BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[Beer can]

OZZY!!! Lol! Your's combs don't look all that big, a lot like my giants who are not getting frostbite here. The sussex are getting it a little. Still can't believe those naked thingys do great in cold weather, but I'm going to have to give them a try.

 

[DesertChic]

OZZY!!! Lol! Your's combs don't look all that big, a lot like my giants who are not getting frostbite here. The sussex are getting it a little. Still can't believe those naked thingys do great in cold weather, but I'm going to have to give them a try.

Only one of my NNS has a really big comb...Ozzy's daddy, Heisenberg.



Ozzy is only 17 weeks old, so he still has time for that comb to grow.

 

[Chris09]

I have questions for the people who have or have had NN.

I have never owned them and was never before interested in them until reading this thread and learned they have meaty carcasses.

Is the carcass quality at all tied to the NN gene? In other words, is an Nn bird likely to be less meaty than an NN bird?

If you cross breed them, introducing them into a line only in the first generation, say DCxNN then DCxDC/NN then DCxDC/DC/NN (I hope that makes sense) how long is the thin feathering maintained?

Has anyone done a DCxNN cross?

How did you like the cross as meat birds?

Please and thank you

The Na gene has little to do with amount of carcasses meat and the Original "Naked Neck" breeds (breeds that carried the Na gene) were build more like a Malay.

Note there are more than one breed that carries the Na gene and most in not all have been around longer than todays Naked Neck and have a Gamefowl body type.

Naked neck Na Incompletely dominant. Turkens. Causes bare skin on the neck which becomes reddish toward sexual maturity. Heterozygotes show a small tuft of feathers on the neck above the crop, which is almost missing in the homozygote. The Na allele is associated with increased tolerance for heat, which is probably due to the 30% reduction in overall plumage for heterozygotes and 40% for homozygotes. Na is also associated with a small increase in meat yield and lower body fat content. An increase in embryonic mortality of up to 10% is attributed to Na.​

http://sellers.kippenjungle.nl/page3.html

 

[hellbender]

Only one of my NNS has a really big comb...Ozzy's daddy, Heisenberg.



Ozzy is only 17 weeks old, so he still has time for that comb to grow.

When we come to visit, you'll have to either kill or dub all your males and fix cock's comb soup. That's the law of the desert...do what it takes to honour your guests and make them comfortable.

 

[Beer can]

Now those combs look huge....

 

[Beer can]

@Mini Meat I've never had them so I can't say, but I did read this and post it here about a yr ago. Looking at Greenfirefarms Barbezieux on their site, they mention that the Barbezieux is one of the best tasting chickens in the world, a roasting chicken, better than the Bresse which is typically poached.
" Barbezieux were ranked third in a competition of 20 meat breeds by the French food guide, Gault Millau." I got thinking why pay big $$$ for third? Wonder what's #1??? Figured some unheard of weird breed not available in the US. Took a long time to find it, Google brought me nowhere, had to actually go through Gault Millau French version and Google translate (I don't read French Lol). I was quite shocked when I read it, it was the Naked Neck!!! Poulet Rouge redbro cou nu, to be specific, I believe they have strict guidelines of how there raised/fed, much like the Breese there, and the red color variety specifically, not that I think feather color could make them taste better but apparently the French do Lol. Still the Naked Neck anyways....

 

[CanadianBuckeye]

I'll have to dig around and find that article where they did a chicken taste test where the Dorking beat out all the others. Nice big combs for soup, too.

Here it is: http://livestockconservancy.blogspot.ca/2009/07/chicken-choosin.html

They did not try a naked neck.

A Dorking article: http://www.dorenemlorenz.com/Articles_files/Dorking chicken.pdf

quote:

"In the 1847 edition of American agriculturist it was suggested that, “There is one
peculiarity with the true Dorking chicken which we have not observed in other breeds,
namely:
at about six weeks to three months old, they fully develope the shape and style
of the grown bird, being then remarkably heavy and compact in the body, and are thus
early fit for the table; and with good feed they get very fat like a young China pig. They
then, for the next month or two, stretch out in length of leg and body generally, and do
not get into compact shape again till nearly grown, when they develope their deep. full
breaste, and long, broad, round bodies, in that superior degree, for which they are
deemed so valuable by all gourmands who are so partial to their flesh."

 

[NanaKat]

Reported Good tasting birds that grow quickly and are favorites in Europe...Malines...are now in the US. They have several breeders in Canada and Greenfire has them. Several threads have been devoted to the breed here on BYC.

Our own @Our Roost is breeding them and working on a Belgian Maline X Cochin to add vigor to his flock.
I've been following this breed for several years and look forward to acquiring eggs and adding the breed to my flock.

AND...the Wyandotte X Cochin is a large carcassed bird with nice meat...and the hens are good egg layers as well as super broody moms. I'll go out and take a few pictures.

 

[AnthNDacula]

I'll have to dig around and find that article where they did a chicken taste test where the Dorking beat out all the others. Nice big combs for soup, too.

Here it is: http://livestockconservancy.blogspot.ca/2009/07/chicken-choosin.html

They did not try a naked neck.

A Dorking article: http://www.dorenemlorenz.com/Articles_files/Dorking chicken.pdf

quote:

"In the 1847 edition of American agriculturist it was suggested that, “There is one
peculiarity with the true Dorking chicken which we have not observed in other breeds,
namely:
at about six weeks to three months old, they fully develope the shape and style
of the grown bird, being then remarkably heavy and compact in the body, and are thus
early fit for the table; and with good feed they get very fat like a young China pig. They
then, for the next month or two, stretch out in length of leg and body generally, and do
not get into compact shape again till nearly grown, when they develope their deep. full
breaste, and long, broad, round bodies, in that superior degree, for which they are
deemed so valuable by all gourmands who are so partial to their flesh."

Thanks so much for this link Buckeye. I'll keep close watch on my Dorkings this year from 6 to 12 weeks and see if the tendency to a mature body shape at that point still holds true. Even if it doesn't the genes may still be there to select for that quality. It could certainly increase the possibilities for working with Dorkings as a production breed. I was planning on weighing and culling at 8 and 12 weeks but this info suggests I should do that earlier and
more often and watch for unique development trends.

 

[DesertChic]

When we come to visit, you'll have to either kill or dub all your males and fix cock's comb soup. That's the law of the desert...do what it takes to honour your guests and make them comfortable.

My friend, I absolutely adore you, but you come near my favorite boys and you'll find out just how "spunky" I can be.

That said, I am going to start saving combes from all the boys I butcher. I never seriously considered eating them, but for making soup...that makes sense. Soup in June though...you may want to reconsider that once you're here. June is the absolute worst month in Arizona. It's super hot, way too humid, and with no rain for relief. June is when we all give thanks for air conditioning and worship the HVAC repairmen.