B.Y.C. Dorking Club!

[Kyzmette]

This is my Lord and Lady Dingwald!

Does anybody else have fertility issues? I'm wondering if I should trim bum feathers on Lady D.

 

[ki4got]

This is my Lord and Lady Dingwald!




Does anybody else have fertility issues? I'm wondering if I should trim bum feathers on Lady D.

if you have to trim fluff, you trim above the vent on the hen and below the vent on the roo...

that being said, I don't trim the Dorkings ever... but the bantam cochins need it quite often.

 

[Alwayswantchics]

DORKING IMPORTATION PROJECT

YES! It is finally happening!
If you would like to be part of this process, you can pm either myself or Susan Catt on Facebook with your email address and we will add you to the discussion and planning.

Having come together in a leap of faith and camaraderie, a number of American Dorking enthusiasts are in the process of importing several varieties of large fowl and bantam Dorkings to the United States from England. We have created a closed Facebook group where we are working as a cooperative to see this project come to fruition.

We have a breeder in the UK who is offering to help us obtain the breeding stock we desire via hatching eggs. In the process we are identifying how many eggs from each variety would be available and their costs, as well as reviewing our transportation options and respective costs.

1) Varieties – Large fowl Silver Grey, Rose Combed Whites, Reds (these are black breasted melanized reds), Rose Combed Darks, and Red Bantams (we are considering SG Bantams as well). *Note “The UK reds are variable. Some UK breeders prefer the lighter “US Standard” while others prefer the darker version, which will be available to us.

2) We have one breeder who is willing to work with us through the long list of requirements needed on his end and is willing to provide most of the varieties we are looking for. He is also open to the possibly of adding varieties to his operation in order to help save us vet certification costs at several breeders sites. This is still being developed.

3) We have identified three funding options, all of which we intend to pursue. They include:
 a) PayPal donation program with incentives like hatching eggs, chicks or breeding trios.
 b) A grant program that one of our members is a participant of.
 c) Crowd funding.

4) We already have members researching the various requirements that will need to be fulfilled and are reaching out to others who have experience with these and similar endeavors.

5) The breeder we are working with is researching various flocks, determining egg availability (numbers that can be provided at time of shipping), and cost of those eggs. We are also consulting with him regarding working with British authorities and within the Dorking community.

Our timeline is set.
  October 2014 - grant proposal will be submitted.
  January 2015 - we hear if we have been granted any funds (no more than 5,000.00 but could be substantially less).
  March 2015 - receive funds (if approved).
  May 2015 - receive and hatch eggs
  May 2016 - begin distribution of eggs, chicks and trios to participants and donation contributors.
  Crowd funding - in place by May 2014, to run continuously throughout the year.
  PayPal Incentive Program - in place by May 2014, to run continuously throughout the year.

Eggs are to arrive by May/June 2015 to be hatched out by knowledgeable breeders on the east coast. Chicks will be grown out to breeding age and the subsequent eggs, chicks and young trios will become available to contributors. After these commitments to the participants and donation contributors are met and at the discretion of each holding breeder eggs or possibly day old chicks, or breeding trios will be available for sale to help distribute the new genetics throughout the American Dorking community. We are still fleshing out the details. More in our next report.

All are welcome to join the closed Facebook group to participate. You WILL be required to work and do your part to make this happen.

That sounds awesome. Would be interested in helping.

 

[Sydney Acres]

Quote:
That's very kind of you, but I really just a beginner at breeding. Everything I know I've learned from this thread and from reading the history of the breed. I know my own birds' traits backwards and forwards, but I've spent almost 2 years with them. I'm not nearly knowledgeable enough to judge the characteristics of a growing chick of this age simply from a few photos. If you post views of each bird from all angles, at birdseye level, while standing at a normal position, I'm sure some of the more experienced breeders on this thread can give you some basic information. But this is not a good age to judge the quality of a bird. These are birds that grow quite slowly, so they may look great now but turn out completely different, or the ugly duckling baby could mature into a beautiful perfect Dorking. Some of the highly experienced breeders that hatch out hundreds of chicks a year may do a first round sorting at a young age, but most people wait until a bird is 5-8 months old before evaluating them too critically, and some people wait until 10-12 months for a final evaluation.

 

[Sydney Acres]

Quote:
I have found that in flocks with multiple breeds, individuals of the same breed do tend to hang out together. It was a bit unexpected, but I've had it happen with 3 separate flocks. In one flock I had several birds each of three different breeds, plus one single bird of a fourth breed. The single bird kept going from group to group, looking for a place to fit in. Just another way that chicken flocks mirror the social structure in high school -- nothing but cliques and full of bullies!!

Seventy eight chicks!!! Wow, you've got your hands full.

 

[neopolitancrazy]

Quote:

are you worried about fertility(eggs not developing AT ALL when incubated,) or hatchability(eggs started developing in the incubator but did not produce a live chick)? The FB Dorking group recently discussed hatchability, and best claimed hatchability was 60%. That is, 60% of fertile eggs actually producing a live chick. The ways to improve fertility are different from the ways to improve hatchability.
Best wishes,
Angela

 

[ki4got]

Quote:
thanks... we're in limbo right now, working on some details, but hopefully will have something finalized by next month...

 

[ki4got]

That's very kind of you, but I really just a beginner at breeding. Everything I know I've learned from this thread and from reading the history of the breed. I know my own birds' traits backwards and forwards, but I've spent almost 2 years with them. I'm not nearly knowledgeable enough to judge the characteristics of a growing chick of this age simply from a few photos. If you post views of each bird from all angles, at birdseye level, while standing at a normal position, I'm sure some of the more experienced breeders on this thread can give you some basic information. But this is not a good age to judge the quality of a bird. These are birds that grow quite slowly, so they may look great now but turn out completely different, or the ugly duckling baby could mature into a beautiful perfect Dorking. Some of the highly experienced breeders that hatch out hundreds of chicks a year may do a first round sorting at a young age, but most people wait until a bird is 5-8 months old before evaluating them too critically, and some people wait until 10-12 months for a final evaluation.

at this age, it's hard to tell anything but obvious flaws like missing toes or sprigs on the combs... 3 months gives a better estimate, 5-6 months again to judge how they're growing and final assessment (for me) is around a year old.

 

[ki4got]

Quote:
I have found that in flocks with multiple breeds, individuals of the same breed do tend to hang out together. It was a bit unexpected, but I've had it happen with 3 separate flocks. In one flock I had several birds each of three different breeds, plus one single bird of a fourth breed. The single bird kept going from group to group, looking for a place to fit in. Just another way that chicken flocks mirror the social structure in high school -- nothing but cliques and full of bullies!!

Seventy eight chicks!!! Wow, you've got your hands full.

I have a few dorking girls hanging out with dorking roos, but don't think that holds true very often. I've got dorkings, EE, and blrw all free ranging together, and it's a total mixup as to who's with who...

 

[Kyzmette]

Quote:
Fertility, I believe. The eggs going into the bator are showing no development. I know the first step is to open one to see if it's even fertilized. If it's not, I'll trim feathers. If it is, I guess I'll have to put a proven hen in there with them to see if it's Lord D's issue or Lady D's.