Buckeye Breed Thread

[Pathfinders]

Quote:
Oh yes! Ask Chris for some of his Buckeye/mouse stories. I know mine will fight over one as if they're playing rugby.

 

[sekinkead]

Wow, thanks for all of the information Chris. You really have done your research on this breed. I really appreciate you sharing all of you knowledge with us!

 

[naturegrrl]

There is an awful lot of talk on BYC about "genetic diversity" and "inbreeding" amongst certain breeds. This brings up an interesting point that begs the question, “Is inbreeding harmful?” I think one has to first define “inbreeding” vs. “line breeding”. Line breeding is what I practice. My understanding of “inbreeding” is Brother-to-Sister matings. “Line Breeding” is Father-to Daughter or Mother-to-Son (or GD or GS or GGD or GGS, etc.) From what I have read, inbreeding can be very useful to enhance certain traits. However, it may also bring a fault or DQ to light that would otherwise possibly not pop up.

The reason that genetic issues come up with inbreeding (and actually would also come up with "line breeding" as you describe it) is that deleterious recessive traits, which might be masked in the parents, are more likely to be expressed or passed on without being expressed in the offspring. So if you have a hen who is heterozygous for a recessive deleterious or undesirable trait x, that means she carries the gene but doesn't express it (Xx). If you breed her with a roo who is homozygous for lacking that trait (XX), then you have 50% birds who do not carry that trait at all (XX), and 50% will carry it but will not express it (Xx). Now in the second generation (F1) if you either a) breed the two offspring that ended up with Xx OR you breed the mother hen to her male offspring with Xx, you end up with 25% of offspring who don't carry the gene (XX), 50% who carry it and don't express it (Xx), and 25% who express the gene (xx) and hence either die, are malformed, or exhibit the undesirable trait. In going 1 step further (F2 cross), if the trait in question is NOT deleterious (i.e. fatal), and the original mother hen OR the F1 parent expressing the trait were to breed with the F2 bird expressing the trait, you'd end up with 50% carriers (Xx) and 50% undesirable or malformed birds (xx).

That is a very very basic description of the process - lots of other things, like sex-linked traits and antagonistic pleiotropy (a desirable gene is linked to a lethal or undesirable gene), complicate the picture considerably. And I do apologize if I'm just repeating stuff you already know! But I think the idea of genetic diversity is that if you introduce "foreign" genes to your gene pool, you are less likely to run into the problems of bad genes being carried and/or expressed - the introduced genes "dilute" the effects of the bad genes within the gene pool. Of course, if the outside genes aren't also desirable traits, you end up diluting the good genes, too...

Another reason to emphasize genetic diversity comes up more in wild populations of animals, but I think it could be applicable to domestic animals as well - a diversity of genes allow populations to respond to environmental conditions like changes in weather patterns, diseases, changes in food resources, etc. If a population is small and they all have very similar genes, the population is more likely to be unable to "respond" by having some individuals that can survive a sudden disease outbreak or a string of unusually cold winters. Mind you, it's not the individuals "responding", it's just that when you have a group of similar animals with slightly different sets of genes, selection - whether natural or artificial - can work on them without wiping out the entire population.

Ooh, I forgot how much I love evolutionary genetics!!! Sorry, I'll stop now.

 

[bluebird]

I have been researching this wonderful breed for a few weeks now and have decided I would really like to have one, a pullet. I currently have only two bantam pullets for pets with eggs, a cochin and a polish/silkie cross. I need a standard size for larger eggs. I live in NW Indiana so the Buckeye is exactly what I am looking for. Where can I get a pullet this spring, preferably from a breeder, and will they ship? Iam willing to pick up if within a 3 or 4 hour drive.

I am so glad to see there is a BUCKEYE forum on BYC! And WOW....all you guys have such beautiful birds!

 

[Pathfinders]

Matt John of Shady Lane Poultry should have Buckeyes this spring. You can reach him at [email protected] and tell him I sent you.

Just spoke to him last night in fact. Or if that doesn't work for you, I'm here in northern KY, and Bob Gilbert is in Urbana, IL and we'll both have birds this spring.

 

[TK Poultry]

i cant wait to get some are any of you going to have eggs this spring?

 

[Pathfinders]

Oh sure. I know that I'll have eggs/chicks/started birds, as will Dave Puthoff, and Chris is selling eggs through an associate, pretty sure James will have some, and Craig too. I've got eggs listed up in eBay now in fact.

Laura

 

[mrandmrschicken]

Quote:
I am happy to say, have put a deal together with some nice folks in WI and we are making the long journey, (8 hours each way), to the shores of Lake Michigan to p/u a quad of bantam Buckeyes from the Urch strain, 5-'09
We are taking Serama and Pyncheon chicks for a little girl to examine for possible trade. She's a pretty selective trader! But who can turn down week old chicks? We are leaving the day after Christmas.
Greencastle, they are laying too! When do you want to place your order.
I am so excited! It will be my Christmas morning!

 

[rnau]

I have eggs now although I am sold out until Dec 28. I should be able to supply any need you have. I have 10 hens and Chris is suppose to bring some of his hens up soon. If we can be of service just pm me.

Thanks
Roy

 

[Pathfinders]

Quote:
I am happy to say, have put a deal together with some nice folks in WI and we are making the long journey, (8 hours each way), to the shores of Lake Michigan to p/u a quad of bantam Buckeyes from the Urch strain, 5-'09
We are taking Serama and Pyncheon chicks for a little girl to examine for possible trade. She's a pretty selective trader! But who can turn down week old chicks? We are leaving the day after Christmas.
Greencastle, they are laying too! When do you want to place your order.
I am so excited! It will be my Christmas morning!

Great news!!!