Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[centrarchid]

Quote:
We are talking a 1:12 versus 1:10 so not over typical recommendation by much. Rooster will also be test mated for fertility and isolated before his turn at bat. This is not to be a sustained (marathon) effort for a given rooster. Most folks have a rooster covering months on end.

If works as intended, hens will solicit rooster's attention. Area to be covered only 32' x 32'. He need not cover each one each day. My free range game rooster can cover and keep in fertile eggs a dozen hens. He does this despite not covering his hens anywhere near as frequently as he would if penned up in run or coop. All rooster has to do is cover hen every third or fourth day and deposit a large concentrated spermatiphore instead of a bunch of small dilute ones that are deposited with such high frequency hens loose saddle feathers.

 

[buffalogal]

Quote:
I have small hands, so six fingers side by side on me is just about 3 and 3/4 inches. That's pretty wide for a chicken, but do-able. But six fingers wide on a grown man? I think that's going to be a bit of a stretch for most breeds, though perhaps there's a Cochin or Jersey Giant with a 4 & 1/2 to 5 inch wide rear. I've seen that measurement given before, but how realistic is to tell people they should be selecting birds with a five and six finger width unless they are looking for high production Leghorns? (and years ago, the commercial egg industry figured out that high production Leghorns don't need to be built like a Mack truck because the smaller birds have better feed conversion) It's been my experience that most birds lay just fine at 2 & 1/2 fingers width, and three will get you Jumbo eggs.


BTW, I already own the book, and not an Amazon reprint either.

edited to add " measurement given"

 

[Chris09]

Quote:
I don't know "Connater" but I do know that those birds in the last picture are not his/her's.
Those are William Bennett (Pine Grove) birds and William in down in Lakeland G.A.
Here is the exact same picture second post.They were posted by Clint but William has posted that picture also.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=265846

Chris

 

[centrarchid]

OwensMom,

Spelling getting closer.

Progress slow and goal 20 to 30 years off so hope you are patient. My system also has the 1-4 but instead of pens it has what are called matrilineages with following names (Voter-Fred, Voter-Hyman, Voter-Stichler, Voter-Davis). Names will be shortened otherwise breeding book will get real crowded fast. Your plymouth rock person very likely means same. Each of my four matrilineages is repressented by 3 hens per generation. Some folks do not distinguish between individuals beyond lineage once making cut to get into breeding pen. I am tracking even hens so that at no point will all females of a given matrilneage lineage have the same mother but they may or may not have same father. It slows detrimental effects of inbreeding.

Parallel effort with domininque cross involving only three matrilineages. That is where some fun is showing up. Long-term project as well.

 

[gjensen]

Quote:
We are talking a 1:12 versus 1:10 so not over typical recommendation by much. Rooster will also be test mated for fertility and isolated before his turn at bat. This is not to be a sustained (marathon) effort for a given rooster. Most folks have a rooster covering months on end.

If works as intended, hens will solicit rooster's attention. Area to be covered only 32' x 32'. He need not cover each one each day. My free range game rooster can cover and keep in fertile eggs a dozen hens. He does this despite not covering his hens anywhere near as frequently as he would if penned up in run or coop. All rooster has to do is cover hen every third or fourth day and deposit a large concentrated spermatiphore instead of a bunch of small dilute ones that are deposited with such high frequency hens loose saddle feathers.

I have had a group of NHs that most of the cocks had no trouble covering 12 hens. In fact, I intentionally kept the ratio up to help the excessive wear on the hens. Other birds I have worked with would have trouble past eight.

 

[Chris09]

Quote:
Centrarchid as in the Centrarchid fishes AKA sunfish.

Chris

 

[WallTenters]

Quote:
I have small hands, so six fingers side by side on me is just about 3 and 3/4 inches. That's pretty wide for a chicken, but do-able. But six fingers wide on a grown man? I think that's going to be a bit of a stretch for most breeds, though perhaps there's a Cochin or Jersey Giant with a 4 & 1/2 to 5 inch wide rear. I've seen that measurement given before, but how realistic is to tell people they should be selecting birds with a five and six finger width unless they are looking for high production Leghorns? (and years ago, the commercial egg industry figured out that high production Leghorns don't need to be built like a Mack truck because the smaller birds have better feed conversion) It's been my experience that most birds lay just fine at 2 & 1/2 fingers width, and three will get you Jumbo eggs.


BTW, I already own the book, and not an Amazon reprint either.

edited to add " measurement given"

We have a five finger Dominique hen. Unfortunately she had a comb fault (was a purchased chick) so now she's happily laying lots of eating eggs. And she was five fingers at 9 months of age, I have no idea what she is now, but the new owners report she's still laying lots of big eggs. Really even without the comb fault I don't know if we would have kept her for breeding.. something just worries me about extremes.

And yes you can get six fingers in there even on backyard birds. This Dom hen was nothing special- I think I paid $1.50 per chick on that order. My mom has a production red hen I can almost get six fingers in, and again, I have rather pudgy fingers, probably closer to man size than woman size

. Blast me and my big hands and feet!

I don't think you should cull anything that doesn't meet up to these standards, but I do think you should go through all your breeding stock (including males!) and let pubic bone measurements be an important part of your breeding selections.

 

[buffalogal]

Quote:
I eagerly await pictures. Four fingers for me is 2 & 1/2 inches; what I'm guessing would three fingers on a man, but as DH is working out of state, I am lacking a man's hand to actually measure. But you say you have large hands; how big is four and five and six fingers to you?


Quote:
You are preaching to the choir Sister. The page I posted the link to about "working girls" is one I wrote 15 years ago for an old website. (note to self; make some to to go back and fix those embarrassing typos.)

 

[centrarchid]

Quote:
We are talking a 1:12 versus 1:10 so not over typical recommendation by much. Rooster will also be test mated for fertility and isolated before his turn at bat. This is not to be a sustained (marathon) effort for a given rooster. Most folks have a rooster covering months on end.

If works as intended, hens will solicit rooster's attention. Area to be covered only 32' x 32'. He need not cover each one each day. My free range game rooster can cover and keep in fertile eggs a dozen hens. He does this despite not covering his hens anywhere near as frequently as he would if penned up in run or coop. All rooster has to do is cover hen every third or fourth day and deposit a large concentrated spermatiphore instead of a bunch of small dilute ones that are deposited with such high frequency hens loose saddle feathers.

I have had a group of NHs that most of the cocks had no trouble covering 12 hens. In fact, I intentionally kept the ratio up to help the excessive wear on the hens. Other birds I have worked with would have trouble past eight.

I usually do not breed so many hens to a rooster but know from working with other critters a male can do more if given a rest before hand and effort is of short duration. He will also be young (9 - 12 months) and get best nutrition possible before and during effort. I might even resort to using a teaser male or two get his competitive edge going. If viagra required, then he will get culled.



Chris,

Yes, centrarchid as in family of North American sunfishes. I have been getting meaning like "central kid", center kid, some kind of flower etc...

 

[vmdanielsen]

Quote:
How do you check width and flexibility of pubic bones?
Thanks, Ginny

With your hand.

It is almost something that needs to be shown, but try checking a male and then check a female you know is laying and you should notice a huge difference.... that will then give you some hands on experience.......so to speak and an idea what to look for in all females.

Walt

I an willing to give this a hands on try. Two roosters and a bunch of hens will give me some experience!! thank you