Developing My Own Breed Of Large Gamefowl For Free Range Survival (Junglefowl x Liege)

[Az OEGB]

@Florida Bullfrog I would really appreciate your opinion. I have two young stags the top one is 1/4 old english game bantam 1/4 red jungle fowl 2/4 American game weighing in at around 3lbs. The one on the bottom is 1/4 old english game bantam 3/4 red jungle fowl weighing in at around 2lbs. I like the bottom one for his blue legs. But he is pretty small the bottom one is much bigger about the size of a red jungle fow cock but has white legs . Which one would you recommend keeping.
Thank you

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

View attachment 3688836View attachment 3688838@Florida Bullfrog I would really appreciate your opinion. I have two young stags the top one is 1/4 old english game bantam 1/4 red jungle fowl 2/4 American game weighing in at around 3lbs. The one on the bottom is 1/4 old english game bantam 3/4 red jungle fowl weighing in at around 2lbs. I like the bottom one for his blue legs. But he is pretty small the bottom one is much bigger about the size of a red jungle fow cock but has white legs . Which one would you recommend keeping.
Thank you

Can you put them on the ground and take some pics of them at normal posture from ground level?

 

[Az OEGB]

Can you put them on the ground and take some pics of them at normal posture from ground level?

I will try and get some tomorrow

 

[TexasBlues]

I watched a bunch of your YouTube videos. Very cool project. When I was young my grandmas homestead had free ranging game fowl and your birds remind of them.

 

[Az OEGB]

 

[Bigtom Turkey]

The junglefowl looking bird (last pic) looks far more athletic. Longer tail, longer legs and tighter feathering, all things equal I would opt for that bird. Just my two cents, I know I wasn't asked lol.

 

[troyer]

The junglefowl looking bird (last pic) looks far more athletic. Longer tail, longer legs and tighter feathering, all things equal I would opt for that bird. Just my two cents, I know I wasn't asked lol

I agree with this assessment.
But I wasn't asked either.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

The junglefowl looking bird (last pic) looks far more athletic. Longer tail, longer legs and tighter feathering, all things equal I would opt for that bird. Just my two cents, I know I wasn't asked lol.

I agree. The stag with the dark legs looks best for what I like. If you’re put off by its small size, he may end up being foundational for breeding towards American Game Bantam standards. There are also standards for a Red Junglefowl Bantam.

 

[Az OEGB]

Thank you everyone for your help. I think I will keep him and do what Florida bullfrog suggested, and I can always breed him into some American games for bigger size.

 

[RobG7aChattTN]

Thanks. So see, I don't want them entirely feral, just enough to hide their nests out in the brush within the property lines where the dog can keep the coyotes run off and I can keep the skunks trapped out and something that has enough instinct to fly up into the tall cottonwoods or hide her brood from the cooper's hawk. And see there too, there the difference, tons of chickens have the ability to fly from danger, but not the instinct. I have anconas and leghorns, and they haven't the sense at all to fly or roost in a tree, even though they're plenty muscular and have decent sized wings for it. And at the same time, I have some cochin and old english game bantams who have the instinct to fly and even one banty cochin cockerel that wants to roost in the trees, but they don't have enough umph to get up there or for the OEGB's (which I know aren't really true games) to have enough size to not be a target for even small male cooper's hawks. Thanks though, and another issue, I need permits in my area to own Ceylons and Greys. Great thoughts, I know that, yes, I would only let the fittest survive, thats how landraces came about, not based on appearance or production, but survival, and if it produces enough thats a perk.

All my birds have that kind of sense and they do a good job at keeping away from predators but I’ll tell you the eggs are hard to find. Some will lay in the barn but a lot of them lay their eggs in the bushes and either I find them and don’t know how old they are or I just find a pile of egg shells because the raccoons, opossums or skunks found them first. I usually just have one or two roosters that roost in the barn and the others roost in the trees (which normally only lasts a few months before the predators find them). Most of my hens roost in the barn but a few take to the trees. My set-up is a tall half-door to their coop-stall in the barn and they all put themselves up in the evening and as soon as the sun comes up they fly out to forage. I do have a few guineas and I’ve heard that they are better at spotting predators but the chickens are better about knowing what to do when when a predator shows up.