Two years ago I tried breeding my first flock of SG Dorkings (from MMcM) and it was a disaster. Out of the 3 dozen eggs I set, only 2 hatched. No, not two dozen. TWO. those two birds were not breedable. They were scrawny and nowhere near the standard. So last year I made it my mission to obtain better stock, which I did. This year I have set 24 eggs, of which 16 hatched. I culled one because she was failing to thrive after 5 days. I've got 22 more in the incubator and all are growing well and are super-active! Yay! The chicks in the brooder now are already showing great promise. A few of them are huge, toes are perfect, great dispositions already. I'm hoping for good earlobes, though, as that's a bit of a problem with the hens I have. My cocks have better lobes. I'm so excited to have had such great luck this year!
Thanks - I am also already trying that. In the meantime I got some response: According to the PoultryClubSA there are no Dorking breeders left in South Africa
Someone else told me, that there are only few project/starter birds in not very good quality from UK or Holland. They asked me to bring them eggs.
Two years ago I tried breeding my first flock of SG Dorkings (from MMcM) and it was a disaster. Out of the 3 dozen eggs I set, only 2 hatched. No, not two dozen. TWO. those two birds were not breedable. They were scrawny and nowhere near the standard. So last year I made it my mission to obtain better stock, which I did. This year I have set 24 eggs, of which 16 hatched. I culled one because she was failing to thrive after 5 days. I've got 22 more in the incubator and all are growing well and are super-active! Yay! The chicks in the brooder now are already showing great promise. A few of them are huge, toes are perfect, great dispositions already. I'm hoping for good earlobes, though, as that's a bit of a problem with the hens I have. My cocks have better lobes. I'm so excited to have had such great luck this year!
I've not kept any Australorps but in general find a patterned bird more interesting than a solid bird. I like to be able to tell my birds apart. The Dorking will present more challenges in terms of obtaining and breeding stock that are close to the APA standard. Australorps are more commonly bred and shown, and as a whole are in a more developed state. Given the current state of both breeds the Australorp is probably a more "practical" bird, if meat and eggs are a priority. You can get enjoyment from any breed that is well done. But this is a Dorking thread, I vote for the Dorking.
