BCM X barred rock meat cross

[busby965]

I am planning to cross one of my BCM roos over a few of my barred rock hens so i can get a nice sex linked bird will seperate roos from pullets and sell/trade pullets at@ flea market as mixed chicks. think the roos should make a nice table bird. has anyone tried this cross, and what are your thoughts on caponizing them. thanks

 

[BCMaraniac]

I am planning to cross one of my BCM roos over a few of my barred rock hens so i can get a nice sex linked bird will seperate roos from pullets and sell/trade pullets at@ flea market as mixed chicks. think the roos should make a nice table bird. has anyone tried this cross, and what are your thoughts on caponizing them. thanks

I haven't made that specific cross, but I did incubate and broody raise some birds that are BCM X Lavender Orpington rooster. However, my hatches were of other DP breeds X Lavender Orpington as well. However, some of these birds have feathered legs so I know that they are out of my BCM hens. They are huge, and I did caponize them, and are currently 21 weeks old.. Now I do have some slips, but the biggest of them all are the BCM crosses, which are full capons I am looking forward to growing them out until very late fall, early winter. They are 21 weeks old now. Next year I am planning to cross some White American Bresse with the BCM, probably crossing both ways.

I would think that your cross would be a good one, especially if you have nice big hens. I will be very interested in how that cross turns out.

I ended up with mixed birds that were barred out of my Lavender Orpington roo, and I have no idea where the barring came from. I know that Cuckoo Marans are barred, so I don't know if there is a gene there or not. I have a BR hen, but she was laying very small pullet eggs when I incubated these others, so there weren't any of those crosses. The interesting about it is that all of the barred birds were males, and they have all been caponized.

Have you caponized any of your birds?

 

[busby965]

Thanks for your input. i do have very large girls and my BCM roo is nice and large i have a nice flock of BCM the roo I'm going use lacks feathered shanks so i can't use him in my purebreed program. i have caponized many cockrels through the years. thanks again

 

[donrae]

I haven't made that specific cross, but I did incubate and broody raise some birds that are BCM X Lavender Orpington rooster. However, my hatches were of other DP breeds X Lavender Orpington as well. However, some of these birds have feathered legs so I know that they are out of my BCM hens. They are huge, and I did caponize them, and are currently 21 weeks old.. Now I do have some slips, but the biggest of them all are the BCM crosses, which are full capons I am looking forward to growing them out until very late fall, early winter. They are 21 weeks old now. Next year I am planning to cross some White American Bresse with the BCM, probably crossing both ways.

I would think that your cross would be a good one, especially if you have nice big hens. I will be very interested in how that cross turns out.

I ended up with mixed birds that were barred out of my Lavender Orpington roo, and I have no idea where the barring came from. I know that Cuckoo Marans are barred, so I don't know if there is a gene there or not. I have a BR hen, but she was laying very small pullet eggs when I incubated these others, so there weren't any of those crosses. The interesting about it is that all of the barred birds were males, and they have all been caponized.

Have you caponized any of your birds?

Your lavender roo over your cuckoo marans hens made black sex links. The males are barred, the females aren't. You could tell the males at hatch by a white spot on the head, but with a lavender father, the down color may have made the spot hard to see. that's why classic black sex links use a red rooster, it gives the chicks black down so the spot shows up well.

 

[BCMaraniac]

Your lavender roo over your cuckoo marans hens made black sex links. The males are barred, the females aren't. You could tell the males at hatch by a white spot on the head, but with a lavender father, the down color may have made the spot hard to see. that's why classic black sex links use a red rooster, it gives the chicks black down so the spot shows up well.

My hens were French Black Copper Marans, and the males were barred with smooth legs. That was what didn't make sense to me. The smooth legs I didn't concern me, but the barring was surprising.

 

[donrae]

My hens were French Black Copper Marans, and the males were barred with smooth legs. That was what didn't make sense to me. The smooth legs I didn't concern me, but the barring was surprising.

Oh, I misunderstood. When you said cuckoo Marans, I though that meant some of your hens were cuckoo. Sorry.

 

[BCMaraniac]

Oh, I misunderstood. When you said cuckoo Marans, I though that meant some of your hens were cuckoo. Sorry.

I was just thinking out loud. I just wondered if their was a gene somewhere that might have caused this. The other thing I wondered about was the fact that the breeder also had Cuckoo Marans, and if by some change there might have been an "accident" that would have resulted in a black bird with feathers resembling a BCM but was in fact carrying the barred gene. I do not know the genetics of the cuckoo marans, so I do not know if that is possible.

 

[1876 Farm]

I have 2 birds that are a BCM Roo x Barred Rocks.

Here's a picture of my BCM Roo



Here's 4 of the 6 chick's that the BCM Roo fathered in 2013 (from Barred Rock, Buff Orpington, Red Star).
2 of the 6 chicks hatched were black, 1 with a white dot on it's head (in the forefront) and one without.



Here's the one with the White Dot at age 17 weeks.


Here's the one without the white dot at age 12 weeks


If you would like to see all my BCM roo crosses, check out my blog and then select the "Chicken Hatch 2013" and "Chicken Hatch 2012" tabs - the 2013 hatch has many pictures showing how they have grown over the weeks.

http://www.wanderingcreekacres.blogspot.com/

 

[BCMaraniac]

Oh, I misunderstood. When you said cuckoo Marans, I though that meant some of your hens were cuckoo. Sorry.

I spoke with the breeder of my BCM hens and Lavender rooster, and she said that the Lavenders can carry the barred gene, as can the BCM, so some of the offspring could be barred. I know one thing.....one of those boys was huge...wide space legs, large breast. I guess I should have thought about keeping him intact, but I caponized him, and am growing him out....hopefully he isn't a slip!!

 

[BCMaraniac]

I have 2 birds that are a BCM Roo x Barred Rocks.

Here's a picture of my BCM Roo



Here's 4 of the 6 chick's that the BCM Roo fathered in 2013 (from Barred Rock, Buff Orpington, Red Star).
2 of the 6 chicks hatched were black, 1 with a white dot on it's head (in the forefront) and one without.



Here's the one with the White Dot at age 17 weeks.


Here's the one without the white dot at age 12 weeks


If you would like to see all my BCM roo crosses, check out my blog and then select the "Chicken Hatch 2013" and "Chicken Hatch 2012" tabs - the 2013 hatch has many pictures showing how they have grown over the weeks.

http://www.wanderingcreekacres.blogspot.com/

Good pics. I should do this if I cross my BCM's with my LO again. I got some really big boys out of that cross that are capons now. One at 25 weeks old weighed 8 pounds 3 oz. His pic is my avatar.

Is the yellow chick from the BO?