Confused by SOP's... Newbie needs help!

I think that s.q. birds are not verry productive as a whole because of course, people are breeding for the s.o.p. and not productivity. when breeding for productivity you cull unproductive birds and breed only the highly productive ones, so therefor you may be sacrificeing that s.q. bird for a productive bird and vice versa. So if you wanted production coupled with s.q. you would have to select birds with both qualities to breeed, and this would take much longer than breeding for either s.q. or productivity, but of course is posible. Hope that helps some.
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No problem. Start with birds from a breeder who considers utility as well as looks when planning breedings. There are many of them out there.

Then you take your birds and consider both looks and utility (and temperament and health) when you plan your breedings.

 

I agree, you can have birds that meet the standard and are very productive. Some breeds tend to lay more than others, but the RIR is usually a pretty high producing bird. If you want to breed to the standard and can keep track the laying rates of the birds, you can select for those lay more vs. those that lay less. Your flock will evolve depending on what you select.

 

I doubt that any purebred poultry is going to lay as well or as early as the commercial hybrids etc. I have a neighbor that combined some of the best exhibition S.C.Reds in the country with commercial Reds because the exhibition Reds were not laying enough eggs and were not laying at all until they were 7 months old. They now lay in the 80% range and they start laying at 4 1/2 to 5 months. They arent as good exhibition quality as they were b ut he did have 2 & 4 old male at Crossroads. We do offer eggs and chicks from his matings. "horstmanspoultry.com"

 

I would look into getting some SQ birds and consider getting RSL's for you egg production? Its just a consideration or having a small amount of SQ RIR and possibly having the rest of your birds for production.

Nate

 

If you want to do it right, you're going to want to look for superior birds. This does not mean just conforming to the SOP - that is more or less a guide for what they should look like. Many times you get those that conform to the SOP and they will not have the type of production and sometimes even temperament they're supposed to, or could be fragile/finnicky to raise. I'm guessing to acheive these things, you'll need to buy stock from several different breeders with different blood and choose the best birds to breed.

Points to look for and breed for in birds -

- Have a great temperament - both bird to bird and bird to human. Any and all aggressive or skittish animals should be culled or sold IMO.
- have good production of eggs. You might also look into birds that produce a good amount of eggs beyond the point of a year old (I have a heritage bred Australorp that is still laying around 3 eggs a week at the ripe age of 6!)
- Have the correct/good amount of meat for the breed.
- Can forage
- Are hardy. Many people do this by not heating coops and picking out those that thrive the best.
- Conform to the SOP.
- And of course, have no obvious inheritable defects/etc.

This way, not only will you appeal to the "show crowd" but also the people who look for pets and those looking for farm birds... I believe there was another thread talking about these points also. Hope this helped

 

Quote:I built a few trap nests, and they can be a useful tool. I can't use them practically most of the time, because I am not home during the day. The ALBC has a guide to evaluating layers on their site. I am evaluating mine in a similar manner. With your experiences with livestock in general, you will pick it up pretty quick. If you haven't checked it out, look for it. I think it is in line with what you are looking for.
Many of our birds were farm birds. Their type would fit a particular production model. The early breeders knew what they were doing, and knew what they were looking for. A lot of our birds (American) are dual purpouse. Though they potentially lay well, and can put some meat on the table, they will never excel at both. Many of these breeds were popular for a time, because they did performed well. I think they still can have a role on small farms, where someone wants to produce their own eggs and meat.
Finding birds that fit your expectations is easier said than done. You have to discuss your expectations with who you are considering purchasing from. You still have to grow them out and evaluate them youself. I would plan on having to do my own selecting and improving over time. It is like any pure breed animal. Once they aren't used for the role they were designed for, they begin to lose the characteristics that made them popular to begin with. If you don't hunt and you breed bird dogs for their look, I see it difficult not to start losing their unseen traits. They have to be evaluated. You can have both though. We should still be realistic with our expectations, however. They will not ever compete with hybrids, but thye are not a dead end either. I personally do not want to replace my laying flock every couple years.
If you are interested in Rhode Island Reds, I would go with Mr. Horstman's suggestion. It sounds like a possible good start to what you are considering.