Minorca thread!

[WyandotteTX]

Thanks for the info.
Thank you for the welcome.

I agree they are majestic looking birds. Your "old man" is beautiful! It's El Cid a Spanish name/word?

Yes, I dont usually get into naming birds for the most part but he is such an awesome bird. Very tame and full of personality in spite of being near 12 lbs. El Cid was a historical figure from Spain who helped fight back the Moors from Spain. It is also a very good movie starring Charleton Heston as El Cid.
We have hatched many fantastic birds out of him the past few years. Unfortunately he lost a little bit of comb last year with all of the extreme cold temperatures we had last winter. By type he is not the best Minorca male you will see but he produces some of the best typed pullets I have ever seen.

 

[TeaChick]

Yes, I dont usually get into naming birds for the most part but he is such an awesome bird. Very tame and full of personality in spite of being near 12 lbs. El Cid was a historical figure from Spain who helped fight back the Moors from Spain. It is also a very good movie starring Charleton Heston as El Cid.
We have hatched many fantastic birds out of him the past few years. Unfortunately he lost a little bit of comb last year with all of the extreme cold temperatures we had last winter. By type he is not the best Minorca male you will see but he produces some of the best typed pullets I have ever seen.

We're trying to get out of the habit of naming chickens (getting several of the same breed at the same time should help).
I hope I get some chickens that are as good as your El Cid. =)

 

[redandalusian]

Well, I sent some minorcas up to the ohio national with my uncle. I entered 2 pullets, 1 hen, and 1 ckrl. All SC blacks.

 

[TeaChick]

Well, I sent some minorcas up to the ohio national with my uncle. I entered 2 pullets, 1 hen, and 1 ckrl. All SC blacks.

What does SC stand for?

I hope they all do well!!!

 

[redandalusian]

Single comb, thanks

 

[gawildlife]

I am looking for quality buffs. Does Tom Roebuck of Golden Feather Farm sell day olds or eggs? I sent him an email via the link on his site without response. I assume bad link or otherwise occupied.

What I'm looking for are utility birds that are true to type. I know I can purchase hatchery stock for utility but as a former houndsman who bred pure stock I feel it is a disservice to any established breed to fail to try meet the accepted standard.

Failing to find good buffs I would choose whites then blacks in that order, RC over SC in that order.

 

[TeaChick]

I am looking for quality buffs. Does Tom Roebuck of Golden Feather Farm sell day olds or eggs? I sent him an email via the link on his site without response. I assume bad link or otherwise occupied.

What I'm looking for are utility birds that are true to type. I know I can purchase hatchery stock for utility but as a former houndsman who bred pure stock I feel it is a disservice to any established breed to fail to try meet the accepted standard.

Failing to find good buffs I would choose whites then blacks in that order, RC over SC in that order.

Sounds like you know your stuff!!! And that you know what you want.

IDK enough about this all.
We're getting black Minorcas (SC, I think). We're looking for egg producers that won't go broody and are intelligent, friendly, etc. We'll be careful to breed to standard, like you said. DH and I feel strongly about improving the breed, especially a heritage breed.

Welcome to the thread! =)

 

[gawildlife]

I grew up with chickens. Dad would never admit it but he liked chickens and at any given time we had two or three dozen of whatever assortment caught his fancy. All of his were utility hatchery stock or whatever he hatched out from the mix he had. He had a real soft spot for cochins but like i said would never admit it. The best layers he had were leghorns, minorcas and RIR. I hated the leghorns as all the cocks were man fighters and the hens needed prozac. The RIR, production reds and crosses, are hands down the best brown egg layers but the cocks needed a daily attitude adjustment the hens by themselves could be great pets but in a group were the most vicious little bitches to each other. That combined with RIR cocks aggressive libido meant we always were doctoring a little red hen or two or three.
The minorcas laid almost as well as the reds and whites but a bigger perfect white shelled egg than either and did so while quietly minding their own business.

As for breeding to a standard Dad was also a cattle man and we had rabbits, ducks, pheasants and hounds. I later had my own kennel of hounds and came to understand the fastest way to consistency in production be it meat, hunt ability, or whatever trait is valued is to breed to a standard and hold to that standard. Anything else is a crap shoot.

The other breed I'd like to find would be a good line of both large and bantam silver penciled hamburg. Their small white eggs, and they are pretty good layers, are the perfect size to pickle.

 

[TeaChick]

Pickled eggs, something you only find in the South!!!

I have had white Leghorns (great layers), and my gold Comets are part RIR (also great layers, and I can control the broodiness of the ones that are prone in that direction).
We're going to get Minorcas, and I'm so glad to hear that they lay nicer eggs as consistently as RIR or Leghorns, and that they "quietly mind their own business".

I KWYM about the crap shoot of hatching mixes. I have a mixed rooster (EE who's half white Leghorn) and I've hatched eggs from him and my white Leghorn hens; I have one OE, one that lays medium pale pink/beige eggs, and one that hasn't started laying at nine months old. Good luck with the mixes. lol

Thank you so much for sharing your experience!!!

 

[Richie]

I name all my chickens as they are all individuals. I love black Minorcas; they are such beautiful birds. I had a large SC Black male named Charlemagne a few years ago who took best Mediteranean at a show in NJ. I would have liked him to be more gregarious, but he was shy. I had three beautiful hens with him. One of them, Maria Theresa, had the perfect looking comb for a Minorca hen. Unfortunately I lost a few to predators and over the years the others died out. I am looking to get some more that I can breed and show. It seems like a difficult breed to find if you want good quality stock. I originally bought from Murray McMurry, they were really small and very poor when it came to the standard. My good stock came from Tommy Stanley, who has unfortunately passed away. I am looking though and I hope to find some nice birds.