Australorps breed Thread

[Rachel'sFlock]

First Hatch was a success!
Introducing, PenelopeAnn and Primrose, hatched September 27.
AliceAnn and Maximus, Mum and Dad are pictured as well.

 

[cubakid]

Quote:
Cubakid, do have some more good aussies offspring for us to see? would love to see some of your flock..Chet Berta and I are always on the lookout..i shopped some fall sale up at the big fall poultry show, they must have had over 50 aussies for sale...attracts a lot of breeders from around the northeast , so a good place to talk to people and lot of aussie breeders from VT, mass, maryland, ohio ect....I went right down the line in the sale barn , some were OK.they had them all in pairs until right about the middle I stopped dead in my tracks and said ...WOW!!....Bob Whitney had sold a pair, I got my rooster from him..they were big enough they had to go in thier own cages not paired and show stopping curves. Bobs Hen was grand champion english in a huge class. he also won at least 4 other big shows from maryland to ohio with that aussie hen....what a fantastic pullet, sadly they had a great big SOLD sign on them.. I did score 2 very good pullets this year..so keep your fingers crossed for next year..I had junk hens last year and it really showed up in the offspring...bluk!.im feeling a lot better about next years results..just trying to keep them all safe right now..we have every predator imaginable from racoons to hawks to coyotes out there and they get very determined ..spring is the worst when they are denning. so far there have been no breechs all summer so i think we ironed out the kinks..

My offspring did not turn out all that great this year. there is a pullet or two that ill be watching... but my australorp fertility is terrible. In the past 5 years i hatched about three. this year i hatched 10 out of my trio of A black cock a black hen and a white hen. then i recived about 10 from a local group from the same lines.

 

[mother o' chicks72]

Here is my pretty little black Australorp, her name's Calliope. I wanna do 4-H and am trying to pick my prettiest girl, what do ya think? Got her as a day old on February 18th 2011 from a feed store.

 

[Rachel'sFlock]

mother o' chicks72 :

Here is my pretty little black Australorp, her name's Calliope. I wanna do 4-H and am trying to pick my prettiest girl, what do ya think? Got her as a day old on February 18th 2011 from a feed store.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/fo...08313_100000296775333_1025115_336605057_n.jpg
https://www.backyardchickens.com/fo...1638_100000296775333_1025117_1425381648_n.jpg
https://www.backyardchickens.com/fo...08318_100000296775333_1025114_270385457_n.jpg
https://www.backyardchickens.com/fo...08329_100000296775333_1025112_176366782_n.jpg
https://www.backyardchickens.com/fo...4974_100000296775333_1025116_1429728629_n.jpg

A beauty! Good luck with her!​

 

[aveca]

I think you will do just fine with her..so glad to see you taking an interest in showing and a 4-h project..she looks like a sweetie.when you get around to breeding her, look foR a rooster with a very dark eye.
she has a nice comb and wattles.

 

[isabrownmom]

Here are some pics of my Aussie hens. They are 5 months old and just starting to lay little eggs for us. They are so sweet and mild mannered and just gorgeous when the sun hits those feathers!

 

[lildinkem]

Bought these as layer's special. Their Australorps. Paid $10 each. The logical choice it to take them to an Orp. But, I have a cock from last season who has the type I like and he sorta looked like these two. So, to make a longer story just long. I finally hatched a chick from him and one of them. Came out Black, but time will tell. The chick hatched out overnite. And exploded out of the incubator when I opened the lid out onto the floor.

This male came out of a Buff Orpington hen & an Australorp/Ameraucana Meyer hatchery Black cockerel mix, who was suppose to be a jersey Giant. That mix had a son.
Here he is. The closest to an Australorp in type. And who knows what will pop out? I am thinking a couple of pure Blacks???? OR MAYBE something a Silvery White?? Or MAYBE another one that looks like these??

 

[Mrs. Fluffy Puffy]

Quote:
Pretty Aussies!!

I am down to 5 Aussie juvies now. A bob-cat killed two on Friday night.

~Aspen

 

[Mrs. Fluffy Puffy]

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Gorgeous!

~Aspen

 

[huppfarm]

mother o' chicks72 :

Here is my pretty little black Australorp, her name's Calliope. I wanna do 4-H and am trying to pick my prettiest girl, what do ya think? Got her as a day old on February 18th 2011 from a feed store.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/fo...08313_100000296775333_1025115_336605057_n.jpg
https://www.backyardchickens.com/fo...1638_100000296775333_1025117_1425381648_n.jpg
https://www.backyardchickens.com/fo...08318_100000296775333_1025114_270385457_n.jpg
https://www.backyardchickens.com/fo...08329_100000296775333_1025112_176366782_n.jpg
https://www.backyardchickens.com/fo...4974_100000296775333_1025116_1429728629_n.jpg

howdy, what a nice name! hope you are enjoying her.
as feedstore birds go, they are production grade birds and very few of them have the quality for showing in competition. there are several things you look for when breeding for show quality, eye color is very important. you want a very dark brown eye (almost black) your bird has the light eye. another is the back and tail whick need a very slight curve up the tail at a 40 degree angle. skin and bottoms of feet to be white or pinkish. no green or yellow skin, shanks or toes, you want black. 5 pointed combs are most desireable, or less if your breeding to another with 6 or 7 points to breed out the numbers. no white feathers, even though the standard allows 1, that trait can continue in the breedings. even lenght waddles. look for a crowhead, you dont want that. it is a skull that is narrow in hieght and width. you want a full broad rounded head with eyes that appear awake and alert, not squinted and narrow in apperance.

some undesireable traits can take years to breed out of your stock but it can be done. i personally recommend to find breeders of quality birds and purchase hatching eggs, chicks or older chickens for breeding if you intend to show in competitive levels. as a breeder of australorps, we strive to maintain a standard of pure breed birds and keep the market full for the public buy, raise and maintain. eventurally depleting the cross breeds that seem to be flooding the market from the commercial hatcheries that most all feedstores are selling.

if you just enjoy back yard chickens for eggs and personal pleasure of thier visual antics, it doesnt matter what they look like! as long as you are having fun with them.​