Barred Rocks Maturity

[LibbyR]

This is weird. But Do barred plumages take longer to mature? I am thinking about ordering some Barred Rock (standards and a bantam) for my show stick next year and was wondering if that type of plumage takes longer to develop as I had a Dominique who had very weird plumage as a Pullet due to maturity and was marked down for it. Is that a breed specific thing or a plumage/variety thing. Any answers to this weird question would be appreciated.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

In my experiences barred rocks mature at a normal rate with most going through sexual maturity at 5-7 months of age. Most heritage breeds can take up to 2 years to fully mature and fill out.

 

[LibbyR]

In my experiences barred rocks mature at a normal rate with most going through sexual maturity at 5-7 months of age. Most heritage breeds can take up to 2 years to fully mature and fill out.

Thanks for the info! I had some other heritage breeds that were fully feathered by then except for the Dominique’s barres plumage so that’s the reason as I don’t want that to happen again.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Thanks for the info! I had some other heritage breeds that were fully feathered by then except for the Dominique’s barres plumage so that’s the reason as I don’t want that to happen again.

I haven't had Dominique, so I'm not familiar with them. Keep them on a good grower to encourage feathering.

I have also been feeding my chicks a daily treat of scrambled eggs starting at about day 2 for a few years now. It takes a few days for them to develop a taste for them but after that they go nuts for them.

My chicks feather out much quicker since I started feeding some. I'm pretty surprised by the difference so maybe try them next time.