Recent content by emenheiser

  1. emenheiser

    Blue rocks

    Here is my lead male for 2018. As you can see, he is carrying a copy of the barring gene, which came from an outcross to a White Rock to improve type. He should produce plenty of solid blue offspring that will have proper Rock type and keep my project moving forward. As they say, "build the...
  2. emenheiser

    Blue rocks

    I ditched the Andalusian line. Put simply, I didn't have the right birds at the time I made the Andalusian cross, and wasn't going to be able to select past the number of flaws coming from both sides. I decided to continue focus on type in my original line for a few more years, before repeating...
  3. emenheiser

    Blue rocks

    This is going to sound harsh, but I hope not. The Blue Rock is nowhere near refined enough to be sold en masse as eggs or chicks. The variety needs more breeders, and breeders need breeder birds. The majority of "Blue Rocks" I see, including roughly 90% of those hatched here, need to be culled...
  4. emenheiser

    Yellow Legs: Understanding the Genetics, Breeding and Judging Criteria

    Not a great deal known about the genetics of yellow legs, but most good breeders have been able to make considerable improvement just with basic selection and a conducive diet (green grass, marigold extract, or other sources of xanthophyll carotenoids). The trait is very environmental--there are...
  5. emenheiser

    The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

    Here's the male I started the Blue Rock project with in 2012.
  6. emenheiser

    The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

    This blue male from 2014 is heading up my 2015 breeding pen. I still done have virtually zero selection for color in this line, just focused on type.
  7. emenheiser

    Blue rocks

    This blue male from 2014 is heading up my 2015 breeding pen. .
  8. emenheiser

    The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

    Thanks, she's from the original line (no Andalusian). I've actually scrapped the Andalusian crosses for a while to concentrate on type and make a better female base for the next Andalusian cross.
  9. emenheiser

    The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

    This black pullet is a product of a blue x blue mating, and is starting to show signs of the Rock type that I have been breeding for. She was hatched in September and was raised in an unheated, uninsulated barn in northern Vermont. Weight was 2 ounces shy of 6 lb at 4 months of age (pictured at...
  10. emenheiser

    Blue rocks

    I realize that this pullet is not blue, but she came from blue parents and, based on her type, will be useful in my blue breeding program. She was hatched in September and raised in an unheated, uninsulated barn in northern Vermont. Weight was 2 ounces under 6 lb at 4 months of age. Her...
  11. emenheiser

    The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

    If you have a strain in which you can't breed a male to his dam without problems, you have a strain in need of purification. Without DNA testing, the only way to achieve a purer line is through inbreeding, in combination with proper culling. Otherwise, you are propagating a problem by allowing...
  12. emenheiser

    The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

    In addition to the Standard of Perfection, The Plymouth Rock Standard and Breed Book is a must have, and is available for free download at https://archive.org/details/plymouthrockstan00amerrich
  13. emenheiser

    The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

    This is correct, Egghead. The reason is that the barring gene (which is an inhibitor of dermal melanin and thus dilutes the shade of the bird) is sex-linked. Males are naturally lighter colored than females because they have two copies of the barring gene rather than only one. This is the same...
  14. emenheiser

    The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

    Caleb, interesting to hear your livestock background. I sensed that you had some stock sense in your first post and therefore didn't BS you in my reply. One of the great things about chickens in comparison to cattle or sheep is that you can make a huge amount of progress in a short amount of...
  15. emenheiser

    Blue rocks

    Slate with white skin. The Andalusian cross line is a long way from being show ready; I hesitated to even put this picture up. Challenging as it may be, there is no other way to achieve the proper color with the black lacing (not edging) that is described in the Standard. I have at least one...
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