Buff Orpingtons???

[hinkjc]

Cynthia, your blues are beautiful! I wanted to ask where you heard that blues are bigger than buffs? That is the first I've heard that. The standard of perfection calls for the same weight on orpingtons, regardless of color. 10 lb for mature cocks and 8 lb hens.

Orpingtons are a wonderful breed to work with, but I also want to point out that if they are bred too large (to increase meat capacity), they are predisposed to spontaneous heart failure in their first 2 years. And if you need to increase size on them (because many hatcheries are selling smaller versions -production strains of 6-8 lbs, if you will) you want to focus on large females bred to average to large roosters to gain progeny of larger size. This is according to the Orpington club articles I have read and from my own experiences in breeding.

Jody

 

[speckledhen]

Thanks Jody. On this Breed Standards page it lists their mature weights as 10-14 lb.
http://freespace.virgin.net/mick.barrett/Breed_Standards.htm
There seems to be some differing info floating around on the Buff weights for cocks. I've read 10 lb and I have also read 8 lb for buffs and 10-14 for blues. I have an in-depth article, complete with an Orpington Buyers Guide, that someone sent to me, that states male blacks and blues are a minimum of 10 lbs each, basically implying that they are larger than buffs. I cannot remember where the statement was made, some book or article, that the Blues are larger than the Buffs and can be 2 lb larger in the roosters. Suede's brother, the splash one that Kate (helmstead) just sold, weighed in at 11 lbs already. I'll try to find where I read that, but it was in some official article somewhere.
In any case, I'm sure there are heavier and lighter individuals, and the important thing is that they are no heavier than they were meant to be.I personally do not want to breed them larger than they are supposed to be, but my Blue pullet is much heftier than either of my Buff Orp hens already. I agree, after seeing the summer stress them out, that you would not want them way oversized. Just by nature, Suede would suffer more than my other birds in extreme heat, although I paid close attention to making sure he was being cooled down regularly.

 

[WoodlandWoman]

That's a UK club, that's probably why there's a difference. Even though they start off with the same stock, breeders in different countries often breed towards different goals over time and develop slightly different breed standards. I've seen it in dogs, as well as poultry.