Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[Wynette]

Hmmmm........I just judge them I don't sniff them.....

w.

I beg to differ....I'm sure I saw you sniffin' a Call at Crossroads in '11.

 

[fowlman01]

I beg to differ....I'm sure I saw you sniffin' a Call at Crossroads in '11.

That's different.....it was a Call, not a big chicken..and the business end was pointed away from me.

w.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Go...and I'll harass you in person.

I was thinking of making a Superman cape out of some ribbons, but after a great deal of thought I came to the conclusion that it might be a bit much! lol

w.

Walt, you'll be there? Great! It will be nice to meet you!

 

[gjensen]

Just checked to see that all the Buffs are now up in the main covered run. I picked up quickly, and misted the sand down. They look like kids at the beach, burying themselves in the clean sand. Funny...Wilbur always could tell if I had birds at a show. He said they always smelled nice.

And my NHs are sunbathing. Guess no one told them it was hot today.

Thankfully, we have had a nice spring. Hope it as nice through the summer.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

YHF, I realize that not every comment here can apply to everyone all the time, and would like to take exception to your comments above about breeding to the SOP and not showing.

These are my thoughts and since I'm new to this world(only have hatchery stock at this time because that's all I knew to exist when we wanted to get started), someone please correct me if I'm wrong. And please don't take offense. My wife often tells me that I act like a jacka$$ to people, even though that completely wasn't my intention.

Would your Dorkings retain their meat quality if you didn't breed toward the SOP? Would your Anconas lay like they do if you didn't breed toward the SOP? It's often stated here that if you're not breeding towards a goal, then the quality of your stock is diminishing. We could probably wing it and breed chickens to do what we wanted: Bigger breast meat, bigger eggs, more eggs...whatever we wanted to do, we could do it blind. However, doesn't that come at the detriment of the chicken? If we wanted to raise Dorkings for meat, what would happen to the quality of the meat if we didn't have a goal? Would it retain its fine grain that they're famous for? Or would it deteriorate if we bred them for size or faster grow rates and ignored the head, comb, wings, feathers, shape, tails, etc.?

From what I've gathered here, the SOP is the goal that gives the Dorkings their meat quality and the Anconas their egg production year after year without their bodies failing after 2 years like hatchery chickens. Without that goal, I could get the best of any breed, and turn it into hatchery stock(or worse) in a year or 2.

Even though my wife and I have talked about letting our daughters show if they want to when they're old enough, we currently have no intentions of showing. We ordered our SOP and look through it when we have conversations to try to pick a breed to start with. Which, BTW, is the hardest part of our whole chicken experience to date. From reading Bob, fowlman, Fred, YHF, Kathy, 3rivers, catdaddy, and many more, it has been hammered into me that this is the direction to go, even if I don't want to show.

Please correct my thoughts or argue with me if I'm wrong. A fella that I work with has a saying taped up on his wall. "I never learned anything from anyone that didn't disagree with me." Author Unknown. So argue with me so that I may learn.

Happily(not jacka$$ly),colburg

I certainly agree that all breeding should be done in light of the Standard, and that the majority of each written standard for breeds destined for production is geared toward the promotion of productive qualities.

I also respect that some havre trouble getting to shows. Someone, perhaps you Colburg, pointed out to me recently that the nearest show is 400 miles away. That's something. In New England we have 8 or 9 APA shows per annum! Indeed, at times, there are so many accessible shows in a row that it can be a bit overwhelming.

My comment about showing, though, was directed at a more general audience. There seems to be a strange attitude toward showing on BYC that I've come across on multiple occasions where people who have never attended or participated in APA shows have written them off as possibilities before finding out about them or experiencing them. This I do not understand. Why shut the doors of possibility? One learns so much at shows. The opportunity for expansion of understanding is so very magnified in attending shows. There are so many people with whom one might speak who will greatly enhance one's understanding. There are so many birds on hand to illustrate the various needs of the breeder or aspects of the standard in question. There's simply nothing like it to galvanize good breeding. So, the comment I made was not to those who cannot access shows because they're further away than reality permits travel or any other individual circumstance. My comment was to the de facto rejection of showing and the opportunities it offers when those shows are accessible.

 

[colburg]

Quote:
Yes, it was me that has no shows within 400 or 600 miles(can't remember). If shows were closer, we'd definitely go to make contacts and look and learn. That's something I could definitely agree with. But as far as participating or showing...It's just not a step we're preparing to take yet, however, that doesn't mean we're completely closed to it.

Thanks for the clarification, colburg

 

[3riverschick]

Quote: =
Well if you ever showed at a dog show and weren't the judge's pet... well, nuf' said. My experience with showing animals was a pit of favoritism, back-biting, rep destroying hype. Occasionally, one was good. But one was always watching one's back, and one's dog.
Frankly, poultry showing just sounds almost too good to be true. That adults could come together with such camaraderie and just have fun....like dog shows were back in the 60's. I have been thinking about it and think part of it might be that no one "presents" the birds to the judge. Plus the owners, breeds and fans aren't allowed in the building while the judging is going on.
Best,
Karen

 

[fowlman01]

Walt, you'll be there? Great! It will be nice to meet you!

Yes, I will be there and the Canadian National.

 

[aveca]

Go...and I'll harass you in person.

I was thinking of making a Superman cape out of some ribbons, but after a great deal of thought I came to the conclusion that it might be a bit much! lol

w.

never you mind..i,ll make you a superman cape ..you better wear it too ! you should see some of the getups that people show up in..well im sure youve seen a few..theres an older fella....wears suspenders and a hat..i swear..there isnt room for 1 more chicken pin on that hat or those suspenders..i told him i liked his flair! hee hee.. he must pick up a pin at every single show hes ever been to..even the back of the suspenders are full of pins too..he won quite a bit, bantams i think.

my all time favorite are the chicken buggies..they haul chickens to the show...some are just the back of a truck full of boxes..some are contraptions that you wonder how the chickens survived that trip complete with hand painted chicken or farm sign on the side....some of those should be in a museum..

 

[thedragonlady]

That's different.....it was a Call, not a big chicken..and the business end was pointed away from me.

w.

Ladies wear perfume on their earlobes and in their cleavage...just in case you hadn't noticed Walt.