Cream Legbars

[CibolaChooks]

quick poll for all the breeders who have hatched and raised allot of CCL.

Would we as a group say that the tail angles is the biggest issue with the CCL in america. Fallowed secondly
by the comb then color.

My number 3 rooster is the only one that has kept a correct tail angle. He is smaller and has the worst
comb out of my 3 cream roos.

The other Two with better form and combs have had their tails raise up to almost 90 now.
They were fine but gradually have raised up.

Im thinking i might have to keep number 3 around just in case i cant correct the tail angles with my first two pairings .​

 

[ChicKat]

quick poll for all the breeders who have hatched and raised allot of CCL.

Would we as a group say that the tail angles is the biggest issue with the CCL in america. Fallowed secondly
by the comb then color.

My number 3 rooster is the only one that has kept a correct tail angle. He is smaller and has the worst
comb out of my 3 cream roos.

The other Two with better form and combs have had their tails raise up to almost 90 now.
They were fine but gradually have raised up.

Im thinking i might have to keep number 3 around just in case i cant correct the tail angles with my first two pairings .​

Steen, you may just have named the top three.....

Went over to the clubhouse and dug this up in the 'showing' topic......dusted it off and paste it here:

Note : This is a crested variety laying a blue, green or olive egg.

Standard Weights: Cock: 7 to 7½ lb; Cockerel 6 to 6½ lb .
Hen: 5 to 6lb; Pullet 4½ to 5lb

SCALE OF POINTS
Type 30
Colour 20
Head 20
Legs 10
Condition 10
Weight 10
100 Points

My thought is that anything to do with TYPE is what we should be working on most/hardest....so that would include tail angle especially and length of back IMO---- also -- we need to bring those weights up a bit I think...... That would be for people who want to raise stock for shows......
ETA - this is from the UK because the breed isn't APA accepted in the USA as yet. Hence the reference to the OLIVE egg which didn't cross the pond and stays over there.

 

[HughesFowlFarm]

Before I invest into some expensive chicks. I have some questions?
Are they good at Free Range?
Are the roosters aggressive, will they protect the hens?
How's their egg production?
What do female chicks and male chicks look like?
Is it better to order chicks from greenfire, or eggs from eBay?
Finally on a scale of 1-10 how easy are the eggs to sale?

 

[ChicKat]

Before I invest into some expensive chicks. I have some questions?
Are they good at Free Range?
Are the roosters aggressive, will they protect the hens?
How's their egg production?
What do female chicks and male chicks look like?
Is it better to order chicks from greenfire, or eggs from eBay?
Finally on a scale of 1-10 how easy are the eggs to sale?

• I think I got my first pair as chicks in February 2012 -- From my limited experience Cream Legbars are superb foragers. One hen I had that hatched her own chicks wouldn't let the chicks get feed but drummed into there little heads how to get their own feed..it was pretty fascinating. The other day I watched one of my CLs catch and subsequently kill and swallow a little snake...and they are great at getting grasshoppers.
• Roosters are VERY protective of their hens, if the rooster sees the human as a threat he may go after the human...I always have a great awareness of and respect for the rooster. Mine were gentle with the hens and one I thought would starve himself because he was constantly picking up and dropping food for the hens to get. I only keep ever one active rooster at a time -- so I don't know if you mean human aggressive roosters or rooster-to-rooster aggression. For awhile I kept an EE rooster for a friend and he nearly killed an Ideal 236 that I had at the time... He just didn't treat the hens very well. Cream Legbar roosters are NOTHING like that from what I have experienced and heard from others.
• Check out this link to photos at the Cream Legbar Club website - lonnyandrinda has excellent pictures of chicks there. in short males have a white or cream blotch on their head and females have distinct chipmunk stripes and Cleopatra eyeliner. Pretty chicks.......https://sites.google.com/site/thecreamlegbarclub/02-gallery---photos-of-cream-legbars Especially look at slides 5 and 6
• If you're unable to get them from GFF, check out the list of breeders in the CL club or go to the selling pages here on BYC or check out 'mypetchicken.com' -- someone may have some -- or ask for a PM from someone on these threads who raises them...sometimes eBay is an iffey way to get eggs... Always ask to see pictures of the parent birds to see if they have what you are looking for..in the event the seller doesn't show them before hand.

• Generally I don't sell eggs - so I can't help with that one.

 

[1muttsfan]

I actually think the tail angle on the above rooster is higher that I like to see. His comb is also a mess, unfortunately.

Order eggs on ebay at your own risk - it is a real crapshoot unless you know who the breeder is and can confirm they have good stock. Many of the birds pictured on there are really substandard. GFF has worked diligently to improve these birds, and I applaud her for that. It can take many generations to improve stock, and being limited by import restrictions does not help the matter.

 

[CibolaChooks]

• Roosters are VERY protective of their hens, if the rooster sees the human as a threat he may go after the human...I always have a great awareness of and respect for the rooster. Mine were gentle with the hens and one I thought would starve himself because he was constantly picking up and dropping food for the hens to get. I only keep ever one active rooster at a time -- so I don't know if you mean human aggressive roosters or rooster-to-rooster aggression. For awhile I kept an EE rooster for a friend and he nearly killed an Ideal 236 that I had at the time... He just didn't treat the hens very well. Cream Legbar roosters are NOTHING like that from what I have experienced and heard from others.

I have a human aggressive CL rooster, he will attack me in a heart beat if he sees me trying to catch one of the hens as they do their hes trying to murder me cry. With my other CL rooster in the same pen i can squat down and pet my chickens and sit within a foot of him and he will just watch me. Ill try to pet his chest and he just steps out of reach. he really likes me though and puts a beat down on the other rooster when he trys to get me. He wont stand for that Human aggressive roo to attack me so for the most part he takes care of the problem. In some cases he watches the aggressive roo and will notice that he is thinking about getting me, so he stands between us as he is the dominate roo in the pen and the other one just knows better and walks away..

Both CL roos allowed my Game x EE roo into the pen with no fighting. the Game x EE roo will even challenge them when they mate his hens and there is no problems with them fighting. On the other hand if i allow my RIR out of his cage into the big pen both CL roos will fight him instantly .

 

[ChicKat]

I actually think the tail angle on the above rooster is higher that I like to see. His comb is also a mess, unfortunately.

Order eggs on ebay at your own risk - it is a real crapshoot unless you know who the breeder is and can confirm they have good stock. Many of the birds pictured on there are really substandard. GFF has worked diligently to improve these birds, and I applaud her for that. It can take many generations to improve stock, and being limited by import restrictions does not help the matter.

And...not only THAT but sometimes people on eBay post pictures of the parent birds...that AREN'T really the parent birds at all. Use GFF, BYC, Cream Legbar Club breeders list or MyPetChicken and have greater peace of mind for the quality of what you will get. :O)

 

[ChicKat]

I have a human aggressive CL rooster, he will attack me in a heart beat if he sees me trying to catch one of the hens as they do their hes trying to murder me cry. With my other CL rooster in the same pen i can squat down and pet my chickens and sit within a foot of him and he will just watch me. Ill try to pet his chest and he just steps out of reach. he really likes me though and puts a beat down on the other rooster when he trys to get me. He wont stand for that Human aggressive roo to attack me so for the most part he takes care of the problem. In some cases he watches the aggressive roo and will notice that he is thinking about getting me, so he stands between us as he is the dominate roo in the pen and the other one just knows better and walks away..

Both CL roos allowed my Game x EE roo into the pen with no fighting. the Game x EE roo will even challenge them when they mate his hens and there is no problems with them fighting. On the other hand if i allow my RIR out of his cage into the big pen both CL roos will fight him instantly .

THAT is how a rooster should be....One rooster that I raised from a chick would eat meal worms from my hand...each time he slightly forgot he had to be Lord of the Manor...but after his rehomming he supposedly jumped the new owner. (I guess not supposedly, but I would like to hear the rooster's side of the story) -- The one I got at 8-weeks old and raised from there...would never eat anything from my hand--after he reached sexual maturity and got that grumpy rooster look on his face--...although he was as fond of mealworms as any chicken on earth. He would also totally flare his hackles and flap his wings before ever making a run at my shins -- and the same thing -- the hen calls for "help ME, HELP me!!!) and the rooster responds...but he was so noisy, that I could always turn around and stare him down. --- One day -- I think a calf got in the yard... (I wasn't around...but I could see tracks, poop, and knocked over things)--- I think the rooster scared off the calf....THAT would have been something to see...but I digress.... I like the personality you describe for your dominant rooster....sounds like a champ.

 

[lonnyandrinda]

quick poll for all the breeders who have hatched and raised allot of CCL.

Would we as a group say that the tail angles is the biggest issue with the CCL in america. Fallowed secondly
by the comb then color.

My number 3 rooster is the only one that has kept a correct tail angle. He is smaller and has the worst
comb out of my 3 cream roos.

The other Two with better form and combs have had their tails raise up to almost 90 now.
They were fine but gradually have raised up.

Im thinking i might have to keep number 3 around just in case i cant correct the tail angles with my first two pairings .​

For my personal stock problems, I see:
1. tail angle
2. color
3. comb
BUT for the majority of stock in the US I agree you've got the order right.

Before I invest into some expensive chicks. I have some questions?
Are they good at Free Range?
Are the roosters aggressive, will they protect the hens?
How's their egg production?
What do female chicks and male chicks look like?
Is it better to order chicks from greenfire, or eggs from eBay?
Finally on a scale of 1-10 how easy are the eggs to sale?

I find they are excellent free rangers.
My roosters have not been aggressive. I'm sure as every breed has exceptions there are nasty roosters as well as good ones.
When they are not molting I get on average 5 eggs per week from each hen. I feel that is quite good for a blue egg layer.
As ChicKat said there are pictures on the website, but here's one for you. Males have a white spot, females have a very distinct stripe down their head and back.


I'm not sure that GFF often offers hatching eggs, I have not tried that route but only see chicks available on their website. In addition there is not guarantee which lines you will get in either eggs or chicks, so you could end up with a wild spectrum of quality there. I would also heed the warnings you have been given about E-bay- definitely buyer beware. Personally if I wanted good stock, I would probably start by contacting people on the club membership directory and ask specifically for photos of their breeding stock. A good breeder will be up front with the problems in their stock if you know the right questions to ask. Things that are common problems, such as gold hackles, crooked or flopped combs, tail angles, short backs, pale legs, etc. are good things to ask about just so you are going in with your eyes wide open.

As for ease of selling, that will depend greatly on your local market and what people are looking for. In my market this spring and summer, running 4 laying hens, I rarely had any female chicks older than two weeks old. I was selling about 15-20% of my eggs as hatching eggs and hatched and sold the rest as chicks. I did have to find buyers for the males which is difficult as they aren't particularly good sized for eating; a few batches that were heavily male (like 10:1!) I ended up putting them down as day olds (probably 15-20 chicks total). Some things that affect my market: there are several outlying communities that have people who sell eating eggs, and they like to have the blue eggs for variety. Also several of the cities, including Tulsa, Broken Arrow, and Bixby, have "no rooster" ordinances, so I get demand from people who can only have hens, and only a few at that, so they want "special" ones. Sexable at day old is very attractive to me for that reason.

 

[ChicKat]