Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[saladin]

Walt is right: feather quality if vitally important.

Different breeds show different feather type; plus, a bird in good feather is a sign of robust and rude health.

Last thing I want to see on my birds is a fluffy butt!!! lol.

 

[centrarchid]

Quote:
I am using family selection with sexes evaluated based on different characteristics. Multiple roosters and multiple groups of related hens. Hen performance based first on SOP at POL then on estimate of eggs thru 2 years of age. Cockerol performance based on weight gain through 16 weeks with survivors based on SOP about 1 month after in full adult plumage. Hens used as breeders at 2 years of age and roosters at 1 year.


Edit: I work with only one breed (American dominique) where selection and record keeping is involved. They require more than 75% of my resources. Great effort is taken to track each individuals genealogy along maternal and paternal lines. Positive ID using wing tags. No tag means no value as breeder. After this year each breeding unit will be backed up (similar number of full siblings in another physically separated coop).

 

[Gallusfarm]

Quote:
Yes, Joel Gilman- Glen allen, VA raises several heritage breeds. His Partridge Rocks:

He also has nice New Hampshires: This is the only pic I have of them.

 

[lildinkem]

Quote:
I am using family selection with sexes evaluated based on different characteristics. Multiple roosters and multiple groups of related hens. Hen performance based first on SOP at POL then on estimate of eggs thru 2 years of age. Cockerol performance based on weight gain through 16 weeks with survivors based on SOP about 1 month after in full adult plumage. Hens used as breeders at 2 years of age and roosters at 1 year.

I only focus on one breed and all the standard varieties and use many small mobile 8' x 8' pens for breeding.
I noticed that when breeding two separate lines of Black Orpingtons together it had produced some extremely good layers and still retain decent exhibition traits. I had one hen in with this cock this past summer and she laid on avg 8 days out of 10. When we hit 100 degrees, it did not slow her down. I am not a judge. I do like the crossing of the lines for vigor and the uniqueness of the blood while staying in one family. And now will go back with their offspring back to my original hens. I hope to better the type and gain size. Here is a couple of pics of those I intend to use. These are the same birds I used in last year's breeding program, IF it Ain't broke don't fix it philosophy for one more year. I liked what my 3 cock's produced this past season.
This past season's offspring will be breed to each other for various traits I like. I have still many to wait and see before I cull. I have a bad habit of waiting to at least 8 to 10 months old before I cull unless I see a major defect.
I really like having multiple pens. Just incase of a predator attack. i do not get wiped out. This past fall I got hit hard by one Racoon. He killed 11 of my Black juvie grow outs before I caught up to him.
Here was last season's #2 cock I am using in small 8 foot by 8 foot pens with 2 to 3 hens. I like to know who is producing what so smaller number of hens helps.

This is the #1 cock in my best pen

I have 4 or 5 Black cockerels growing out. I will wait and see with this 6 month old IF I use him. So far i like him.

Some of the better hens

Here was the original cock I was given and is the dad to the two cocks.

 

[heritagehabitatfarms]

Quote:
I am using family selection with sexes evaluated based on different characteristics. Multiple roosters and multiple groups of related hens. Hen performance based first on SOP at POL then on estimate of eggs thru 2 years of age. Cockerol performance based on weight gain through 16 weeks with survivors based on SOP about 1 month after in full adult plumage. Hens used as breeders at 2 years of age and roosters at 1 year.

I only focus on one breed and all the standard varieties and use many small mobile 8' x 8' pens for breeding.
I noticed that when breeding two separate lines of Black Orpingtons together it had produced some extremely good layers and still retain decent exhibition traits. I had one hen in with this cock this past summer and she laid on avg 8 days out of 10. When we hit 100 degrees, it did not slow her down. I am not a judge. I do like the crossing of the lines for vigor and the uniqueness of the blood while staying in one family. And now will go back with their offspring back to my original hens. I hope to better the type and gain size. Here is a couple of pics of those I intend to use. These are the same birds I used in last year's breeding program, IF it Ain't broke don't fix it philosophy for one more year. I liked what my 3 cock's produced this past season.
This past season's offspring will be breed to each other for various traits I like. I have still many to wait and see before I cull. I have a bad habit of waiting to at least 8 to 10 months old before I cull unless I see a major defect.
I really like having multiple pens. Just incase of a predator attack. i do not get wiped out. This past fall I got hit hard by one Racoon. He killed 11 of my Black juvie grow outs before I caught up to him.
Here was last season's #2 cock I am using in small 8 foot by 8 foot pens with 2 to 3 hens. I like to know who is producing what so smaller number of hens helps.
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx94/lildinkem/000_9493.jpg?t=1293585137
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx94/lildinkem/000_9496.jpg?t=1293585137
This is the #1 cock in my best pen
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx94/lildinkem/000_9516.jpg?t=1293585610
I have 4 or 5 Black cockerels growing out. I will wait and see with this 6 month old IF I use him. So far i like him.
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx94/lildinkem/000_9471.jpg?t=1293585137
Some of the better hens
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx94/lildinkem/000_9512.jpg?t=1293585610
Here was the original cock I was given and is the dad to the two cocks.
http://pic50.picturetrail.com/VOL427/739981/21043320/372202939.jpg

great looking birds

mine look a lot like them lol... where did yours come from???

mine are from superior farms...

 

[lildinkem]

Quote:
I only focus on one breed and all the standard varieties and use many small mobile 8' x 8' pens for breeding.
I noticed that when breeding two separate lines of Black Orpingtons together it had produced some extremely good layers and still retain decent exhibition traits. I had one hen in with this cock this past summer and she laid on avg 8 days out of 10. When we hit 100 degrees, it did not slow her down. I am not a judge. I do like the crossing of the lines for vigor and the uniqueness of the blood while staying in one family. And now will go back with their offspring back to my original hens. I hope to better the type and gain size. Here is a couple of pics of those I intend to use. These are the same birds I used in last year's breeding program, IF it Ain't broke don't fix it philosophy for one more year. I liked what my 3 cock's produced this past season.
This past season's offspring will be breed to each other for various traits I like. I have still many to wait and see before I cull. I have a bad habit of waiting to at least 8 to 10 months old before I cull unless I see a major defect.
I really like having multiple pens. Just incase of a predator attack. i do not get wiped out. This past fall I got hit hard by one Racoon. He killed 11 of my Black juvie grow outs before I caught up to him.
Here was last season's #2 cock I am using in small 8 foot by 8 foot pens with 2 to 3 hens. I like to know who is producing what so smaller number of hens helps.
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx94/lildinkem/000_9493.jpg?t=1293585137
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx94/lildinkem/000_9496.jpg?t=1293585137
This is the #1 cock in my best pen
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx94/lildinkem/000_9516.jpg?t=1293585610
I have 4 or 5 Black cockerels growing out. I will wait and see with this 6 month old IF I use him. So far i like him.
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx94/lildinkem/000_9471.jpg?t=1293585137
Some of the better hens
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx94/lildinkem/000_9512.jpg?t=1293585610
Here was the original cock I was given and is the dad to the two cocks.
http://pic50.picturetrail.com/VOL427/739981/21043320/372202939.jpg

great looking birds

mine look a lot like them lol... where did yours come from???

mine are from superior farms...

I learned from a BYCer to go to the President of the United Orpington Club. He refered me to a lady who shows alot. IF interested PM me and I can tell you the contact info for her. The hen I used for the two cock's is from Russ Milkey.
Here is a pic of her today. Her daddy is a big boy that Russ Milkey bought from a Stringmen here at the fair 4 years ago. Her mom won Reserve English here in the Central Indiana poultry Show in Lebanon IN back in Oct. She is very nice.
Here is the mother of my cocks. Bought as a chick for $4.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Congratulations, Bob! This is an amazing thread. I just discovered it via another thread by Jim Hall

. After reading many pages I realized that there was no way I was going to get through 211 pages in one sitting; so, I skipped to the end (and saw some killer photos of dark cornish on range along the way).

I don't have much to add per se, but I have to say that, for myself, I prefer the idea of one breed done well. I found that multiple breeds are difficult to manage, especially if one has more than chickens. If one's homestead has one chicken, one turkey, one goose, one duck, that's four breeds already and one has product diversification.

As far as our Dorkings go, I have a bunch of eggs in the incubator for a bit of a pre-hatch in order to get a look into some breeding tendencies. We're still not up to Standard snuff, but that's to be expected considering the extreme rarity of White Dorkings. I am, though, confident that this year is going to bring some strong strides.
,
Having admitted that we have eggs in the incubator, I should say that one of the big projects this year is to use broody hens for the majority of the hatchlings we intend to raise; given that we hatch quite a few, it's going to be a lot of work, but I'm looking forward to the challenge---and the MUCH reduced electric bills. A dozen or so heat lamps going none stop from Feb-Jun is enough to choke a fair bit of profit out of an operation.

So, to keep our breeders in lay, we have a broody sub-flock of cull hens running around with a retired cock-bird. I've already put the dummy eggs in the nestboxes and am throwing barley. Who knows how long it will take, and I've got to convince a fair number of them to go down by early Feb. if this crazy plan is going to work.

I'd love to hear some pointers from a heritage breeder who's accumstomed to working with broodies on a fairly large scale.

Cheers!

 

[HallFamilyFarm]

Quote:
Welcome Yellow House Farm!

We installed a new and expensive timer for lights.....timer is defective and goes back to Walmart! We need eggs!!!!!!

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Oh, yes, those pesky timers! I have such a tough time remembering to regulate them regularly with regards to the ascending and descending day times.

I've yet to start lights for this season, and am considering not putting them up. We're having a fairly strong rate of lay without them. We'll see.

 

[Robert Blosl]

Quote:
I got the timer, but I got to fix my wires going from my pump house to my breeding pen room. We wont turn the lights on the bantams till about the end of January and take them off the scratch and egg layer mixer. Then My goal is eggs poping out so the first hatch starts on March lst. and ends on April 20th. Any eggs befor or after that date will be shared with others if they want the breeds. In large fowl the lights and the good protein is on and eggs are in the inucbator. Got to get them out early so they will be standard size which is one pound over standard weight.

For you who want to see a pretty web site go to Yellow House which I have below. Yellow House is trying to spread the word about standard breed poultry. There youth programs in their region are at a dead end and that is not good for the future of the hobby. There are doing a good job to spread the word about standard breed fowl and get those folks into the better quality birds if they want them. I was lucky I was surrounded by old timers who breed chickens in the 1920 to 40s as a youth. I got my eyes off those other chickens and got my eyes on standard breed fowl. Back then it was Large Fowl all the way. I dont think I ever saw a bantams win Champion of the Show untill I left home then the large fowl fell backwards and bantams took over.

http://www.yellowhousefarmnh.com/

I started my list of rare breeds that you have asked me about. I am putting togeather a list in order of class American, English, Game ect. I am going to list the breed then the color of the breed with a number such as 1. over 200 alive 2. only 100 alive 3. very rare maybe less than 50 alive and then the ones that I dont know about that may be gone. I plan to put togeather a list of names and email address of these breeders who have these rare birds. I dont have time to work with snale mail . I have located some pretty rare breeds for some of ladies who have asked me for these rare breeds.

In order for a breeder to be on my list their birds must score in my minds eye at least 90 points using the old fashion scoring system to be on the list. In some breeds like Partridge Plymouth Rocks I only know of three breeders. In Barred Plymouth Rocks I know about six breeders. If they only have four or five birds and just getting started we will put them on the watch list. They may have some breeders left after they pick their best birds such as our Canada line of Columbian Plymouth Rocks. Then next year there should be about two or three others with this strain.

If a breed is not on my list this is not to hurt your feelings if you breed this type of fow its just I have not had a request for that breed yetl. I am just a person who sends folks to the best people I can find that I know about or my sources know about. Some folks dont want these birds to show just as pets if so I have a few hatcheries that have good birds that meet my view as a good bird or strain they can get 25 chicks from them. I also have folks who want one a day egg layers and I have the places for them to contact. Should be fun.

A year from today we should have at least 50 to 75 new standard breeds in the homes of members of this site. If that happens I will be very happy.

Keep the tread going. We will help you find what you want to have in your back yard what ever the breed is. Even Firzzles. bob