Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[fowlman01]

They look like "little people with feathers"

They are little people with feathers........

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Greetings, YFOR et al.!

I cannot speak to advantage or disadvantage to rate of feathering in the Columbian Rocks. Our Dorkings are fast feathering like out Anconas. Could this be a general trend of foundational European fowl, the Dorking being a modified Mediterranean bred to meat?

In the book Creative Poultry Breeding by Dr. W. C. Carefoot, which I am re-reading and thoroughly enjoying, he mentions various tidbits which might flesh out the conversation, but I do not believe he ever discusses a direct answer, YFOR, to your exact question. Carefoot is a longtime breeder of bantam Partridge Wyandottes, Barred Rocks, and Light Sussex; so he expounds on these three patterns at length.

My only thought is that, if you really want this answer, you need to retain them both, and then compare the general result. Watch to see which actually grow faster bodily and if there is a difference in final weights. Admittedly speaking from a lack of experience, but, for what I can glean from the literature, the barring takes longer because the feathers are black and the barring factor by a gene the produces a kind of rhythmic inhibiting factor sort of like an opening and closing valve, such that as the feather emerges there is a sort of rhythm, "black...no black...black...no black...black...no black". From what I understand, the slow and steady feather growth is necessary for a clean paint job. If the feathers grow too fast the barring is blurred and the black leaks, smuttiness, into the white zones. This would explain why Barred Rock strains built on White Rock strains have poor barring. The fast feather growth of the Whites undermines the needed steadiness of growth for the clean barring provided by slow feathering. This is, however, a feathering gene. It does not necessarily mean (I don't think) that the bird has to grow slowly; it has to feather slowly.

The gene K is for slow feathering, and it is dominant; the gene k+ is for fast feathering, and it is recessive. That you are seeing both might imply that you are pure for neither one nor the other, but that with selection you would/could quickly become pure for one or the other. Which is to the advantage? I would think the fast feathering, should all points be equal.

ON a side note, apparently the difference between Light Brahmas, C Rocks and C Wyandottes versus Light Sussex appears to be that the former have the Columbian pattern (Co) out over a Dark Brown Leghorn colored base (eb), while the latter have the Co patter over a wheaten base (ewh), which apparently explains why the undercolor is different.

 

[OSUman]

Very very nice birds as usual Walt, I wish my blacks had a neck like those. If you want to see something funny, watch runners trying to run through a foot of snow!

It must be a male thing.......the grumpy part. Chickens are very interesting, but waterfowl are very funny.

They should look about like the blacks in this picture. When they look like this, they are egg machines..far more eggs than any chickens I have had.



Walt

 

[cbnovick]

here's another update on the german (cock from kathyinmo)-american cross (hens-good shepherd) NH chicks i hatched from Jwhip...they are just about 6 weeks old now. I have really been enjoying these chicks' development...should be some keepers in this bunch.

 

[BGMatt]

It must be a male thing.......the grumpy part. Chickens are very interesting, but waterfowl are very funny. They should look about like the blacks in this picture. When they look like this, they are egg machines..far more eggs than any chickens I have had. Walt

Beautiful Runners, I really like the head silhouette on the Blacks especially. You're dead on about the personality too, they're a hoot to watch.

 

[3riverschick]

Hi,
Came across this article with huge bibliography. It is way technical for me. From what I can see, it is really interesting and talks about how the different colors of feathers have a bearing on how the feather handles abrasion, etc.
Best,
Karen

Colour schemes for birds: structural coloration and signs of quality in feathers
by Susan Fitzpatrick 1998
http://www.sekj.org/PDF/anzf35/anzf35-067p.pdf

 

[thedragonlady]

here's another update on the german (cock from kathyinmo)-american cross (hens-good shepherd) NH chicks i hatched from Jwhip...they are just about 6 weeks old now. I have really been enjoying these chicks' development...should be some keepers in this bunch.

Look at the legs and feet on that boy !

 

[cbnovick]

Look at the legs and feet on that boy !

Surely he'll grow into them!!!

Hoping his Dad is prepotent too!!!

 

[Robert Blosl]

Quote: Who would think three years ago we would see something like this on this site?

Thank you for the picture and you folks who have this breed or would like to have it as Schilling would say VERY HANDSOM MALE

Glad you found the article by Judge Schilling and I can now share this with others as he helped get the Red Club back on its feet in 1944 with his help with this booklet The Book of Knowledge.

When I think of Feather Quality or Fads its this guy who I have studied in all his writings. You can not have a true Standard Breed Large Fowl that is true to breed and has good laying properties with out good feather quality. Most ignored trait people follow who raise suppose H or Standard Breed Chickens.

I found the more you push feather quality like the pictures Schilling had in this book the more eggs they lay but better yet its magical that the body shape improves.

Walt there is nothing like a great stand up strait, pop bottle runner to look at. Those Blacks are some of the best I have seen. I think the ideal runner would be a gray runner with good mallard color with that type. You wonder if those whites have Lightfoot Blood in them. I saw some 20 years ago at Chris Wingers house in Washington. Best I ever saw.

Great reading and hope you all are learning. To me you research and are learning very fast.

 

[catdaddyfro]

I know it I feel very fortunate to have some just like him which could/should be siblings or other previous broods/ hatch mates and I too have some half and halfs that he is the sire of. I'm looking forward to maybe one two outstanding individuals as he, well I have a couple already, but I'm interested in the crosses with him involved in too.




.
Thank to Mrs.Kathy and Jeremy(j-whip) too.


Jeff