B.Y.C. Dorking Club!

[Yellow House Farm]

My 2012 hatched Dorking pullet


Joseph would you keep this pullet? Is the comb a DQ?

Well, yes, the comb is a DQ. That's referred to as a "sunken leader". However, if she's exceptional in other ways, it might be worth pairing her with a cock of stron comb to see if you can get any good stock out of her. If you have other females that are her equal or better but don't have the sunken leader, then I'd put her in the pot. In the future you can watch for sunken leader early on and cull out then, if you'd rather.

Best,

Joseph

 

[Sydney Acres]

Hi Everyone,

I have three more newbie questions. First, does anyone have the equivalent of a "growth chart" for Dorkings? I know that Joseph said he weighs them as part of his culling decision, but how much should they weigh at various ages? At 12 weeks old, my cockerels range from 1,550 - 1,778 grams (3.4-3.9 pounds), and my pullets range from 1,184 - 1,372 grams (2.6 - 3.0 pounds). I'm happy with their growth curve, but have nothing to compare it to. Is this normal for the breed?


My second question is about nest boxes. I'm in the process of deciding whether to make my own nest boxes or buy commercial ones. The commercial boxes are very expensive, but are metal and plastic for easy disinfection, compared to the wooden boxes I would build, so I'll have to decide on economy vs sanitation soon. But my main question is on size. Most of the commercial boxes have fairly small nests for such large birds. Has anyone used the standard boxes, and if so, are they too cramped for Dorkings? I found a source of "Big Bird Boxes" that are a bit larger (up to 12 X 14 inches of floor space per nest in one model), but still not huge. What has everyone found to be the ideal nest box size for this breed?

My last question is regarding natural brooding. I know that most people use incubators now, but for those of you who use broody hens, what type of setup do you have? Do you have a separate broody house, or just a separated area in the general henhouse? Or do you just leave your broodies in their regular nestboxes when they refuse to leave on their own? If you have multiple birds brooding at once, do they need to be fully isolated from each other, or can they just have separate but open "cubicles?" Should the nest for the broody be the same size as the regular nestbox (requiring the hen to be moved after the chicks hatch and start to grow), or should it be large enough to accommodate the hen and chicks for several weeks after hatching? If you have ever used shipped fertile eggs, did you coordinate ahead of time with the seller for immediate shipment when the hen went broody? And did you put the shipped fertile eggs under the hen, or did you put fake eggs under the hen and incubate the shipped eggs, then put the chicks with the hen as soon as they hatched?

Thanks to everyone for your input.
--April

 

[Eggcentric Rae]

For whatever reason, I can't seem to upload a photo, only a URL. I asked for help on the FB Dorkings page and got kind of a pointed comment from someone there - I was looking for help and felt insulted - she asked me "where did you get that thing". Well for me, I love all my chickens including that "thing". I just didn't want to hope I could breed it if it wasn't breed standard and was looking for help (she said that about a different bird than the black one with white wings).

We thought until the white wing bar that this one might be a dun Dorking, but by the sounds of it she's not. I got my hatching eggs in Maine...sad thing is, I'm hatching more and they are pipping today. <sad face>. Where did you get yours?

The only close by dorking breeder only does white Dorkings and while they are pretty, I would like something else.

 

[capayvalleychick]

I saw your photos on FB. I'm sorry that someone was rude to you. There are people out there selling *Dorkings* that range from being poor type to mixed variety/color to mixed breed. Some should not be called Dorkings and it's wrong that they are being misrepresented and sold. People like you end up getting disappointed and it's sad.
The standard Dorking varieties are White, Silver Gray, Colored, Red & Cuckoo. If someone is selling other colors of Dorkings, they may not be Dorkings. It's difficult to find Dorkings of good type in the Standard colors, so it's highly unlikely you are going to get something decent in an unrecognized variety. Buyer Beware. If you want real Dorkings, do your research. They are hard to acquire. It is easiest, if there is not a breeder nearby, to order from McMurrays when they are available.
If you enjoy your chickens, that's fine, enjoy them. The pics weren't good enough for me to see type but they aren't a standard variety, so you shouldn't breed & sell them as Dorkings.

Kim

 

[capayvalleychick]

Thanks for the photos, Karen! It's funny, two of my favorite looking SGD males are named Junior. I wish more people would post photos of their Silvers. All these gorgeous Whites are showing us up.

Kim

 

[capayvalleychick]

April,

I haven't been very good about weighing my youngsters, so can't help you there.

I say make your own nest boxes, since buying them is so expensive. You can always use puppy crates (kennels) or plastic storage tubs if you want plastic. If you do use wood and can't sanitize it, I think it shouldn't matter. Birds should have enough natural resistance to survive any germs on a wooden nest box. My girls knocked down the divider walls on their 12 x 12 boxes, making them 12 x 24. So they prefer bigger.

I'm still working on the perfect broody box. Again, a dog kennel crate is nice for this. If you leave them open, other hens will continue to go in and lay eggs. This results in a mess and eggs that don't hatch.

Hopefully someone else will answer your other questions.

Kim

 

[ki4got]

Hi Everyone,

I have three more newbie questions. First, does anyone have the equivalent of a "growth chart" for Dorkings? I know that Joseph said he weighs them as part of his culling decision, but how much should they weigh at various ages? At 12 weeks old, my cockerels range from 1,550 - 1,778 grams (3.4-3.9 pounds), and my pullets range from 1,184 - 1,372 grams (2.6 - 3.0 pounds). I'm happy with their growth curve, but have nothing to compare it to. Is this normal for the breed?


My second question is about nest boxes. I'm in the process of deciding whether to make my own nest boxes or buy commercial ones. The commercial boxes are very expensive, but are metal and plastic for easy disinfection, compared to the wooden boxes I would build, so I'll have to decide on economy vs sanitation soon. But my main question is on size. Most of the commercial boxes have fairly small nests for such large birds. Has anyone used the standard boxes, and if so, are they too cramped for Dorkings? I found a source of "Big Bird Boxes" that are a bit larger (up to 12 X 14 inches of floor space per nest in one model), but still not huge. What has everyone found to be the ideal nest box size for this breed?

My last question is regarding natural brooding. I know that most people use incubators now, but for those of you who use broody hens, what type of setup do you have? Do you have a separate broody house, or just a separated area in the general henhouse? Or do you just leave your broodies in their regular nestboxes when they refuse to leave on their own? If you have multiple birds brooding at once, do they need to be fully isolated from each other, or can they just have separate but open "cubicles?" Should the nest for the broody be the same size as the regular nestbox (requiring the hen to be moved after the chicks hatch and start to grow), or should it be large enough to accommodate the hen and chicks for several weeks after hatching? If you have ever used shipped fertile eggs, did you coordinate ahead of time with the seller for immediate shipment when the hen went broody? And did you put the shipped fertile eggs under the hen, or did you put fake eggs under the hen and incubate the shipped eggs, then put the chicks with the hen as soon as they hatched?

Thanks to everyone for your input.
--April

re: the broody questions... together or separate depends on the broodies. if they'll sit peacefully within sight of each other, or, given a large enough nest, share one, then i'd say they will probably work well together. i just did this with a pair of cochin hens.

I don't trust broodies, having had problems before, i incubate ALL eggs, and if a broody is still going when they are ready for lockdown, she gets them. if she's unproven, i'll give her 1 or 2 to start, usually ones that look slower than others (no internal pipping for one). that way, chicks will already be hatching in the hatcher and ready to go to momma once she accepts her new chicks (if she doesn't then i'm not out a whole clutch of chicks, they go in my brooder or to another broody).

and once she has chicks, i put her and chicks into a breeding pen or similar, no nest just a pile of hay on the floor, and she will make a new nest for her and the babies in the corner to suit her wants. that way she and the chicks are within sight of the rest of the birds, but protected from them at the same time. but NOW i also added a door to the house, that i close at night so raccoons can't scare them out of the house and snatch the babies thru the wire.

my one broodie i tried to keep with the flock lost 2 chicks before i realized the others were killing them. so she got relocated quickly.

my breeding/broody/chick pens are a 4x8 frame, 2' tall with a hinged lid on 6' of it, and the last 2' a plywood box 'house' with open floor (on dirt) and a 10x10 door at floor level in the middle. and it's top also is hinged for access to the nest/chicks/momma, whatever. for new chicks i put water and food in the house, (remove unhatched eggs or she won't take them exploring).

and i meddle. constantly. LOL i want those chicks to know me, and momma to know i'm not a threat if i need to handle them because of pasty butt or something.

 

[dorkings]

Here are a couple photos, I'm not sure what your looking for, I hope this helps.







Sassy

 

[Yellow House Farm]

For whatever reason, I can't seem to upload a photo, only a URL. I asked for help on the FB Dorkings page and got kind of a pointed comment from someone there - I was looking for help and felt insulted - she asked me "where did you get that thing". Well for me, I love all my chickens including that "thing". I just didn't want to hope I could breed it if it wasn't breed standard and was looking for help (she said that about a different bird than the black one with white wings).

We thought until the white wing bar that this one might be a dun Dorking, but by the sounds of it she's not. I got my hatching eggs in Maine...sad thing is, I'm hatching more and they are pipping today. <sad face>. Where did you get yours?

The only close by dorking breeder only does white Dorkings and while they are pretty, I would like something else.

There are other people from NH who have Dorkings aside from the Whites. There is someone raising reds and another raising silver greys. The formers "name" is vnseed (I think that'ts right) and the latter is "dorkings". So, you do have the potential for some color. Vnseed is actively selling red dorkings that are out of strong strains.

Best to you!

 

[Eggcentric Rae]

Thanks for the feedback; I appreciate it. I should have known better when I saw that 3 colors of Dorkings were in the photo together - of course the results are mixed if you have SG, White, and Dun in the same pen
I should have known better as I learned about color differentiation and being true to breed from owning Ameraucanas. 100% dorking doesn't mean breed standard or worth breeding if the color isn't standard.
Oh, I'm not giving up - the Dorkings are my faves out of all my birds so I will bide my time and order some good chicks or good eggs. In the meantime I will enjoy having these babies anyway!