B.Y.C. Dorking Club!

[capayvalleychick]

Interesting thought about the Amish, although they don't care about pure breeds, do they?

I raise Guinea Hogs, which were almost extinct, until a few, very isolated and unknown, breeders were found. I hope this might be the case for the Dorking. Where are the rural pockets of America, where they might be hiding?

I found a name in Ohio. John C. Powell of Hopewell OH, entered a SG pullet in a fair, and won that class. Anybody know that name?

Kim

 

[Inkheart]

Seems the amish do have a large amount of purebreds - really well at least their auctions do. I will see breeds- rare there that i wont see at shows! Oddi know really. Hard telling really. Thoo with that said they do havea large amount of golden comets- etc.

 

[greenhorn]

Quote:
Can I ask which year? Maybe I should send him a message via snail mail. I really think we should set up some sort of system to get the word out that we are looking for dorkings to freshen blood lines and preserve them as they are in serious need of help. Not sure SG's are the path to follow since they are the most available and many are probably from MMCM. Never hurts to ask though. Maybe Mr Powell still keeps dorkings or knows other people who do.

I have some other ideas about trying to reach out to those rural pockets. Hope they register me at the Dorking Breeders Club soon, sent my first dues in a couple weeks or so ago.

How do you find out about fair entries etc? That sounds like another good angle.

 

[capayvalleychick]

Quote:
It was this year. I found it by Googling Dorking show results or something like that. I tried to find contact info but couldn't. I saw one of you is in OH and was hoping you might have heard of him. I'm trying to make a list of everyone who breeds Dorkings.

Fairs may be a good way to find Dorkings, although you don't always see the best at those.

The SGs may be the most available through hatcheries but I've been trying to get a non hatchery strain and that's been impossible. Even Duane Urch is not offering them this coming year. There is Jeanne Fingar, I have one of her roos as my main man.

I'm sorry about the Club being slow to acknowledge new members. I don't know who is in charge of memberships, but the very few volunteers are overworked and very busy, so please be patient.

Kim

 

[greenhorn]

Quote:
It was this year. I found it by Googling Dorking show results or something like that. I tried to find contact info but couldn't. I saw one of you is in OH and was hoping you might have heard of him. I'm trying to make a list of everyone who breeds Dorkings.

Fairs may be a good way to find Dorkings, although you don't always see the best at those.

The SGs may be the most available through hatcheries but I've been trying to get a non hatchery strain and that's been impossible. Even Duane Urch is not offering them this coming year. There is Jeanne Fingar, I have one of her roos as my main man.

I'm sorry about the Club being slow to acknowledge new members. I don't know who is in charge of memberships, but the very few volunteers are overworked and very busy, so please be patient.

Kim

Thanks Kim. Sorry, I know how tough it is to find extra time to do volunteer work. It's all good I'm just a little enthusiastic about getting my own dorkings and networking with breeders etc.

How difficult is it to get birds or eggs imported from the UK? I know most won't ship to the states and even then there are so few that have dorkings advertised on the internet. I have found a couple and maybe if paid well enough a couple of them would deal with customs etc. if they are helping to save the breed by hooking up good eggs with good breeders. Maybe we could find another enthusiast person who would be interested in sending eggs from breeders etc?

I'm not an experienced incubator artist, tried it once so far and didn't get the best results. I'd be willing to donate to the cause though. I was thinking maybe others would be willing to donate time or cash or both into pulling something like this off. Then somebody with mad incubator skills could do the hatching and possibly distribute the chicks. We would need folks to track down potential sources and others to work with customs. When I was having fish imported we had a middleman who could legally import. The fish went to him first then to us. It was all set up by the breeder but maybe we could find a way to do it. Just throwing ideas out there, if this has been researched and discussed before please excuse me if I sound like a nagging broken record.

 

[capayvalleychick]

Quote:
I looked into this, earlier this year. I couldn't find any breeders in England that were interested. Their Club person said that it's too much trouble. I don't think eggs would survive the trip. Poultry imported into the US from England has to be quarantined for at least a month and that costs over $2000. I'm actually looking into this option again, with thoughts of maybe fund raising to get the money.

Another option is Canada. Birds & eggs that travel by ground over the border do not have to be quarantined. Canada does not have a quarantine for birds from England. So, I think you can import a bird from England to Canada, get a vet certificate, and import that bird into the US.

Jeannette Beranger, of the ALBC, suggested that I contact a Canadian APA judge to arrange import of Canadian Dorkings. I haven't been able to reach any of them. RareBreeds Canada is trying to help. I found one breeder of Dorkings in Canada, online, but their birds don't look better than what I have. So, I'm searching for a breeder in Canada to help, also.

Bear in mind, I'm just a farmer with barely enough income to cover my current costs of operation. I just threw money away, hiring a transporter to go to the Nationals. I'm not going to be able to do any of this, without some cooperation from foreign breeders and donated money from sources unknown. On one hand, I'm stubborn and motivated to save this breed. On the other, I'm getting weary of trying.

I know, I know, before I hear breed heavy, cull hard, again... the number of Dorking eggs that hatched here this year was 8.

Kim

 

[elizmartin]

Quote:
I have 7 LF Varieties right now and a couple more that are sub-varieties (as in, I don't spend as much time on them). If I don't hatch quite a few, I get nowhere. The key to hatching lots is hatching when the males are fertile or having an extra male at all times. It's chicken insurance for the price of feed. I can afford to feed a few extra males. I can't afford to lose a year of hatching.

Hi, when you say you have 7 LF varieties, are they all Dorkings??? Thanks for the thought on the extra males...eliz

 

[rtroxel]

No, I have 2 varieties of Dorkings, 4 of Wyandottes and Partridge Cochins, plus some other stuff for giggles.

As to Powell, I know him. I asked him if he had any silver males and he said no. I sold him a Wyandotte at Central Indiana. At least I think you're talking about the same person. He won Reserve English at the IN state fair on a Dorking Hen.

 

[Mrs MIA]

Quote:
I'm right there with you, Kim... I've spent hundreds on eggs and chicks trying to get some decent stock up here, and usually have to be happy with one chick. (I think there's a Gorilla Soccer team employed by the USPS between AK and the rest of the US.

) I only hatched two of my own pure Dorkings this year... in August.

But, I have 2 more very promising SG boys (I would like to post pics for comments) and several SG and Red hens to work with next year (plus the very sweet pair of reds from Jen

). They will have the largest of the breeding pens, and I am more than willing to share eggs in the Spring if the offspring look decent. I seem to have better luck shipping from AK, than shipping TO AK.

I'm half-way tempted to order a boatload of Dorkings from either Ideal or MMH this Spring, to hopefully find one or two diamonds in the rough to work with... it's a crapshoot, I know, but if you stuff the slot-machine with enough quarters, eventually you will hit a jackpot, even if a small one.

 

[ki4got]

Mrs. AK-Bird-Brain :

Quote:
I'm right there with you, Kim... I've spent hundreds on eggs and chicks trying to get some decent stock up here, and usually have to be happy with one chick. (I think there's a Gorilla Soccer team employed by the USPS between AK and the rest of the US.

) I only hatched two of my own pure Dorkings this year... in August.

But, I have 2 more very promising SG boys (I would like to post pics for comments) and several SG and Red hens to work with next year (plus the very sweet pair of reds from Jen

). They will have the largest of the breeding pens, and I am more than willing to share eggs in the Spring if the offspring look decent. I seem to have better luck shipping from AK, than shipping TO AK.

I'm half-way tempted to order a boatload of Dorkings from either Ideal or MMH this Spring, to hopefully find one or two diamonds in the rough to work with... it's a crapshoot, I know, but if you stuff the slot-machine with enough quarters, eventually you will hit a jackpot, even if a small one.

bah! i had a nice long response typed out and the computer hiccupped...

anyone have/had/seen birds from sand hill? wondering how their quality stands. he's got all recognized varieties and several that aren't... i'm thinking of placing an order but hesitating until i hear from others.

also, does anyone here with reds/coloreds sell eggs? I'm a hatching fiend! LOL got my 'bators the end of september and they haven't shut down for long. long story short, think i figured out what happenned with my shipped eggs, trying again with some cochin (bantam) eggs, also have 12 dorkings from my own trio in there now. on day 2.

so far with 'homegrown' eggs, i've set 22, 4 were clear, 1 upside down at pip, the other 17 are 1-2 weeks old now (2 hatch groups), and i've got another 11 due to hatch around the 13th or so (found under a half frozen/drowned broody who chose a bad spot to nest in - the eggs were soaked & muddy, got washed in hot water with a dash of clorox, and set in the incubator till momma dried out and warmed up. of the 15 eggs i found, 3 were clear, 1 quitter, the rest are going strong).

I'm willing to help with hatching anything anyone wants to send me, but right now, until i get my homebrew bator(s) built, i'm limited by the 42 egg turner in my hovabator. but with a seperate hatcher I can rotate weekly hatches. when taxes come back i might look into getting a cabinet, but depends on what i can build before then. 8)​