Cochin Bantams and Frizzle Cochin Bantams!!

[jajeanpierre]

I am just new to chickens, but have decided that I want to breed bantam Cochins. I recently bought a splash and mottled pullet from a breeder judge (pictures a few messages back, above). I am awaiting the arrival of a blue pullet and a blue cockerel. I have two frazzled blacks, a pullet and a cockerel. The frazzled cockerel has no DQs that I can find. I haven't evaluated the frazzle pullet yet, and am not sure I ever want to breed her. The frazzles are of lesser quality to the other birds, so why add two sources of lesser quality, when I only want to get the frizzle gene?

I am planning to go to some shows in March, and then set up some breeding pens.

I don't want to incubate eggs, so will use either the mothers themselves or my Silkies. I don't want my cockerels to live in tiny cages the way it seems some keep them.

Has anyone worked a small breeding program that way? Any suggestions/advice? I know I will get lots of help from the breeder, but I think I need a bit of an understanding of my options and how it all works before I talk to him.

Can they be bred naturally?

I would like to show these pullets and the blue cockerel again. How long does it take to get a bird back in show condition after being in a pen with a cockerel and maybe raising some babies?

Thanks for any insight.

 

[ESofVA]

I am just new to chickens, but have decided that I want to breed bantam Cochins. I recently bought a splash and mottled pullet from a breeder judge (pictures a few messages back, above). I am awaiting the arrival of a blue pullet and a blue cockerel. I have two frazzled blacks, a pullet and a cockerel. The frazzled cockerel has no DQs that I can find. I haven't evaluated the frazzle pullet yet, and am not sure I ever want to breed her. The frazzles are of lesser quality to the other birds, so why add two sources of lesser quality, when I only want to get the frizzle gene?

My personal opinion would be never to buy a frazzled chicken. There are toooo many problems with them and most breeders would plan not to have any hatching at all, euthanize them, or give them away as pets. I can't even imagine anyone selling one.
I had never seen a frazzle until last year when I bought about 10 white bantam Cochins at a local farm store. I know they buy a lot of chicks from Ideal but I don't know for sure that these were from there as they do buy from other places as well. I got 3 frazzles. 2 died within a month.
I had never thought that a hatchery would breed frizzle to another frizzle. Well, some at least, obviously do.
I gave the 3rd frazzle to a friend that wanted it and she keeps it in her house.
The 2 frizzles I kept were "hawked" (I no longer free range and all pens have been covered with bird net). I loved the frizzles and was looking for some more (eggs or chicks). I bought a dozen eggs, not the quality I really wanted, and 1 hatched...a frizzle partridge roo. Not the color I wanted. They were in with my nicer chicks and all were the ones that burned.
Since I couldn't find what I wanted, I had already ordered a few whites from Ideal for the color and the frizzle gene. (I expect once again I will get some frazzles which I plan to euthanize as soon as I can tell. Sorry, but I just will NOT keep, sell, or give away nor will I raise any. I wanted to add the color and frizzle gene to my nice chicks. I don't show, so I don't mind if they are not show quality. I do want to raise chicks that are better than hatchery quality. So, now I am back to starting all over again and why I need to find some better quality hatching eggs/chicks. I figured with selective breeding I could get what I really wanted in the end... better than hatchery quality, with some of the not easily found colors.
Now I have to start all over. I have only 1. I bought her as a pet as a chick. I think she is a smudged up silver laced and her name is Heidi. Since she is now 5 months old she is living out in the bantam pen, and thus was not in the fire.

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

I am just new to chickens, but have decided that I want to breed bantam Cochins. I recently bought a splash and mottled pullet from a breeder judge (pictures a few messages back, above). I am awaiting the arrival of a blue pullet and a blue cockerel. I have two frazzled blacks, a pullet and a cockerel. The frazzled cockerel has no DQs that I can find. I haven't evaluated the frazzle pullet yet, and am not sure I ever want to breed her. The frazzles are of lesser quality to the other birds, so why add two sources of lesser quality, when I only want to get the frizzle gene?

I am planning to go to some shows in March, and then set up some breeding pens.

I don't want to incubate eggs, so will use either the mothers themselves or my Silkies. I don't want my cockerels to live in tiny cages the way it seems some keep them.

Has anyone worked a small breeding program that way? Any suggestions/advice? I know I will get lots of help from the breeder, but I think I need a bit of an understanding of my options and how it all works before I talk to him.

Can they be bred naturally?

I would like to show these pullets and the blue cockerel again. How long does it take to get a bird back in show condition after being in a pen with a cockerel and maybe raising some babies?

Thanks for any insight.

I guess I am l sightly confused about what you are asking. Are you wanting some ides for breeding pens, where you don't feel like your caging them as if they are wild animals.

Here is a link. DMrippy made these with her husband. I thought it was a great idea. I like it much better than what I was originally going to do. And it also wont cost that much. I will probably have around $100 tied up in supplies, that I didn't already have or couldn't get for free. I made mine a little bigger though. Especially for my white rocks, because two would be squished in a one pallet house. Or at least I think so, I like to give my birds ample room. I eventually I would like to get a really nice barnand build pens, but until then these will work just fine for me.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/594825/my-new-breeding-pens

 

[jajeanpierre]

My personal opinion would be never to buy a frazzled chicken. There are toooo many problems with them and most breeders would plan not to have any hatching at all, euthanize them, or give them away as pets. I can't even imagine anyone selling one.

Believe me, I didn't try to buy a frazzle. I bought frizzles, expecting 50% smooth and 50% frizzle. I got 75% frazzle and 25% frizzle out of my four. Only two frazzles are alive. Both are in the house in the cold weather.

All my good show-quality Cochins are smooth feathering. I'll use the frazzle on one generation to get the frizzle gene and then not use him again. He isn't the quality of the other birds.

What problems do frazzles have that you know of?

Thanks.

 

[jajeanpierre]

I guess I am l sightly confused about what you are asking. Are you wanting some ides for breeding pens, where you don't feel like your caging them as if they are wild animals.

Here is a link. DMrippy made these with her husband. I thought it was a great idea. I like it much better than what I was originally going to do. And it also wont cost that much. I will probably have around $100 tied up in supplies, that I didn't already have or couldn't get for free. I made mine a little bigger though. Especially for my white rocks, because two would be squished in a one pallet house. Or at least I think so, I like to give my birds ample room. I eventually I would like to get a really nice barnand build pens, but until then these will work just fine for me.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/594825/my-new-breeding-pens

I think you are slightly confused because I am very confused. I just don't know what I need for breeding pens. I'll only have two pens for the Cochins and maybe a pen for a pair of Ameraucanas. I was going to modify a dog house and put it inside my parrot aviaries. I was hoping the hens could hatch their own babies. I just don't have a really good understanding on how it will all work.

I also didn't appreciate that those big fluffy bottoms made breeding naturally a bit of a challenge.

I was just hoping some of you experienced people would give me some insight, especially some insight into the pit falls I'll run into that I have no idea are coming.

Thanks for that link.

 

[suncatcher]

I have seen some nice breeding pen ideas on the Bob Blosl Heritage Large Fowl Thread here on BYC, you can also get some ideas on breeding pens on the Java Breeders Of America website or just about any chicken breeders website. They are simple in design, as they should be, and not confusing at all. Since the chickens are only in them during breeding season, they are on the smaller side, which is perfect for the Bantams. There is a very simple way to keep track of your breeding pens, you start with four colored coded pens, blue, green, red and white, or whatever four colors you want to use, the hens and roos in that pen have that color of leg band, as do the chicks once they are hatched, of course you also keep detailed records.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/400344/bob-blosls-heritage-large-fowl-thread/150

 

[jajeanpierre]

I have seen some nice breeding pen ideas on the Bob Blosl Heritage Large Fowl Thread here on BYC, you can also get some ideas on breeding pens on the Java Breeders Of America website or just about any chicken breeders website. They are simple in design, as they should be, and not confusing at all. Since the chickens are only in them during breeding season, they are on the smaller side, which is perfect for the Bantams. There is a very simple way to keep track of your breeding pens, you start with four colored coded pens, blue, green, red and white, or whatever four colors you want to use, the hens and roos in that pen have that color of leg band, as do the chicks once they are hatched, of course you also keep detailed records.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/400344/bob-blosls-heritage-large-fowl-thread/150

I wasn't worried about the actual pens--I'll use two parrot aviaries or some 4' x 8' portable tractors for pens with little coops for each pen. I'm going to convert a pre-fab big dog house into a little coop for them. I was more wanting information on how you would set up a pen with a couple of pullets you want to get chicks from if I am not using an incubator. The first breeding I will do will be obvious whose chicks are from which pullet. I'll be breeding a black double-copy frizzle cockerel to a smooth splash and a smooth mottled bird. I believe the mottled is recessive and black is a proper color to breed to. If I understand correctly, all the mottled hen's chicks will be black, and the splash's chicks will be blue, and everyone will be frizzled.

I will also have a blue smooth cockerel and a blue pullet, which will probably be bred together if everybody is old enough.

I still need to look into the genetics of the mottled birds.

I was mainly interested in information on how to manage them for the best chance of success of having the hens set and hatch their own eggs. I have lots of Silkies as back ups.

Thanks for any advice.

 

[suncatcher]

Sounds like you have it figured out! You may have to do some trial breedings to see what might be lurking in the gentics of your birds. It is all part of the journey! Have fun, and enjoy your chickens, is what it is all about. Hens going broody happens all on it own, you can;t force it, and some hens are harder to break once they go broody. Once a hen goes broody, she knows what to do. You will want to allow her the space and safety to raise her chicks.

 

[kristin07035]

I've been looking everywhere for fizzles. Any breed/color except the Polish & Serama ones (they aren't cold hardy).
Would prefer a started pullet (to be aquired now) but will take chicks or even fertile eggs (to be aquired in April/may).
Im in NJ & can pickup locally or I will pay for shipping.
Please pm me with what you have available & price.
All the hatcheries I have looked at are sold out for 2014 already or don't have any avail till August.

 

[gimmie birdies]

just gave away brother and sister frizzle- I did keep one. good luck in your search!