Out-crossing to Brahmas!? Hmmm..... This is one heck of a can of worms for me as a farmer. If one is just trying for a bird that looks like something, then all is well. But what makes a Plymouth Rock a Plymouth Rock is to a large part that it is not a Brahma--not only on the outside but, most importantly, on the inside. The differnce in productivity potential between a Brahma and Rock is outstanding. To bring Brahma into a line of Rocks is to flush it. If one keeps fowl as so much statuary out in the garden, this is fine, but it is no longer a Rock, for a Rock can lay such that a beginning homesteader can have faith in its productivity as one of the best dual purpose breeds for laying. Both the meat qualities and the laying qualities of the two breeds are notably divergent.
As a farmer first, fancier second, I have often been disappointed in the birds I see at shows. For example, one finds big, beautiful Australorps that, through conversation and scratching the surface, are found to be the progeny of Australorps relatively recently out-crossed to Black Orpingtons because fluff and size are the ruling fads. As a farmer, all I hear is that these birds are useless, for the Australorp and the RIR are supposed to be the top laying brown egg fowl internationally. Orpington laying capacity cannot compare to that of the Australorp, and out-crossing to black Orpingtons, especially non-production bred BO, is going to axe the farming worth of any so called "Australorps." It doesn't matter how pretty they are or how much they match the SOP on a superficial level.
It is this kind of notion that fuels the current poultry industry to say that our fowl are nothing but a flower garden. Last night I was wandering about some threads in the search for photos. I came across frizzled naked necks. I just hung my head. The farmer in me saw nothing but a colossal waste of time and space. This is what Don Schrider means when he says that we are not chicken breeders; we're feather breeders. It always saddens me to hear talk of trying to create new colors. I can't think of a single breed in the Standard that isn't in a bad way. There aren't enough breeders to maintain all of the varieties currently recognized. Indeed, one of the greatest problems for certain breeds may be that they are approved in too many varieties, such that breeders' efforts are too spread out in too many directions.
Much of the our chatting on this thread of late has been talking about hatching in number. We've been hearing from those who can hatch hundreds and from those who can hatch only dozens. Now if that's dozens or hundreds of one breed--WOW! However, if that number is divided between four different breeds or varieties plus an experimental lavendar such and such, well, what then is that really? A genetic puddle here and a puddle there, but this is no gene pool. Neither do I intend to offend, but honesty is only such. And we can all scream that our meatball is a meatloaf, but if it isn't then it isn't. What kind of poultry judge is going to tell a breeder to outcross a Plymouth Rock to a Brahma just to take the fast track to a superficial color point? Does he or she have no idea that this is going to undrmine the productivity of the strain completely? Is is naught but innocent ignorance? Moreover, we're not even talking about farm fowl Brahmas. Most of the "SOP" Brahmas I've seen mature so very slowly as to make them absolutely worthless to the homesteader or farmer. They're like a walking portrait of a now extinct breed that once was among the most important farming fowls of our country, but, though they still breathe, they are empty.
Yard Full of Rocks, I bet your birds are awesome! Following the different conversations on them, it sounds like there have been some interesting steps taken to safeguard genetic diversity. Are there two strains? One from Canada, one not? Or perhaps two offshoots of the same strain whose reuniting provide a strong genetic base? With some good farm breeding as presented by the ALBC you could end up with some top Rocks. They could be productive as to honor the name of Plymouth Rock and beautiful as to inspire others to strive for perfection. What would they possibly be out-crossed to a big fluffy mess that lays 50 undersized eggs a year and taking 2 years to flesh out?
