BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[hellbender]

Hi guys! A quick update on our San Francisco Super Breed project- and thanks for all your suggestions. (We wanted to create a breed that is super quiet, super friendly, good layers, cold hardy and rather compact).

Here's what we decided to go with in the end:
Faverolles (bantam)
Bielefelder
Olandsk

We'll be crossing these three breeds over several generations to benefit from hybrid vigor in addition to each breed's advantages. Really excited to see what comes out!

Good Luck!

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Hi guys! A quick update on our San Francisco Super Breed project- and thanks for all your suggestions. (We wanted to create a breed that is super quiet, super friendly, good layers, cold hardy and rather compact).

Here's what we decided to go with in the end:
Faverolles (bantam)
Bielefelder
Olandsk

We'll be crossing these three breeds over several generations to benefit from hybrid vigor in addition to each breed's advantages. Really excited to see what comes out!

Indeed, good luck! And please keep us posted! I personally find it very useful and instructive to read about how folks who are breeding with a particular purpose in mind (esp. for production, like yours) assess their results from generation to generation and make their decisions going forward. It's really useful to learn from personal experience (which I'm certainly doing), but it's also even more efficient to learn even more from other people's experience!

- Ant Farm

 

[DesertChic]

Oh!!' How do you get them to eat kale? I can't get them to touch it! Stalks or leaves?

Really? Mine go crazy when they see the stuff. Swiss Chard is a favorite too. They definitely prefer the leaves, but they'll eat the stalks from the kale too.

 

[NOEL LUM]

Has anyone tried the new breed called madisons or rainbows? they are supposed to be supper productive and fast growers.

 

[NanaKat]

 

Apparently I'm being too generous in doling out "ovations", so instead I just do this:    

[COLOR=B22222]I ran out too!   [/COLOR]

Gee, I didn't know there was a limit!

 

[NanaKat]

 
Today is freezer camp day, man have I been spoiled by the rabbits.  Working on my last boy (roolet) for today.

Lucky you...  We still have several birds to dress and haven't even begun with the rabbits.  We've still got a week or so before things get critical but I don't like to cut it this close.  Calling in help for the weekend to try and get everything cleaned up.

Now that the hominy and chow chow are canned, I can do the last freezer camp!
There are about 20 to do. Some are roasters to be plucked and the rest I'm going to can this year instead of freeze.
Also have 20 quail to do.
I've been enjoying the conversation on protein...have been looking at tweaking the diet for the breed pens in the spring.

 

[varidgerunner]

Has anyone tried the new breed called madisons or rainbows? they are supposed to be supper productive and fast growers.

Best I can tell, a hatchery had some birds get loose and mix together, so they came up with a name and some marketing. So, in essence, yes, a lot of people have tried crossed up mutt chickens, and yes, they often are faster growing and hardier egg layers than their parent stock.

 

[DesertChic]

So....do you guys typically process a bunch of your chickens before winter? I honestly hadn't really thought about doing that...maybe because we don't really have four seasons here. I think I've been in the desert too long......

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

It's funny - I was thinking of this as well. And I wonder if I shouldn't do the opposite and process in May/June in advance of the really really hot weather that has us struggle to keep them alive and hydrated...

- Ant Farm

 

[Kassaundra]

So....do you guys typically process a bunch of your chickens before winter? I honestly hadn't really thought about doing that...maybe because we don't really have four seasons here. I think I've been in the desert too long......

I personally try to keep the biggest flock number growing through the spring summer fall, when natural food is most plentiful and pare down the numbers going into winter when I have to provide the most of the food.