Rhode Island Reds Are They Really Rhode Island Reds

They look a lot darker than Rhode Island reds, but that might just be the light. Have you posted this on the forum?

Which forum?

Can I go to a dog show and find a real Irish setter? Is a real Irish setter the beauty queen that prances across show floor or the dog that beats the brush for birds, points hard, hunts dead, and retrieves to hand? The show breeders will tell you they have the real dog and the field breeders will tell you that they have the real dog.
If I'm buying the dog food and I'm happy because my dog is doing exactly what I want it to do, then what is the value of someone else's opinion? If I want a hunting dog, why would I care that the show people think my dog is thin and racy looking as long as it finds the birds? And if I want a show dog, why would I care if the hunters think all that rich feathering is nothing but a burr-gathering mess?
I believe those who want the old fashioned RIRs should breed for them and the backyard flockster that wants a cherry-colored egg-laying machine, should continue to buy their production reds and be happy.

Can I go to a dog show and find a real Irish setter? Is a real Irish setter the beauty queen that prances across show floor or the dog that beats the brush for birds, points hard, hunts dead, and retrieves to hand? The show breeders will tell you they have the real dog and the field breeders will tell you that they have the real dog.
If I'm buying the dog food and I'm happy because my dog is doing exactly what I want it to do, then what is the value of someone else's opinion? If I want a hunting dog, why would I care that the show people think my dog is thin and racy looking as long as it finds the birds? And if I want a show dog, why would I care if the hunters think all that rich feathering is nothing but a burr-gathering mess?
I believe those who want the old fashioned RIRs should breed for them and the backyard flockster that wants a cherry-colored egg-laying machine, should continue to buy their production reds and be happy. BUT, and here's the big but - if there is real value in preserving the historic RIR, then let's do our best to persuade the backyard flockster that there is something better and convince them of why it's better.