I know they have five toes, but his one 5th toe is pointed up parallel to his leg, almost curling back towards it ... and he is my only bird that will just walk and go into a sit ... the others will only sit when they are cuddling together .... I think I need to cull him ...
I've never researched the Dorking breed, so I know not what they are supposed to look like....but my roos wings are much more elevated and into their body, their necks are longer and extended unless they are lying down or roosting and they stand up higher when standing. This roo stands more like a hen and the wings look like they are drooping past the line of the body, like one sees in a sick or weak bird.
Unless that is his breed characteristics, he looks altogether poorly or sickly to me as a rooster ....wrong stance, wrong wing position, wrong neck position, etc.
I can see that the Dorking in this pick holds his wings rather lower than my breed roos, so it seems to be a Dorking thing. But look at the difference in the upward stance and extended neck of the roo in the first pic compared to the one in the second....the roo in question almost looks like he is guarding or hunching inward to protect himself or because he is in pain~not saying he is but he just has that particular stance. I don't know if it's a breeding thing or a health thing but I'd be willing to bet this roo has a health problem of some kind that you just cannot see, particularly if he sits down often...sort of like the Cornish Cross chickens when they are too weak to bear their own weight.
It is not accurate to go by a picture found on the web. Feathersite has all kinds of goofy pictures of breeds. This is one that you can't go by.....it is also a hatchery Dorking. A Dorking Cock should be 9# Cockerel 8#. The wings should be large and well folded against the body, carried without drooping like the feathersite bird. That Feathersite birds neck is too long as well. The body on your bird is closer to what they should look like. Big head, medium neck.
This is an ancient breed that has been around since the Roman times....it is just the way they look.......blame it on Caesar....maybe that is why they killed him. The only accurate illustrations of the Dorking I know of are copyrighted by the APA and can be found on page 111 of the 2010 SOP.
Or find an edition that is out of copyright and online. These other pictures on Feathersite, etc, are posted cuz that is all they can find.....they do not usually represent an accurate depiction of an actual bird that meets the description of the Dorking here or in Europe.
The only reason I am even going through this exercise is to say that..... yeah....it is a dumpy looking chicken breed, quite different than what most people see. It doesn't look sick, that's how they look....but it is sick or something is wrong with it in some way and should be considered an unthrifty bird.
Walt
I have an issue that I would like to hear you guys take on. I have a straight sizzle cockerel who is just a little over 1 1/2 months old and a devil child. He started crowing when he was 2 weeks old. He's had a big red comb and big red wattles since before the others even feathered out. He has been "dancing" at me. He's a little pecker head and will almost bring blood sometimes when he pecks. He can be quite mean to the other chicks but not very often. He likes to fly up on your shoulder when you are not looking and pull your hair out. Today, when I tried to put the youngsters in with their mom he attacked his mom repeatedly until I had to remove him. And just a little while ago, he did something that both horrified me and made me laugh at the same time. When I bent down to get the chicks water and refill it, this little cockerel jumped on top of my head and started mounting my head!I don't know what to do with this little turd! He is way more advanced for his age than I would expect. He has already started business that I would expect from a 5 month old, and he's only a month and a half old! And he's mean! What would you guys do with this little cockerel? I have been wanting to use him in my sizzle project but I don't know if I should now. Should I cull him now or is there a chance he will he get better?
Here's a recent pic of this troublesome cockerel:
I don't get the whole "sizzle" thing. Is that a frizzled Silkie? He has a rosecomb, Silkies should have a walnut comb....if you care. My guess is that he will become worse and a pain to deal with....since I am on the Roman hting I give him a thumbs down.
Walt
Quote:
Well, I was going to breed him back to his mom who is a good quality sizzle. Since he already has some of her good genes that are "hiding" I think their offspring would be pretty good. However, he attacked his mom repeatedly today.
Well, I was going to breed him back to his mom who is a good quality sizzle. Since he already has some of her good genes that are "hiding" I think their offspring would be pretty good. However, he attacked his mom repeatedly today.His job would be to keep his hens fertile and to serve them. I expect my roosters to treat their hens well, keep them fertile but not over-mate, keep a lookout for danger and protect them, and to allow me to get my business done without being flogged. I have handled this rooster well and have done my best to make him nice. I will not keep a skittish chicken so I make sure all my chicks are used to people. I hand feed them and pick them up to get them used to being handled. His father has had one aggressive spell that did not last for more than 1 week and a half. His mother can be a bit sassy but is not what I would call aggressive. I do not understand what is up with this rooster. None of his chick buddies are like him. It's like he came out of the egg lacking the fear of God.
