B.Y.C. Dorking Club!

[welly]

Hello
I was wondering if you professionals would be able to help me sex theses 4 day old chicks.I believe they are salmon colored and I was told they are both pullets.Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.We will love them regardless of sex.

Thank you all.

 

[ki4got]

Hi Foxflower,
For silver grey dorking eggs (not chicks) try:
http://www.blackdiamondguestranch.com/index-3chicken.html or
http://horstmanspoultry.com/largefowlhome/silvergreydorking.html

I know both of these breeders have wonderful birds.

This hatchery is now advertising eggs: http://www.strombergschickens.com/product/Silver-Gray-Dorking-Standard-Eggs-/Fertile-Chicken-Eggs I have ordered chicks (other breeds, not dorkings) from them, and were quite happy, but do not know anything about the quality of their dorking breeders.

If you google for chicks (as opposed to eggs), you can often find some established breeders that offer eggs in addition to chicks, but don't show up on the google search for eggs.

There may be waiting lists at many or all breeders, since all these birds are rare but people really want them.

The silver greys are the most popular and available. The colored birds are even more rare and it will likely be hard to find eggs. You may have to get chicks if you can't find a source for eggs. The only "hatchery" that I know of that has colored chicks is Sandhill Preservation Center: http://www.sandhillpreservation.com/. They also have silver grey chicks. They are not a traditional hatchery, so the wait will likely be long and the customer service not a priority, but they have breeds that are difficult to find elsewhere. For hatchery chicks in the silver greys, most people recommend McMurray (http://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/index.html), most people don't like the birds from Ideal (too flighty), and Farwest is unable to supply chicks this year.

don't forget duane urch has then back this year... and i think stromberg's are from him.

also if you google him, he's not online but works by phone and mail... is craig russell. you might also search for 'society for preservation of poultry antiquities'. i believe he's the president. he has every recognized variety of dorkings (i think?) and some unrecognized project varieties too.

 

[foxflower]

Good reminder, thanks. I did favorite a site that has a page with Urch's contact information and a list of the birds he sells. What I'm going to do is wait a bit to see how my hatching goes before I order more eggs. If I get a really low hatch rate then I'll buy chicks.

A question regarding the varieties and combs....which variety is most associated with the traditional characteristics as written in Storey's Illustrated guide to Poultry Breeds (my main reference book on breeds). They say the birds are good foragers but don't scratch much, calm, lay a fair number of eggs, and are hardy, including cold-hardy hens (single combs freeze I know). Those are all the best characteristics in a bird IMHO. Dorkings made my short list along with javas, buckeyes, and hollands. The quality meat is just an added bonus. Of those breeds however, I've only had buckeyes. Has anyone had some of these others and could compare them? Of the birds I've had orpingtons and faverolles are my favorites because of personality. Does the dorking have a sweet personality like that?

 

[greenhorn]

Ok finally got the incubator video's uploaded for those interested here is a link to the thread I started here at BYC with the video's:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/767505/our-new-homemade-incubator-hatcher-video

 

[Sydney Acres]

Good reminder, thanks. I did favorite a site that has a page with Urch's contact information and a list of the birds he sells. What I'm going to do is wait a bit to see how my hatching goes before I order more eggs. If I get a really low hatch rate then I'll buy chicks.

A question regarding the varieties and combs....which variety is most associated with the traditional characteristics as written in Storey's Illustrated guide to Poultry Breeds (my main reference book on breeds). They say the birds are good foragers but don't scratch much, calm, lay a fair number of eggs, and are hardy, including cold-hardy hens (single combs freeze I know). Those are all the best characteristics in a bird IMHO. Dorkings made my short list along with javas, buckeyes, and hollands. The quality meat is just an added bonus. Of those breeds however, I've only had buckeyes. Has anyone had some of these others and could compare them? Of the birds I've had orpingtons and faverolles are my favorites because of personality. Does the dorking have a sweet personality like that?

The SGs, Reds, and Colored Dorkings should have single combs, and the Whites should have rose combs, according to the SOP (The American Poultry Association's Standard of Perfection, which is how birds are judged in shows in this country --other countries have different standards). However, some people are breeding single combs on whites and rose combs on the other colors, which are still good utility birds but not in the SOP.

As far as their characteristics, I agree that they are excellent foragers, but how does a bird forage well without scratching? Mine are excellent foragers and professional scratchers -- I don't have to do any weeding, but also have little landscaping left in their yard. They are quite tame, calm, lay well through the winter, and have very thick feathering without being "fluffy," which protects them from the cold quite well. I don't live in an area where frost bite is an issue, but if you do than a single combed rooster might be problematic. I have been told that single combed hens still do well in very cold weather with minimal shelter because the combs are relatively smaller, and they are able to fully bury their heads in their feathers at night (the rooster may try, but that huge comb always sticks out). (However, I have no personal experience with this, so it may be only a rumor. Check with people in the northeastern states to see it that's accurate.)

I have not had Buckeyes yet, or Faverolles, but I have had several Buff Orpingtons. If I don't count the insane one (truly, she wasn't right), my Orpingtons were extremely quiet, calm, affection-seeking cuddlers, but also rather sedate by comparison. And while they loved to free range, I didn't get the impression that they could survive even a single day in the woods behind my house. My Red Dorkings, on the other hand, are what I consider REAL chickens by comparison. They are also quiet, calm, affection-seeking cuddlers, but definitely not sedate. They have genuine survival instincts. They are active (but not at all with a flighty temperament), always on the go, curious, independent, thinking birds that can run like pheasants and fly like wild turkeys, love to go on expeditions into the pasture and woods, roost in trees when they need a rest or the weather's bad, are predator savvy, and could probably survive in the woods for quite a while before starving or being eaten by something. The roosters are very attentive to the hens, and my boys are so busy on guard and escort duty that they often don't have time to eat enough, so I have to give them extra food every morning and night to keep weight on them. All of my hens will try to fly up on my arms or shoulders to cuddle when I go out to their flock (lots of pros and cons to that, but it's a behavior that I usually enjoy and have never tried to stop), so the breed can be made very tame if desired. Of the six roosters that I started with, two were/are extreme cuddlers and never once got aggressive, one was unacceptably aggressive on a weekly basis, two tested me a few times before deciding it was a bad idea, and one rooster (the flock leader) is a very sweet boy when he's away from his hens, but he gets very jealous when his hens run to me and occasionally tries to challenge me under those circumstances only. I put up with it because he's never done anything to me that required more than a bandaid, his conformation and size are the best of the group, and I know he will protect his hens when needed. He's got the right idea, it's just not fine-tuned yet. But he's only 10 months old, so hopefully judgement will come with maturity. Overall, I think Dorkings are the total package. But you may be getting a biased opinion from everyone on this thread -- we wouldn't be here if we weren't already hooked.

 

[foxflower]

Thank you Syndey Acres. I was wondering about the no-scratch foraging as well and wondering if they were merely little lawn mowers. You gave a great description and summary. I don't mind an active bird, especially if they are friendly. I am still going to look into getting some. Even though I love orpingtons and faverolles I am a chicken in general and have found it impossible to stick with just one breed. As a family we each have different favorites as well and like to experiment with new breeds and always end up with new breeds we love (and some we don't). I'm going to keep following along here and learning more.

 

[ki4got]

Quote: Very well said. 8) and I agree 100%.

My own dorkings are wonderful free ranging birds, and if I didn't want good eggs to hatch, I would leave them free ranging 100% of the time. but I'm still building my breeding pens, so that i can rotate some individuals thru them now and then to collect eggs with known lineages for hatching. But i will be free ranging at least part of my flock at one time or another.

If you read back a few weeks, you'll see my note about my amazing hawk eating rooster. Well maybe not eating, but he was very brave in attacking a hawk that was swooping down to one of his girls, to the point where he lost a decent chunk of his comb. he's finally healed and his feathers are cleaning up more and more each week, with lots of judicious dust bathing now. Pretty sure he nailed the hawk good with his needle-spurs... he's the only one I have with SHARP points on his. one red's curls upward (had to do some spur removal because it nearly touched his leg!), most are just long and blunt. don't know why his are so pointy, but they are effective.

I lost one of my roos to something a few days ago (he didn't go in at bedtime), so i'm down to 4 roos. it's caused some shifting of rooster-hen groups, but the roos each have their own little harem of girls they look out for.

 

[foxflower]

Right now I want good backyard birds that I don't have to baby along or feed tons. I don't know if I want to try breeding these or anything. Roosters that chase my kids can't stay long term. But frankly, I haven't had that much trouble with roos, and I have had a lot of different breeds of roos. There was one who took exception to my kid picking up hens and would chase her. He and a hen were rehomed since it was a hard breed to find. Usually the roos are just interested in chasing hens and other roos, and yes, alerting about hawks, cats, dawgs, crows, butterflies, etc.

 

[dalalune]

Storey's Illustrated guide to Poultry Breeds (my main reference book on breeds).


....... good foragers but don't scratch much, calm, lay a fair number of eggs, and are hardy, including cold-hardy hens (single combs freeze I know). Those are all the best characteristics in a bird IMHO. Dorkings made my short list along with javas, buckeyes, and hollands. The quality meat is just an added bonus. ...... Has anyone had some of these others and could compare them?

Another very good source for breed info is the ALBC (American Livestock Breed Conservancy, www.albc-usa.org ). They have a Chicken Breed Comparison chart that is excellent!

You may also want to add the American Dominique to your "short list". They are not only good foragers, calm & hardy - they are also excellent layers of a medium to large light brown egg and lay through hot or cold. I absolutely love them!

 

[Liberty Nursery]

http://www.albc-usa.org/cpl/dorking.html After reading this I want in the BYC Dorking club. I just want to be set up for a rooster so I can breed my own heritage breed meat birds. It would also be interesting to see if I can get some good crosses and speed up maturity.

A broody mother would be perfect for making meat birds too, and when she isn't broody she can help with my egg count.

The 3 hatcheries that sell Dorkings I have found only sell Silver Gray. Would be nice to get a variety.

I am not in a current situation that is good for roosters, although my city allows them. One neighbor complaint can change that so I am not going to ruin this freedom for others who can pull off having a rooster. Maybe I will design a large sound proof coop with artificial lighting I have the HID lights to grow plant inside of an outbuilding with straw bale walls. still figuring how to get ventilation without sacrificing sound privacy. But that's a big expensive project for the future.

I still have to prove I can raise the chickens I bought a month ago... a man and his chicken dreams. Maybe I will get one male Dorking to taste test in my next order along with a few others and see if Dorkings can win my taste test like they win so many other.