Answer to the Delaware Dilemma

[aveca]

Well Im going a little crazy here waiting to hear how faulkners made out at nationals..they took a lot of birds ..Im exhausted just waiting and wondering..wish somone would post some results tonight..I keep asking people but its such a huge show they probably never run into each other..

 

[kathyinmo]

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I know, I know! I sure hope someone starts a thread and we see lots of photos!

 

[catdaddyfro]

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Yes and according to Henk69 of the great chicken calculator fame the color of a Delaware is called dilluted barred I got straightened out on that last year when I was calling them barred columbian just thought I'd add that in for good measure.

Here some info that I posted on the Heritage New Hampshire thread figured I ought to post it here on the Delaware thread beings it more info on Delawares.

Here's some info I found at the library the other day on Delawares. I got this out of Storey's Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds. I thought this was an appropriate place to post it as it does involve Delawares.

In 1940 george Ellis, a poultryman form Delaware, was using a common cross of the time, Barred Rocks roosters with New Hampshire hens, for broiler production. Through the breeding of one special sport of this cross with New Hampshire hen, Ellis developed the Delaware breed.

Normally the Barred Plymoth Rock-New Hampsire cross resulted in barred females and either black or red males, but sometimes it happened to produce some sports, or bird with a distinctive and different color than is normal. Ellis's cross produced a bird that was mostly white, with black barring on the hackle, tail, and wings.

This type of sport had excellent qualities for broiler productoin, yielding a meaty carcass that, thanks to the white feathering, did not have dark coloring under the skin at butchering. But the production of such sports was inconsistent. However, one of Ellis's sports, a rooster named Superman, was an exceptional specimen, and when Ellis began breeding Superman to New Hampshire hens the cross stabilized with the sport's coloring, and the foundation of the Delaware breed was established.

The Delaware quickly acsended to dominance in the broiler industry of Delaware's Delmarva Peninsula, which at the time providied chicken for the entire East Coast. Though the Delaware's dominance was short-lived, giving way in just twenty years to the Cornish-Rock cross it still makes an excellent dual-purpose barnyard breed. Unfortunately, it is now quite rare.

Delawares can adapt to either confinement or free-range operations. They are hardy and early to mature and have a calm disposition. Hens lay large, rich brown eggs and will go broody, and they make fairly good mothers.

The Delaware was first admitted to the APA in 1952.

catdaddy

 

[xoxocammyxoxo]

Okay so. I've read most of this thread. My computer is really slow so I did skip quite a few pages but. I'd really like to learn more about showing Delawares and birds in general. I found some hatcheries online that sold Delaware chicks but I suddenly came to the realization maybe you can't show those chicks? Do show birds have pedigrees? I'm a total newbie here... Any help at all is eternally grateful.

 

[math ace]

I am giving a GIANT shout out to Walt, Kathy, Speckled hen and Inkheart . . .

I'm on page 30 and catching up quickly . . ..

In a few days I will be caught up and will post pics of my new delawares.
I hatched them out 7 weeks ago.

I will be excited to hear some feedback so that I am not "blind" to my own barns!

 

[kathyinmo]

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YAY ! ! ! You can do it!

Excited to see your pictures, too!

 

[tnchickenut]

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There is a breed club for Delawares, you know? http://www.delawarepoultryclub.org and we are all very friendly and helpful people.

Yes, "show birds" have lines. HOWEVER, you can show any bird you want. Doesn't mean you will always win, but you can buy from a breeder and still get bad quality. Just my two cents.

Start by learning EVERYTHING you can about what the SOP (Standard Of Perfection) calls for in a Del (or any other breed that you want to show - although we would love you to stick with Delawares). Once you got that down, you can really look and start picking the best starting point FOR YOU. I say "for you" because maybe you are ok working on one fault from one line, as opposed to a different fault in another line. No bird is perfect, no line is perfect. Just remember that... because you will be looking forever if you don't. lol

The Del club mentioned above has a list of breeders, and a partial on the SOP of Delawares. Breed clubs are always a great starting point for information on a breed.

Hope this helps!!!
Stacy

Edit to add:

And it's also good advice for all breeds that if a breeder doesn't tell you what their faults in their line are and what they are working to improve... walk away. A breeder should be able to see the faults and explain them to you and they most certainly be working towards correcting them.

 

[math ace]

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I KNOW this is a really old post - -- but I am reading and cathcing up on the posts . . . .

Inkheart, your girls don't have to grow up until they find a sugar daddy !

Somebody to take them to the fine dining spots on the farm . . .. To keep them warm on cold nights . . .

 

[math ace]

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I was soooooo hoping to see this when I started reading this thread 45 pages ago. . .. .

Joletabey

It is a wonderful idea.

I am having issues with the "club" . . . .
I started through the process when it was being advertised on the heritage thread. I was told to pm someone for password and then I was sent somewhere else to fill out application and in all that I just quit . . . . I just did not have enough time to deal with it and I am technology challeneged.

How challeneged ? BYC is my first even forum and my first chat room. When the conversion happened 4 or 5 months ago on the chat room, I didn't like the changes to the chat room and haven't been back .. . . . .

BYC has been the first time I have uploaded pictures too. . . .. .

I am still interested in the club and love the idea of being able to chat and having it geared towards the serious vs social needs.
I saw the annoucements with the Tuesday night meetings, BUT I just can not get to the computer at one particular time. Between Dh, children and sick father - - - - My own personal needs / desires are last to be addressed.

TWO QUESTIONS - - - -
1.) Is there a place on BYC where the meaningful dialog and pictures for delawares are occurring ? ?
2.) Is the club a 24 /7 thing like BYC OR just during certain times / days ? ?

Feel free to PM me anything about the club if you would rather address the issue privately . . . . If you have refined the application / initial member procedures since Oct 2010, I would be interested in the current process too.

 

[joletabey]

Math ace-
I will pm you - it does not take a lot of techonology to deal with the club site- if it did, believe me, I wouldn't be there!
Catching up with this thread and the "show off your Delawares" thread and the "Heritage Large Fowl" thread will take you some time, but there is a lot of good stuff mixed in between the chat and jokes.
Heritage Large Fowl has stayed more serious, so has the Delaware Dilemma thread. The club site is full of great info, and it is NOT hard to become a member.