Farming and Homesteading Heritage Poultry

[Ifish]

I think the two terms should be mixed use. My opinion.

The SOP will be helpful to you.

I would want to know who the larger more mature birds were at this point, but only for additional consideration. In my start, I would not want to lose anything I needed moving forward. They are a sum of their parts, so I would be looking for those pieces and parts. That is the way my brain works. I would want to know what I had.
Knowing what I do know, and what I do not know, I would raise them all up. I would evaluate them once they had finished and could see what I had.

You may see some vigor between mine and her birds. That may explain rates, but is not solely and simply inheritance. I would not want to disregard one that was not a cross for that reason. Then my birds did average larger, but were oversized. Hers was large enough. I would even say that mine were too large. Then it was my opinion that some of her birds had better color. If they were smaller, but big enough, and had better color . . . I might want to use him or her.
Do you see where I am going? I am saying raise them up and let us see what advantages and disadvantages you might have. Let's see if we can put together a couple pairs or so together that might give you a good start. It also would not hurt to a couple that were the two of our birds crossed, and a couple that were from me etc. That variability might help moving forward. I was needing some variability to make more progress with color.
Next year is a different matter. This year is a start.

Let me say this. If your birds tend to be oversized at maturity, you can spare some size. It may not hurt you to use a good typed bird or god colored bird with less size, providing the bird was large enough.

Ok, I am understanding what you are saying.

I can't thank you enough for the help you have given me. I get down to North Carolina often, I may have to make a trip a little further south and purchase some refreshments.

 

[gjensen]

The better laying strains that also lack size and type, lay between 220 -240 large eggs in the pullet year which is good.

The eggs per week count does not help a lot when there are seasonal fluctuations, people's descriptions are based on impressions, etc. An actual count from start to finish in the pullet year is helpful. Much depends on management as well.

 

[father time]

first 10 hens i raised from pullets were beautiful confirmation was good and were medium size hens. i got as you say maybe 4 eggs a week medium size. the next batch i raised came from ideal hatchery and about the same most layed every other day and small to medium eggs. the ones i have now are from cackel hatchery and soon will be laying. most of mine start laying at seven months old.

 

[ronott1]

first 10 hens i raised from pullets were beautiful confirmation was good and were medium size hens. i got as you say maybe 4 eggs a week medium size. the next batch i raised came from ideal hatchery and about the same most layed every other day and small to medium eggs. the ones i have now are from cackel hatchery and soon will be laying. most of mine start laying at seven months old.

My first Australorps came from cackle. They laid 4 to 5 per day and the eggs were large.

Enjoy them!

 

[RIR-YELLOWLEGS]

 It is long term and short term. You cannot have it later if you do not have it now. It is something to be maintained and preserved.

 Neglecting this point is to run the birds into the ground.

 There is always someone on the bottom concerning the pecking order. It does affect behavior and the reason I used it in the response to the OP. That the OP should caution against these types of selections, and focus on characteristics that are easier to quantify.

  Back to the OP (that never brought up pecking order), if you remove your top two cockerels, suddenly the third will be bolder and more assertive. The behavior will change because the dynamics have changed.

You said it diwn the the while point if you remive the bottom pecking member there will always be another to replace it and if you remove from the top pecking order there is always another to replace it and you dont want to run the birds un the ground so to speak and you dont want all skittish or flightly bird you have to chose very carefully.

 

[RIR-YELLOWLEGS]

 I think the two terms should be mixed use. My opinion.

 The SOP will be helpful to you.

 I would want to know who the larger more mature birds were at this point, but only for additional consideration. In my start, I would not want to lose anything I needed moving forward. They are a sum of their parts, so I would be looking for those pieces and parts. That is the way my brain works. I would want to know what I had.
 Knowing what I do know, and what I do not know, I would raise them all up. I would evaluate them once they had finished and could see what I had.

 You may see some vigor between mine and her birds. That may explain rates, but is not solely and simply inheritance. I would not want to disregard one that was not a cross for that reason. Then my birds did average larger, but were oversized. Hers was large enough. I would even say that mine were too large. Then it was my opinion that some of her birds had better color. If they were smaller, but big enough, and had better color . . . I might want to use him or her.
 Do you see where I am going? I am saying raise them up and let us see what advantages and disadvantages you might have. Let's see if we can put together a couple pairs or so together that might give you a good start. It also would not hurt to a couple that were the two of our birds crossed, and a couple that were from me etc. That variability might help moving forward. I was needing some variability to make more progress with color.
 Next year is a different matter. This year is a start.

 Let me say this. If your birds tend to be oversized at maturity, you can spare some size. It may not hurt you to use a good typed bird or god colored bird with less size, providing the bird was large enough.

I thabk you also as it has been a educational reading if the questions and answers between you two as I am just starting with RIRs this year and the difference in the strains is astounding beyond ti the point that ir boggs the mind and I have read over and over it is best to working in body type and temperament then worry about color the reading of your answers have help me greatly today.Thank you.

 

[Fentress]

Why do some chicks not make it out of the shell? Is that a vigor issue? I have a little game hen who just hatched 6 out of 8. Not bad. Tuesday was the 21st day. After work on Wed. I checked on her and saw that she had lead the chicks to food and water, that's the signal for me to clean up the nest, which I did and I removed the 2 unhatched eggs. They were very light in weight. There was a fully formed chick in one, which was dead. I heard peeping from the other egg so I returned it to the nest. It appears the mother had given up on that egg or else she would not have left the nest. Did I do the right thing? Is this normal? I have not hatched many chicks, so I'm not sure. I had a runt in the last batch the lived about a week, will this chick, if it hatches, be a runt? The last thing I want to do is help the chick out of shell. I'll check again tonight to see what happened.

I know this is not the Rock thread, but does anyone remember what the hatchability problem was with the Good Shephard line? Besides the normal problems you have with shipped eggs, wasn't the issue that they could not break out the shell?

Thanks.

 

[ronott1]

Why do some chicks not make it out of the shell? Is that a vigor issue? I have a little game hen who just hatched 6 out of 8. Not bad. Tuesday was the 21st day. After work on Wed. I checked on her and saw that she had lead the chicks to food and water, that's the signal for me to clean up the nest, which I did and I removed the 2 unhatched eggs. They were very light in weight. There was a fully formed chick in one, which was dead. I heard peeping from the other egg so I returned it to the nest. It appears the mother had given up on that egg or else she would not have left the nest. Did I do the right thing? Is this normal? I have not hatched many chicks, so I'm not sure. I had a runt in the last batch the lived about a week, will this chick, if it hatches, be a runt? The last thing I want to do is help the chick out of shell. I'll check again tonight to see what happened.

I know this is not the Rock thread, but does anyone remember what the hatchability problem was with the Good Shephard line? Besides the normal problems you have with shipped eggs, wasn't the issue that they could not break out the shell?

Thanks.

Vigor is one reason but not the main one:


This is the whole document:



I had two stuck this morning and it was likely a combination of improper turning(turner motor failure) and long egg storage. There was also a flock nutrition problem from the breeder.

 

[Lacy Blues]

Apparently this chick was under a broody though. Those things are kind of hard to control and she will do a perfect job (most times) so it's not turning, or humidity, or temperatures.

Fentress, I wouldn't say that two chicks not making it out is indicative of a running problem. I don't really know. When I have broodies, they almost always hatch every single egg. It's when I use an incubator that my hatch rates go down.

 

[ronott1]

Apparently this chick was under a broody though. Those things are kind of hard to control and she will do a perfect job (most times) so it's not turning, or humidity, or temperatures.

Fentress, I wouldn't say that two chicks not making it out is indicative of a running problem. I don't really know. When I have broodies, they almost always hatch every single egg. It's when I use an incubator that my hatch rates go down.

There are other causes in the document.

Read the entire document and see if anything applies.

Yes, sometimes they just die in the shell.