BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[eyralis]

I'm curious, how are you making the crosses? Do you have an end result in mind, eg colour, number of toes, beards? Not too many are breeding for eggs, like me, so this will be fun to follow. Is this going to be strictly an egg layer, or are you looking for more dual purpose?
PS: I don't know if it's just the chicks I have, or if it's too early to tell, but the Barred Holland chicks I have are the most quiet and laid back of all my chicks including the Buckeyes. They may have come from Ideal, they may be worth a look!

We were very clear on our objectives: great egg layers that are also great pets. Although it would be nice if they look nice (and there's a very good chance of that considering The breeds were mixing) appearance is way down the line after temperament and egg production.

From all the research we did, and we've researched close to 100 breeds by now, no egg-laying or even dual breed was as friendly, docile, cuddly, as the Faverolles. They truly are the puppy dogs of the chicken world!

The other two were chosen for their HUGE eggs, cold hardiness and friendly temperament. But they're big birds, with no bantam version, so that's another reason the Faverolles was our choice; we already had a bantam to balance out the size.

We're always happy to add in more breeds though, so if you know great egg laying bantams who love people, let me know!!

 

[eyralis]

Very interesting project! I can't wait to see the photos of your birds as they progress. I can't speak to the Faverolles or the  SFHs, but the Biels are definitely a quieter breed...not that the roosters don't crow. They definitely do, but most of my other breeds crow much more frequently. And they are most definitely friendly. 

Exactly! We love our Biels. Speaking of.... Any chance of getting some eggs from the legendary Hansel? Pleeeeeeeeeaaaase?

 

[DesertChic]

Exactly! We love our Biels. Speaking of.... Any chance of getting some eggs from the legendary Hansel? Pleeeeeeeeeaaaase?

Sadly, I haven't been able to get any pure Biel eggs to hatch, whether fertilized by Hansel or my other Biel rooster, Bosch. Hansel has fathered several mixes, mostly from my Australorps, that have resulted in some very hardy and beautiful birds, but I wouldn't trust that any pure Biel eggs fertilized by him would actually hatch. And...he's big. The last time I weighed him he came in at 11 lbs. Are you sure you want to go that large?

 

[eyralis]

Sadly, I haven't been able to get any pure Biel eggs to hatch, whether fertilized by Hansel or my other Biel rooster, Bosch. Hansel has fathered several mixes, mostly from my Australorps, that have resulted in some very hardy and beautiful birds, but I wouldn't trust that any pure Biel eggs fertilized by him would actually hatch. And...he's big. The last time I weighed him he came in at 11 lbs. Are you sure you want to go that large?

Oh my, he really is a magnificent giant!!! Sorry to hear about your hatching issues hope things improve, he really does sound like such a remarkable rooster!

 

[CanadianBuckeye]

Sadly, I haven't been able to get any pure Biel eggs to hatch, whether fertilized by Hansel or my other Biel rooster, Bosch. Hansel has fathered several mixes, mostly from my Australorps, that have resulted in some very hardy and beautiful birds, but I wouldn't trust that any pure Biel eggs fertilized by him would actually hatch. And...he's big. The last time I weighed him he came in at 11 lbs. Are you sure you want to go that large?

Why is it that the pure eggs won't hatch? Any thoughts? Are the hens too fluffy? That's a shame, must be disappointing. 11 pounds, huge! But the hens must be pretty big too?

 

[Beekissed]

Why not try some AI on those birds and see what happens after that? If the eggs then are fertilized and hatch well, then you know it's a breeding problem(not making a good connection due to feathering, etc.) and not a fertility problem. Some breeder guys pluck around the vent during breeding season to try and get a better hatch rate....could be something you could try?

 

[cyborg]

7:25 AM. 92 degrees. Gonna be a long one.

 

[CanadianBuckeye]

Hot one here too (relatively) but only for another couple of days. There's the chance of rain tomorrow, I'm hoping, I'm starting to worry about the well a little bit. Driest spring that I can remember for us.

 

[DesertChic]

Why is it that the pure eggs won't hatch? Any thoughts? Are the hens too fluffy? That's a shame, must be disappointing. 11 pounds, huge! But the hens must be pretty big too?

Why not try some AI on those birds and see what happens after that? If the eggs then are fertilized and hatch well, then you know it's a breeding problem(not making a good connection due to feathering, etc.) and not a fertility problem. Some breeder guys pluck around the vent during breeding season to try and get a better hatch rate....could be something you could try?

Most of the Biel eggs fertilized by two of my other roosters, one NN and one Ameraucana-Dorking mix, hatched well. Nearly all of the eggs fertilized by my Biel roosters hatched. I discovered that others trying to breed pure Biels have also been having problems with hatching. I also know that incubator hatching proves far less successful than giving the eggs to a broody hen to hatch. I've spoken to a few Biel breeders who've indicated that both temperature and humidity settings are different for Biel eggs vs most other breeds. It's an interesting conundrum, but given the problems that Biel have with heat tolerance, I've personally decided NOT to breed them pure and have instead been crossing them with my more heat tolerant birds. I love their personalities and temperaments, but the only chickens I've ever lost to heat stroke have been Bielefelders, and that's after taking extensive measures to keep them comfortable. They simply aren't compatible with our harsh summers.

@Beekissed What's "AI"? I'm assuming you're not referring to Artificial Intelligence.

 

[Beekissed]

About the same....artificial insemination. Pretty easily done with chickens.