*Buff Orpington Thread!*

[ladyjey]

I can testify; the Buff Orpington is a fantastic breed by my experience. My hatchery hens are impervious to weather, don't fly, eat ANYTHING, great foragers, gentle (unless they think they can eat it of course) and have proven to be phenomenal egg layers. I had 14 when they started laying at six months old in December. 47 eggs. January; 274. In March a Fisher cat ate one leaving 13, and I had a change of roosters which threw them for a bit, I still got 288. Then 5 of them went broody. The others are giving me 6 or 8 eggs a day. Right now I have one broody sitting on 7 eggs. She sits tight! So far so great. My current rooster is a dark Cornish so I am growing those out for the table. I plan to set my other 4 on eggs in the next week or two, either my own for meat or my friend's multitude - her incubators are stuffed full of a bunch of birds.

But... the Orpington is supposed to be a dual purpose bird. I want my breeding to be working (back) towards this. The issue I have with my hatchery birds is they have no meat on their frames, and only like 3 of them have good bones. But these 3 also have good color (and are now broody). My friend gave me 7 chicks from some hatching eggs she got from show lines (forget from where, need to check my email...). I will try to post some pics of them, EXCELLENT little frames on like 5 of them, absolutely huge feet and legs. Their little hard feathers have good color. Super calm, inquisitive temperment also. And 1 is a little cockerel! So... Using him, my 3 best hatchery hens and hopefully in the next batch of hatching eggs to arrive a cockerel and some pullets from a line being bred with the focus on meat... I'm hoping to wind up (someday...) with some very nice, truly dual purpose, excellent backyard chickens, that also meet the standard for the lovely Buff Orpington.

 

[Johnn]

 

[Aschenfire]

Either Sunshine or Honey (they look almost identical) one of my 12 week old Buffs

 

[JillS]

It would be wonderful if someone in the know could tell us about the breed's qualities that are judged at show. Mayhaps the word i'm looking for is standards?
How are the features of the bird to look to be correct? The guys up the forum spell it out so clearly amd cleaverly in the Heritage RIR strand. They're up there pulling no punches and telling it exactly how it is suppose to look.

Please someone who really knows their Buff Orpington indulge us.

 

[HallFamilyFarm]

Buy a SOP and study it. That's the best advice I can give.

http://www.amerpoultryassn.com/APA_ShoppingMall3.htm

The New 2010 Standard of Perfection
The new books are in and are shipping

Regular 2010 Edition Price $59.00


First start with exhibition SOP quality stock. Then cull to the SOP. Visit shows and take lots of photos. If possible, visit some breeders near you. Talk to judges that breed Orpingtons. Terry Britt, Walt Leonard and Steve Jones are great examples.

 

[JillS]

Thank you for that fine advice. I will be excited to recieve that publication. Thanks again.

 

[HallFamilyFarm]

The Standard of Perfection, or SOP as most on BYC calls it, is the Bible of poultry standards. Each country has a standard as well, but it differs slightly to ours. The SOP is what the poultry judges use to judge your bird. Contrary to popular belief, no bird is judged against another. Each is judged on its own merit against its own Standard.

The below photo was taken at the 10,276 entry 2011 Crossroads Joint National Poultry Show in Indianapolis, IN last October. It was judged to its own Standard, as all 10,276 birds were judged. In the end, the team of judges felt this bird came closer than any others to its own Standard. Though a Buff orpington was on Champion Row, it lost to this Black Muscovy Duck. The Muscovy is not "prettier" than an Orpington, just closer to the Standard.

Here is the Champion English Class and Best of Breed Orpington, a Buff hen.

 

[JillS]

Thank you for the further explaination. I want to do my best toward the standard. Although I do not intend to show I also do not want to put anything out into the world that is inconsistent with the standard. My flock is 10 weeks old. Still a little young to know where my starting point is.

 

[ladyjey]

The breed standard is important and should most certainly be a criteria. It's critical if you plan to show. However, something sometimes ignored, that in my humble opinion it is also valuable to adhere to, is the original purpose of the breed. Especially important if you are keeping this breed for their utility more than show. They were a dual purpose breed that not only laid a good number of eggs, and retained the broody and mothering qualities needed to further the breed on their own, but also a sizable, meaty carcass for the table. I may be new at this but I plan to breed and cull not just by the (beautiful) SOP, but also for the practical, useful, and worthwhile traits of a perfect backyard bird like as they were originally intended.

 

[HallFamilyFarm]

J. Ralph Brazelton, Master Orpington Breeder (died in the 1980s) would trapnest. If a hen did not produce 200 eggs in a year it was culled. He won many shows and his line is still around in many of the lines today. The dual purpose of this breed is most important.

Here is one of his birds, owned by Walt Leonard, aka fowlman01.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/u/66947/fowlman01

Many judges will check for egg production when looking the bird over at a show. Its quick and easy to check the pelvic bones for production. Its not a high priority at the shows, but could be the deciding factor between two birds of equal quality.