Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[Fred's Hens]

It's a one time deal.

 

[3riverschick]

Ok, so basically,
More cushion, shorter back, and broodiness resulting in less eggs go together.
Less cushion, longer back, less broodiness resulting in more eggs go together.

My questions are,
If you see one indicator of this group of characteristics in your birds, should you presume the other 2 are also there?
How do you break the influence of the three and with which one is the best place to start?
Is an outcross necessary and, if so, which sex and which compensator of the three characteristics should you look to obtain in the outcross bird you are bringing in?
I am presuming here it is easier to correct these three challenges by erasing one at a time?
Thanks

,
Karen

 

[Fentress]

Thanks.

 

[Pathfinders]

It's a one time deal.

Sex-links, you mean?

 

[Pathfinders]

Ok, so basically,
More cushion, shorter back, and broodiness resulting in less eggs go together.
Less cushion, longer back, less broodiness resulting in more eggs go together.

My questions are,
If you see one indicator of this group of characteristics in your birds, should you presume the other 2 are also there?
How do you break the influence of the three and with which one is the best place to start?
Is an outcross necessary and, if so, which sex and which compensator of the three characteristics should you look to obtain in the outcross bird you are bringing in?
I am presuming here it is easier to correct these three challenges by erasing one at a time?
Thanks

,
Karen

Not to throw a monkey wrench into this, but I am not seeing a correlation between length of backs and cushions, fwiw.

 

[3riverschick]

Had an interesting phone call just now from someone who has been making sex-links with Delawares and Buckeyes. Now I wonder, if one bred the offspring together, would they still be able to produce sex-links? It would be wonderful to have a pea combed bird that produced sex-link chicks. But I know nothing about how sex-links work, so thought I'd ask you experts. Seems like a good cross to me!

As I understand it, breeding F1 sex-links together produces get which don't breed true for sex-linking. However, I have never heard of this cross before.
Hum, might be useful to study the genome equations?
here's a BYC thread : https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/478515/buckeye-roo-over-delaware-hens-meat-type-cross-project
Best,
Karen

 

[3riverschick]

Not to throw a monkey wrench into this, but I am not seeing a correlation between length of backs and cushions, fwiw.

I gathered the correlation from the several responses to my question about how to get rid of cushions on females.
----------------
Yard Full O' Rocks wrote:
Karen
I'm not sure of the "genetic" answer to this, but in my Rocks, it seems I fight cushions more so when length of back is too short. I have several this year with great tails, good color, nice front ends but one heck of a cushion.....in each case, the backs are shorter than I like. I know that in mine, it is a direct affect of the brahma influence that was crossed in some years back. The Asiatic influence (cochin or brahma) is tough to fight
----------------------
thedragonlady wrote:
Same thing in Orps. Cushions, and short backs go together. Then the egg laying is reduced with short backs, and broodiness increased
------------------------
AletaG wrote:
That is SO interesting. And counter-intuitive! It seems like more eggs more broodiness would make logical sense... but instead it's the opposite? Or is it the broodiness that decreases the total amount of egg laying over time, but while laying, lay on a similar schedule to the non-broody longer backed hen? Hmm.
-------------------------
ronotti responded to AletaG, saying:
It is probably because of the foundation breed that the cushion comes from. It is probably not a good layer, like Cochin. Breeding towards the look of one of the foundation breeds will bring out the characteristics of that breed
-----------------------------
thedragonlady responded to AletaG, saying:
Hens are programmed by heredity to lay a certain number of eggs in a clutch. Leghorns have had broodiness practically bred out of them.. Orps and Rocks, who show short backs, and lots of cushion have usually had Cochin infused into the line somewhere . Cochins are not known for extended laying, but are very good broodies. The closer Rocks and Orps come to Cochin type, the less they lay.
------------------------------
Best,
Karen

 

[catdaddyfro]

Sex-links, you mean?

You are treading close to the sands of blasphemy here LOL I found out on here(the H thread) folk don't like the idea of one crossing these "h types' up for experimental reasons even if they're yours and you pay for the feed and do all the work, LOL

No you can't expect the outcomes to be the same as the parent stocks when crossing two sexlinks back onto each n other, you'll have just a mixed up jumble of genes flying every whichaway. To make more you have to keep going back to the original cross that creates the sexlink. In your case the Buckeye has to be the sire over the Delaware female (gold over silver= sexable at hatch by down color)

Jeff

PS I have some BSLs from Horstman Reds over Good Shepard BRs huge and awesome and no to the naysayers I don't figure my little experiment is going to put the slightest dent into the proud heritage world as we know it now to be, LOL

 

[Fred's Hens]

Not to throw a monkey wrench into this, but I am not seeing a correlation between length of backs and cushions, fwiw.

As a Rock breeder, the cushion shows me the composite nature of the bird and particularly the Cochin genes. It's always there, right below the surface and if left unchecked, it pops back out. Laura, I'm not 100% up to snuff as to the composite of the Buckeye that Miss Nettie put together, but I'm guessing there is something that wants to come out and overly express. I'm sure there is something you all have to keep a keen out for.

 

[MagicChicken]

Quote:

Me either. My longest-backed pullets have huge cushions. (As do most of my shorter-backed pullets.) Frustrating.