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Not just any hatchery stock - McMurray in particular, look iffy.
Something that people new to chickens often don't get - and something that exhibition poultry folk are just as likely to be clueless about because it is beneath them - is that not all hatchery stock is the same.
Each hatchery with a Crevecoeur flock, or any flock of a traditional chicken breed, has its own group of birds; it may have had them for 10 years, or for 25, or much longer; in the case of Duane Urch's Creves, it is more like 40 years. There is not some generic "chicken central" where all these birds come from. Hatcheries may start with exhibition stock from private breeders, sometimes from private breeders who are retiring from poultry and need to sell all their birds quickly; or they may buy starting stock from other hatcheries; or from hatchery-like private breeders who sell chicks on a commercial scale (eg. Urch Turnland). Over the years they may acquire additional birds as the need or opportunity arises. You wind up with definite differences between the hatcheries. When I made disparaging observations about McMurray's Creve offering, the last thing I wanted was for someone to see "McMurray Creves are mostly Polish and appear to have problems with vigor" (YES) but read "any or all hatchery birds in general have likely been mixed with Polish for vigor" (NOO!!! the opposite!).
BTW pictures people have posted recently of Creves from Ideal look pretty good. Thumbs up!! Really, no joke.
Not just any hatchery stock - McMurray in particular, look iffy.
Something that people new to chickens often don't get - and something that exhibition poultry folk are just as likely to be clueless about because it is beneath them - is that not all hatchery stock is the same.
Each hatchery with a Crevecoeur flock, or any flock of a traditional chicken breed, has its own group of birds; it may have had them for 10 years, or for 25, or much longer; in the case of Duane Urch's Creves, it is more like 40 years. There is not some generic "chicken central" where all these birds come from. Hatcheries may start with exhibition stock from private breeders, sometimes from private breeders who are retiring from poultry and need to sell all their birds quickly; or they may buy starting stock from other hatcheries; or from hatchery-like private breeders who sell chicks on a commercial scale (eg. Urch Turnland). Over the years they may acquire additional birds as the need or opportunity arises. You wind up with definite differences between the hatcheries. When I made disparaging observations about McMurray's Creve offering, the last thing I wanted was for someone to see "McMurray Creves are mostly Polish and appear to have problems with vigor" (YES) but read "any or all hatchery birds in general have likely been mixed with Polish for vigor" (NOO!!! the opposite!).
BTW pictures people have posted recently of Creves from Ideal look pretty good. Thumbs up!! Really, no joke.
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