BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[Turk Raphael]

Cackle didn't have dark cornish available from May through rest of yr.

They haven't had Dark Cornish for two seasons now...They keep them in the catalog in the event they begin providing them again...perhaps 2018. They stopped because they were having fertility issues and along with that, I understand they are bringing in better strains.

As a matter of fact, they are currently in the midst of a major overhaul...bringing in new breeds and having breed-specific experts giving them advice. That's why I'm not causing any stink about the 15 Dominique cockerels Rafael ordered for his 'project'. We will caponize 9 or 10 of the lesser birds and keep 5 or 6 as breeding prospects.

EDITED to say, a gentleman named Mark Fields has been giving technical advice to Cackle Hatchery with regard to their Dominique breed. Many folks, if they are especially interested in Dominiques or not, should be familiar with him.

Also, from what I've been hearing, and despite what the literature says, the Doms at Cackle Hatchery have been averaging about one pound more at adulthood. I got that from the horses ...mouth. Not sure if he meant before or after the improvement efforts. I know very little about showing birds but from what I have gleaned, larger birds seem to be favored in almost all LG fowl. Something to ruminate on.

After thinking about a while, I have decided to add 15 pullets to the order. No real plan in mind, just have a 'wild hare'.

 

[Beer can]

Quote:
Wow!, didn't realize that, didn't look until May, might be a good thing. Was really hoping to get some when I ordered the naked necks.
I don't think they ever have the delaware X hampshire crosses they advertise, always figured they sold out quick, now I'm thinking they just probably don't have them.

 

[Beer can]

Down to two naked cockerels, a white and my biggest red/black, culled four the other day, just shy of three pounds dressed. Wish you all told me to be careful plucking. Wish I didn't dry pluck, figured I would being I was skinning the jersey giant cockerels (weighed about the same) plucked one jersey giant/silkie cross cockerel also, blueish black skin, same age, four pounds!
Ripped the skin with the feathers off the first biggest NN......

was very careful with the next, they do have way less feathers, patches, but dang there was a lot of new feathers starting that took some time. Did up a few giants, skinned, tried to be careful on the rest of the NN, ugghh,

ripped the skin of all the rest..... Well I have one with skin to roast and see how good they are, and like someone said, NO HAIR!!!!

the giant silkie was ridiculous, could have made a pillow out of the feathers, and then the hair.....blow torch....
Going to rethink dry plucking, like the skin better, sometimes it becomes tough when scalding, maybe I'll monitor temp better next time. Have a few more giants to do, just not sure how long I want to feed them.

Plucking those NN reminded me of skinning fresh shot rabbits, skin like tissue paper, comes off in patches.

 

[Turk Raphael]

Wow!, didn't realize that, didn't look until May, might be a good thing. Was really hoping to get some when I ordered the naked necks.
I don't think they ever have the delaware X hampshire crosses they advertise, always figured they sold out quick, now I'm thinking they just probably don't have them.

I think the last time they had those were about 5 or 6 years ago.

 

[QuoVadis]

Does anyone on this thread raise auto-sexing breeds? I have posted about some of the ideas floating around in my head about them on various threads and never gotten much of a reply. I know fi you are raising for meat, some say auto-sexing is a useless trait, because by the time you butcher it's obvious what sex they are... but the thing is I sell chicks locally, and I have zero issue selling sexed female chicks for $5-6 as day olds. I also think if I truelly had a bird I could show had really good meat characteristics, I bet I could sell male chicks for $2-3 each. So I think by catering to the different purposes people have I would be able to make more money per chick and have a steadier demand.

But I am also of the opinion most so called "dual purpose" breeds are really just large egg layers, not something I would really be interested in the investing the food into the males that it would take to get them to a decent size... But one that I have not had personally but I think shows promise from doing a lot of reading is the Rainbow Dixie. It is supposed to breed true, develop early, are very meaty, and the girls are supposed to excellent and early egg layers. It seems like you might be able to get the consistent meat and egg qualities far sooner breeding from them than some of the traditional dual purpose breeds (unless you were able to find someone to get birds from who had already invested a lot of time into breeding them up). In addition most/many Dixie Rainbow cocks seem to have barring, which mean you could probably produce your own auto sexing strain within a few generations. I also thought adding some Bielefelder blood could help in introducing that trait, since they are auto sexing and beefy in their own right.

What do you guys think... I also think after you had a decent line developed if you crossed some with EEs, to produce a meatier, better winter laying, early developing, auto-sexing EE it would sell like crazy. Around here at least EEs sell like hotcakes.

 

[ocap]

Does anyone on this thread raise auto-sexing breeds? I have posted about some of the ideas floating around in my head about them on various threads and never gotten much of a reply. I know fi you are raising for meat, some say auto-sexing is a useless trait, because by the time you butcher it's obvious what sex they are... but the thing is I sell chicks locally, and I have zero issue selling sexed female chicks for $5-6 as day olds. I also think if I truelly had a bird I could show had really good meat characteristics, I bet I could sell male chicks for $2-3 each. So I think by catering to the different purposes people have I would be able to make more money per chick and have a steadier demand.

But I am also of the opinion most so called "dual purpose" breeds are really just large egg layers, not something I would really be interested in the investing the food into the males that it would take to get them to a decent size... But one that I have not had personally but I think shows promise from doing a lot of reading is the Rainbow Dixie. It is supposed to breed true, develop early, are very meaty, and the girls are supposed to excellent and early egg layers. It seems like you might be able to get the consistent meat and egg qualities far sooner breeding from them than some of the traditional dual purpose breeds (unless you were able to find someone to get birds from who had already invested a lot of time into breeding them up). In addition most/many Dixie Rainbow cocks seem to have barring, which mean you could probably produce your own auto sexing strain within a few generations. I also thought adding some Bielefelder blood could help in introducing that trait, since they are auto sexing and beefy in their own right.

What do you guys think... I also think after you had a decent line developed if you crossed some with EEs, to produce a meatier, better winter laying, early developing, auto-sexing EE it would sell like crazy. Around here at least EEs sell like hotcakes.

"ozexpat" has had several postings on a different thread about how to auto-sex, which breeds to cross. He was doing it for egg layers, not meat.

 

[GaryDean26]

What do you guys think... I also think after you had a decent line developed if you crossed some with EEs, to produce a meatier, better winter laying, early developing, auto-sexing EE it would sell like crazy. Around here at least EEs sell like hotcakes.

The Auto-sexing Blue Egger is called a Cream Legbar. I have been working with them since 2011. I have have done some crosses. While a cross is NOT auto sexing but definition (Auto-sexing means that you have a pure breed that creates 100% accurately sexed chicks generation after generation after generations), I have breed some crosses that were sex-linked. The crosses are typically better for egg and meat production that the pure breeds are. This year we did Cream Legbar x Breda Gueldre and Cream Legbar x Marans. The Marans cross grow a lot better producing a meatier bird. They lay an olive egg. The Breda Gueldre crosses are eye candy. They are a stunning bird but are a lighter weight layer. I am breeding them to be a blue plumaged bird with blue legs, that lays blue eggs. I was hoping for some with blue ear lobes because I have seen that in botht eh Breda Gueldr line and the Cream Legbar line but everyone came out with white lobes. Better luck next year for the all blue blue egg layer.

 

[Beer can]

@QuoVadis you might find these links interesting;

https://greenfirefarms.com/blog/the-case-for-inefficiency.html

https://greenfirefarms.com/auto-sexing-chicken-breeds.html

 

[CanadianBuckeye]

What do you guys think... I also think after you had a decent line developed if you crossed some with EEs, to produce a meatier, better winter laying, early developing, auto-sexing EE it would sell like crazy. Around here at least EEs sell like hotcakes.

Sounds like a plan! I wonder if it would be useful to use a number of EE hens in this project, as I believe one of the traits people like about the Easter eggers is the wide variety of egg colours.


Don't forget about Malines! They are barred too.

 

[lcertuche]

I used to have game chickens and they laid all winter in the summer they would stop because they would get broody. They were to lightweight for meat though and their eggs on the small side. They kept us and all our neighbors in eggs all winter.