Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[Yellow House Farm]

YH, those are good looking birds.

At first I regretted asking the question, but maybe it was not a bad question to ask.

I still think the description is not clear like it is with the New Hampshires, Reds, Orpingtons, Old English Games, and others. I am gathering where the description is not specific the wings should follow the slope of the back.

It certainly wasn't a bad question at all. It got my head where it needed to be, and it's given me something fresh for which to scanning the birds.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Guess I need to start by joining the APA, is it worth the money to buy the SOP? It kinda seems like it is out dated by the time it is printed. I think it's a little early to join breed clubs. Don't know much about the local club, I Don't intend to show for now, doesn't mean I cant have nice Chickens bred to SOP.

It's worth every cent. You will spend untold hours in it, studying it over and over again.

 

[Fred's Hens]

It's worth every cent. You will spend untold hours in it, studying it over and over again.

Agreed.

 

[gjensen]

It certainly wasn't a bad question at all. It got my head where it needed to be, and it's given me something fresh for which to scanning the birds.

Well then, I will send you some pictures of my Catalana growers. There will be plenty of things to point out or ask about. Goodness, what a project.

I really like the darn birds though. I was handling the two cocks off of the roost tonight, and they are heavier than they appear. I am guessing that they are at 1 yr. These birds are very calm in the hand. Easier to handle than my NHs, and they are pretty easy to handle.

I want to see some pictures of your Anconas. That is a breed that interests me.

 

[cluck-cluck]

Well, I just had a great day of chicken assessing with my buddy Brian Knox. We spent the late morning going over some LF Dominique cockerels. That was good. It's always awesome to go over a large display of birds to find the stars. It interesting to see the beginning and then to look at those retained in the end because of the increased uniformity that is visible in those retained on account of consistent retention criteria.

Then we went over some 50 Silver Laced Wyandotte cockerels--what a confounding pattern! There's just so much to try to take in. It does necessarily seem so on paper, although even on paper they're complicated, but when you're holding them in hand and one sees the level of variability and how many sections their are to a cockerels pattern and how hard it is to get a cockerel that has all of the sections in order on top of a strong type! Mammamia! That was something!

I seriously couldn't imagine! I would think that the pattern would so easily distract me that I'd forget to look at the type! I didn't intend to breed a solid colored bird for that reason, but now that I've chosen my bird, I'm so glad it's solid black. Makes life so much easier! Now I just have to fixate on type, which will be plenty hard as it is, LOL. (of course, I know black has it's issues as well, but it shouldn't blind me so easily to type, LOL) I have a really hard time evaluating what I have as it is!

 

[bnjrob]

Guess I need to start by joining the APA, is it worth the money to buy the SOP? It kinda seems like it is out dated by the time it is printed. I think it's a little early to join breed clubs. Don't know much about the local club, I Don't intend to show for now, doesn't mean I cant have nice Chickens bred to SOP.

Yes it is worth it to get the SOP. There really isn't a lot of changes from each edition. The breed we have has had a few changes since the 1800s, but nothing really recent, and I imagine it is kinda the same way with other breeds as well.

I keep the SOP on the desk right next to the computer, that way it is there whenever I am reviewing photos of our chickens to see how they measure up and can see where I need to be. Some breed clubs have been given permission to put up the breed's SOP on their websites, but there is a lot more in the SOP book that is very helpful besides the specific SOP for a particular breed.

If you have a breed that you are working with, I don't think it is too soon to join a breed specific organization. The one that I belong to has social media and email list serv that we can chat with each other on, ask questions of each other and help each other flesh out ideas and such.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

I seriously couldn't imagine! I would think that the pattern would so easily distract me that I'd forget to look at the type! I didn't intend to breed a solid colored bird for that reason, but now that I've chosen my bird, I'm so glad it's solid black. Makes life so much easier! Now I just have to fixate on type, which will be plenty hard as it is, LOL. (of course, I know black has it's issues as well, but it shouldn't blind me so easily to type, LOL) I have a really hard time evaluating what I have as it is!

Cluck, are you considering tackling Crevecoeurs?


PS: And are you pretty hard-core?

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Well then, I will send you some pictures of my Catalana growers. There will be plenty of things to point out or ask about. Goodness, what a project.

I really like the darn birds though. I was handling the two cocks off of the roost tonight, and they are heavier than they appear. I am guessing that they are at 1 yr. These birds are very calm in the hand. Easier to handle than my NHs, and they are pretty easy to handle.

I want to see some pictures of your Anconas. That is a breed that interests me.

Well then, I will send you some pictures of my Catalana growers. There will be plenty of things to point out or ask about. Goodness, what a project.

I really like the darn birds though. I was handling the two cocks off of the roost tonight, and they are heavier than they appear. I am guessing that they are at 1 yr. These birds are very calm in the hand. Easier to handle than my NHs, and they are pretty easy to handle.

I want to see some pictures of your Anconas. That is a breed that interests me.

I"d love to check out your Catalanas. I'm glad you have them, they're so rare. There is something awesome about working with a rare breed; when progress is had, it feels great. It's such an exercise in commitment, though. I think, too, that it really sets the SOP up to be if maximum importance because it remains the lighthouse through a rather drawn out Hail Mary pass.

Have you weighed your birds? Our Anconas are spot on weight wise. It's nice to pick them up and feel substance. Although they are perhaps not the choice for a centerpiece roaster, still there's plenty to eat there.

I don't have any current photos of our Anconas. I'll try to get some photos up of growing birds.

Cheers!

 

[Pathfinders]

You need to look up color feeding of canaries.Paprika does contain canthaxathin, common in red peppers. Since birds have no capsaisin ( pepper) receptor,so they will eat even the hottest. Parrots eat the seeds from the hottest Scotch Bonnet peppers, and they then wonder why Mom doesn't want a kiss !

Many canaries sold as red , and they are very red when they have been color fed , will fade to buff when color feeding is stopped.

It's worth a try.

I will do, thanks for the tip!

 

[Robert Blosl]

What is the difference between a Back Yard Chicken Person or a Person who says they are a Homesteader who wants to have chickens? Are most of them Feed Store Chicken People?
Do they make good Preservationists in Rare Breeds. Just a thought I got from a conservation on the phone with a old time chicken guy.

In regards to Sun Burn Issue Ken Bowles told me to watch out for this with my Rhode Island Reds. I really never had a problem as I had Four fifty year old Pecan Trees for shade for my birds and the ones that did not have shade stayed in a covered pen and I would let them out a hour before dark so they would not get direct sun in the summer.

My white Rocks never turned yellow in the quills. I always selected half the breeders with the sutty black down color as the barred rocks chicks have. This is what Harry Halbach called the stay white gene.

In regards to the Standard of Perfection I use a 1962 issues I had since a kid. I gave my first color issue to a friend which was a good one.

I like the old Schilling black and white pictures the words are the same for me in the breeds. The most important section of the standard is the first 80 pages. Most people don't read this stuff and they don't pay any attention to good Standard Breed FEATHER QUALITY. Most people who breed Rocks like big fluffy birds. That's why my strain looks little to them. Yet mine weigh one to one and half pound over standard weight and lay like crazy. If you push good feather quality you get maximum egg production.