Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[Robert Blosl]

These a

I was out today running the streets with my wife and got four messages asking for pictures of Heritage breeds of poultry. They are as follows:

Leghorn Females

Silver Penciled Rock male and female

Columbian Plymouth Rock Large Fowl

The middle bird is a large fowl the top and bottom pictures are bantams.

I have to run and do my chores outside and will comment latter on these birds.

They all represent the breeds very well for type and color. This is what hard working line breeding breeders do to reach a goal that they have in their heads. Some people call them Master Breeders I call them angles from Chicken Heaven trying to preserve the old breeds that we still have left in this country. Vintage, Heritage or Heirloom Poultry makes no difference to me. They look great and hope you enjoy looking at them. Want more pictures send me a message. bob

 

[Chris09]

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I have to say you do try not to say/ wright that word often, I cant believe that you wrought it myself...

Chris

 

[Chris09]

Bob,
Those have to be the best looking Columbian Plymouth Rock Bantams I have seen yet.. There top notch.

Chris

 

[fowlman01]

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I would believe the breeder who supplied your birds. I have line bred. (Father to daughter/mother to son) for over 40 years with very good success. I would say that most old time breeders use this method. The original cock and hens could be brother and sister, which is not what I would want to use. Sometimes you have to, but it is not the best option. The picture of the Orp in my avatar was the result of many years of line breeding. You can go back and forth between the father, daughter and mother son lines for vigor if needed. It works for me and I have had some successes.

I would keep the Cecil Moore line pure if you can. He is one of the very best Orp breeders alive today.

Walt Leonard

I like your Buff. My favorite Buff Orpington line is from a guy (Josh Yarnell) southwest of Bloomington IN who has his Buffs from his granny. I found out about htem from the guy who gave me my first Buffs. My first Buffs I got from Larry who bought them as chicks from Doug. Josh's granny had Buffs since the 70's. Very unique with big chests. sorta gangly as they grow. I was the last to a six $6 Buff cockerel Craigslist sale. And these are my first attempt to breeding Buff Orpingtons. I can't count them as heritage, since I crossed these lines. But, Josh said his granny would only on occasion get a new Buff at a show through the years. So, Buffs are really close to my heart. I have some nice Buffs from very reputable breeders that I focused on breeding up some numbers this past breeding season. But, I really wished I did more with my Yarnell granny/Akers line. Now as the thirteen I had kept and culled down to just 9 (5 being cockerels)are all I have to work with plus thei hens they came from which is only two. That is what I culled down to. And this spring I definitely am giving them much higher credit.
Now I have been told to cull down to my broadest chest and biggest heads first. I went from 9 cockerels to 5. I forwarded pics to friends and they say take them all to the Lebanon IN Show on Oct 16th and get a judge's opinion for both, the one who shows the best, and the one in which to use for breeding. It was emphasized to me, that the better bird all around MAY not be the one to breed better Buffs. So, I am showing 5 Buff cockerels who will be barely 7 months old. And I know they have no chance on beating a 10 or 11 month ole. And that is fine. I am there paying with a smile $3 a bird for the judge to thoroughly give me an evaluation. Amd I will always show for this reason only. So, get ready to see alot of younger Orpingtons here in Indiana shows. And bare with me as I raise up my different lines of Buffs lolol

Oh one more idea I read and was told is a good idea. Is to take a bunch of pics of your original parent/grandparent stock to keep as a guide to what to look for as you raise newer generations. I think that is a good idea too. I have alot of pics from my original lines of Orpingtons.

The bird in my avatar is one of many I raised from the old Ralph Brazelton line. I liked that line because they didn't have all the fluff on the the thighs and legs that make them look like Cochins with no feathers on their feet. Orps are really nice birds. I'm glad to see you mention big heads. That is something a lot of longtime breeders forget about. I like your buff in the avatar. Taking pics from the start is a very good idea. Overall it sounds as if you have a very good plan.

Walt

 

[fowlman01]

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You don't see them like that much these days. Nice birds!

Walt

 

[Yard full o' rocks]

Bob

Are the Columbian Rocks LF or bantam......??? If LF, do you have contact info?? You know mine need help

 

[Robert Blosl]

Chris 09 are you talking about the brown chicken the New Hampshire Reds? They killed the Rhode Island Red breed in the 1950s. However the breeder that promoted them and sold thousands from his hatchery was one of my best mentors on breeding R I Reds for color. Kenneth Bowles was his name from New York State. He shared four hours of phone calls with me over twenty years ago. That man had seen and judged the old time breeds that we are talking about on this thread. He was part of a eleat club back in those days called the New York Boys. He showed and new the masters at Madison Square Garden and Boston Shows. bob
God Bless the New Hampshire breed. They are now very rare.

 

[gootziecat]

The bird in my avatar is one of many I raised from the old Ralph Brazelton line. I liked that line because they didn't have all the fluff on the the thighs and legs that make them look like Cochins with no feathers on their feet. Orps are really nice birds. I'm glad to see you mention big heads. That is something a lot of longtime breeders forget about. I like your buff in the avatar. Taking pics from the start is a very good idea. Overall it sounds as if you have a very good plan.

Walt

I have been a lurker enjoying the thread, but just had to comment about this remark. Thank you for saying what I have thought about the Orp breed for some time. I have been reluctant to get Orps because the "old fashioned" ones don't seem to be acceptable anymore, and seemingly hard to find. If I wanted a Cochin, I'd get one.

Sande​

 

[tnchickenut]

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Count me in! Two of my loves! Creating web-things and Dels! I'm in!

 

[Chris09]

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You don't see them like that much these days. Nice birds!

Walt

No you don't see birds like that to much any more.
You might see one out of a hundred that could come close, and one out of a thousand that are as good...

Chris