flock next year..... we shall see

They are very nice looking birds

Plus, aren't they the only recognized breed here in the US created by a woman? I think I read that somewhere

 

[Wolf-Kim]

That's what I have heard too. That they are the only breed created solely by a woman.

They originally started out as a variation on the Rhode Island Red, just a different comb. They have made quite the name for themselves.

As far as growth rate, I do not know personally. I know that many of the heritage breeds have slowly began to loose their "dual purposeness" as people kept them for their rareness and as exhibition birds. It is what happened with the Java, which is what I am working on. The Java use to be considered the ideal homestead bird, but many people who kept the Mottled Java as exhibition have lowered egg production and overall size of the bird.

-Kim