Cream Legbar Working Group: Standard of Perfection

[dana0710]

Hey everyone. I have my first flock of cream legbars. They are about 16 weeks old. Would you mind looking them over and telling me the good and bad? My hens seem a little dark and the rooster has a very crooked comb. I also have one hen that is just not very pretty.

The one in the background is the, um, less than beautiful hen ;-)

 

[Cadbury Eggs]

Welcome to Cream Legbars! They are such a cool and fun breed, by far my favorite!

Here's my two cents on you flock:
First with your rooster:

• His comb doesn't look terribly crooked, but should only have about 6 points
• He also has a lot of chestnut in his wing, back and saddle.

Your hens:

• With the exception of the one you call ugly, they are extremely dark. The crest and hackles should be cream colored and the breast a peachy salmon.
• The one you call ugly has the best coloring of the ones you showed, but her body shape & tail set is a bit weird. Might be the angle of the picture, but her tail should be held higher.
• The hen in the last picture looks like she might have a beak issue, as her lower beak is longer than the top. Her crest and hackles are way too dark, but the hackles color leans more towards gold/brown than cream.

I highly recommend reading the SOP on the Cream Legbar Club website: http://www.creamlegbarclub.com/29-d...p-revision-1-replaced-late-2013-by-revision-2 I found it most helpful for what to look for when I was starting my flock... and I am constantly referring to it as I continue to develop my line.

IMHO, the only ones I would consider breeding would be the rooster (until you can get one without the chestnut and so many extra points) and the hen that you call ugly. I would definitely watch to see if the comb shape transfers to the chicks, and if so look for a new roo.

Did you by the flock as eggs, chicks, or juveniles? Did you see the parent stock?

All the best luck with your flock!

 

[dana0710]

Thank you for your reply, Cadbury! I was afraid that they girls were too dark, except the "ugly one." The rooster's comb kind of swirls around his head, but he has a great attitude and we are getting along well, so far.

I bought them as day old chicks. I kind of saw the parents. She had 3 breeding groups, so I'm not sure which one it was. Also, it was dusk and they were already in the coop so it was getting hard to see them. I'm not trying to breed show birds or anything, but when I do breed them I would like to breed for their best qualities. Thank you for your input!

Dana

 

[daxigait]

Hi, would guys help me decide which two to keep? I am going to have two hens for selective breeding, and the rest in the pen will be for Sapphire and green egg layers. Thank you! The two together are seven weeks older than the single in photos 2-4.

 

[sol2go]

Hey everyone. I have my first flock of cream legbars. They are about 16 weeks old. Would you mind looking them over and telling me the good and bad? My hens seem a little dark and the rooster has a very crooked comb. I also have one hen that is just not very pretty.

The one in the background is the, um, less than beautiful hen ;-)

Welcome to Cream Legbars.
Some extra work that your group will need is to breed towards double cream, lighter crests, and 6 points for the rooster's comb. They do have other nice elements that are worthwhile.

I actually like your ugly duckling. Her tail may be a little pinched in this picture, but she has nice depth in her body, a nice long back, and good tail angle. It would be helpful to see some other views of her.

Thanks for posting.

 

[sol2go]

Hi.
I would choose the first guy, but not if it is the same as the Roo in the second pic which has a comb defect.

In the last picture the one on the left has insufficient barring and the one on the right has a bad tail angle (as seen in another shot)...both take multiple generations to resolve.
I think matching the rooster with the bad tail angle to hens with a long back and low tail angle produces more predictable results than trying to resolve the barring issues.

Hope to see how your flock progresses.

 

[calebjh]

Hi everyone. I've been snooping around here for months and I thought I'd go ahead and ask for opinions on my young flock. I hope these pictures upload...

Please and thanks.

 

[calebjh]

 

[caychris]

Hi everyone. I've been snooping around here for months and I thought I'd go ahead and ask for opinions on my young flock. I hope these pictures upload... Please and thanks.

Some really pretty young birds fair mix of cockerels to choose from dont judge too early. Girls look a little red/gold yet but its early they change a lot over the months.

 

[calebjh]

Some really pretty young birds  fair mix of cockerels to choose from dont judge too early. Girls look a little red/gold yet but its early they change a lot over the months.

Thanks. I'm still trying to get a feel for how they're supposed to be colored. One pullet has significantly lighter hackles than all the rest and one cockerel is way lighter than the other four. He's standing right in front of the water. Can you tell me which coloring is more desirable in CCL cockerels?