BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[gjensen]

24 weeks is excellent. I would take that in a heart beat. Combine that with preserving my existing meat qualities and that would be a real winner. I'll be paying close attention this year, regarding an acceptable fryer size. I know they make good roasters. Realistically, I would not be dissapointed with 20 weeks. I think you have stated that your NH's achieve 4 lbs dressed at 16 weeks. That is very good.

24 wks. for Hens that get to be 7lbs is good. That is also early enough to have a April hatched bird laying by the 1st of October. A March hatched bird in September. Long before the days get so short that they wait until the Spring. LOL. We need the pullets fully in lay before the days get too short in order for them to be reasonable winter layers.

You would have to outcross to something that good or better to get there in this lifetime though. It does require real choices.

Believe it or not, those in the picture were crossed with Delaware, and then repeatedly bred back to Barred Rocks.

 

[Fentress]

Interesting. They look good from what can be seen in the pictures. Thanks for letting me know that she went outside the breed to make the improvement. Delaware makes since. Get a good line, that is nice and wide with the deep breast similar to what I have now. A project beyond my present skill level, but something to think about. What percentage of Delaware did they settle on before they bred the crosses?

What if the Breed Conservancy organized an improvement project for BR. I think their current project is the Black Java, but I think our more historically important breeds should be improved to make sure they assume their rightful place, putting food on the table of small holders like myself.

 

[DesertChic]

I am sorry. That is not how I intended it. It was intended for the general audience, and not as a correction.

No apology necessary. I needed the correction. How else can I learn? And quite frankly, I've learned a lot from you and several others on here. I was in no way offended. Please...keep instructing.

 

[gjensen]

Interesting. They look good from what can be seen in the pictures. Thanks for letting me know that she went outside the breed to make the improvement. Delaware makes since. Get a good line, that is nice and wide with the deep breast similar to what I have now. A project beyond my present skill level, but something to think about. What percentage of Delaware did they settle on before they bred the crosses?

What if the Breed Conservancy organized an improvement project for BR. I think their current project is the Black Java, but I think our more historically important breeds should be improved to make sure they assume their rightful place, putting food on the table of small holders like myself.

You would have to find the best typed birds that also mature fast, and lay plenty of large eggs. Otherwise it is for nothing.

The Delaware shares many of the color genes with the BR. Theoretically, it is half BR already, so to speak. A viable option to fix and add what the BR needs.

It is not out of your reach. None of this is rocket science. You simply breed back to the best typed and colored BRs that you have, and pick the best offspring. How far you go is a personal decision. You need to keep going back enough to set the BR characteristics, and not so much that you go back to where you come from and have done it for nothing. It is a balance. You are probably safe going back three times. The 1st generation is 1/2 BR, the second 3/4, and the third 7/8. If you choose to call the Delaware 1/2 BR, then you are at 15/16.

You are going back to the BR and the best that you can come up with. You are selecting the best typed and colored offspring of many. Then you are also selecting the pullets that come into lay first, cockerels that develop the best, and set the largest eggs. Go until you are worried about losing the production characteristics, and then select them as they are BRs from there on out.

They will lay better. They will grow better. They will eat less. They will look good, and have good type if you selected well. They will never when the nationals however. You can cancel that out, but you can have a good flock of farm worthy Rocks.

All projects like this should be done on the side. You do not sell the farm for it. You run it through, and after you are successful, you commit to it. If it does not work (and it will if you stick it out), you chop their heads off and eat them. That is what we do with chicken anyways. We eat it.

 

[Beer can]

OK, sitting back (of course sipping on some beers) checking out my new chicks. There is definitely a growth curve here. White giants are just as mobile as the supposedly red Sussex, the giants some of them have their wing feathers started, the Sussex have fully feathered wings. FULLY feathered wings stretching them out! 10 days old. I didn't order them but I'm glad they sent them, great to see the difference. The one langshan they sent looks like a duck in the box! LOL! I'm still going to focus on getting a giant breed of capons, not sop, just as big as I can get, but it's nice to know that I might have a meat and egg breed that won't break the bank!!!

 

[JRNash]

Beercan,my chicks cane in from Macmurray on Tuesday. My white giantsare also feathered out in the wing department. In fact my plymouth rocks, and jumbo cornish are all about the same. My dark cornish are just a little behind

 

[JRNash]

I will be able to post pictures by Tuesday

 

[hellbender]

OK, sitting back (of course sipping on some beers) checking out my new chicks. There is definitely a growth curve here. White giants are just as mobile as the supposedly red Sussex, the giants some of them have their wing feathers started, the Sussex have fully feathered wings. FULLY feathered wings stretching them out! 10 days old. I didn't order them but I'm glad they sent them, great to see the difference. The one langshan they sent looks like a duck in the box! LOL! I'm still going to focus on getting a giant breed of capons, not sop, just as big as I can get, but it's nice to know that I might have a meat and egg breed that won't break the bank!!!

Be careful what you wish for!

EDIT: @Beer can ...you and we are on a similiar trail. I know my family is having great fun and I'm enjoying watching them scheme and plan but I don't see them saving many trips to the bank, at least not any time soon and during these trips, they are carrying full bags of cash, from my account.

They won't use the 'recipe' to feed these birds so that is a major savings that they will not realize.

One difference from what's going on here with this chicken project is something the family learned with our rabbits...try to get the most meat with the least PRACTICAL amount of bone and I think they have chosen wisely for that purpose, but no matter how much they watch my pennies and Q's, this is actually going to be an expensive project but at lease we will have some good birds to look at, to eat and who knows...they might stick with this long enough to make a buck....??? Naaahhhhh, no chance.

 

[JRNash]

 

[hellbender]

That's quite bunch...how many ?