Cubalaya Thread For Sharing Pics and Discussing Our Birds

[cubalaya]

doc or cubakid should know. all my wheaton hens have it. I wouldn't call it a fault but maybe something in the standard that I didn't see.
went to feathersite and every wheaton hen looks to have the same thing. maybe the judge knows

 

[wood&feathers]

Yes cuba, it looked to me like a feature rather than a fault, especially when I see pics of gorgeous type-y hens from Germany with the same coloration. I suspect calling it a fault presumes wheaten color birds should look the same across many different breeds. A cubalaya is not a Marans.

 

[cubalaya]

agree, the judge doesn't know cubalayas IMHO.

 

[troyer]

5/8th Cubalaya and 3/8th Ganoi pullet and several step siblings.

 

[cubakid]

It is called shafting, and frosting. Both are not desired, but present in most if the birds seen. I am selecting against it and have a couple hens that are looking a little more 'even' in their color.

 

[cubalaya]

you said not desired but is it a fault?

 

[southernmomma]

Since this seems to be the Cubalaya thread on BYC, I wanted to take a few minutes to make my case for why this a great breed. In my opinion, this is THE IDEAL "homesteader's" chicken breed. Why? Let me list off the reasons!!

1) Foraging ability- they are the best foragers of any breed we have had, they FAR SURPASS any American or European Dual purpose breeds, which just get fat and lazy and hang around the feeders. The Cubalayas will roam literally 5 -10 times farther away than any other breeds we have had, except some mixed breed bantams.

2) Predator avoidance- they are good at avoiding becoming dinner themselves, very, very fast, alert, good flyers, agile. We never lose adults, sometimes, a small chick, but never any adults. The males WILL defend their flock, I have seen therm attack hawks, cats, and dogs, and WIN.

3) Very hardy- neither cold nor heat really bothers them, I can't say the same for the fat, panting, dual purpose fatties. I have never had any get sick, get mites, anything like that. I have never even seen them suffer at all in heat or cold, and we have lost other types of chickens in both extreme heat and cold before.

4)Amazing brooders- the best broodies I've ever had, they all, 100%, go broody at least once a year, often twice, and go broody the first year. They never poop the nest, attack chicks, abandon chicks, anything like that. I have never had cocks bother sitting hens, or bother even newly hatched chicks. They will brood chicks for months, trying to cover huge nearly full grown chicks at night. They will easily tolerate moving to a broody coop to set, and they are DEDICATED, I have had them hatch muscovy eggs.

5)Great temperaments- they are wonderful, pleasant birds!! Very friendly, curious, NOT AT ALL NOISY OR FLIGHTY!!! Very relaxed around people, they don't scream when picked up, or even when they are going to the knife, they have courage and stay calm. They are also the most intelligent chickens I have had, they can figure out things that seem beyond other chickens. They are NOT "game", the cocks can be more aggressive than some breeds, for sure, but, they are not "homicidal maniacs". I have the greatest respect for gamefowl and the breeders of them, but, I am looking for the ideal, sustainable, low-input chicken, and the games, although fantastic in many ways, would need more input from me to keep them from killing each other. The cubalayas are the best choice I can find for temperament without being "dead game".

6) Slow growers, and normal layers- So, why do I list these 2 as positives? A fast growing bird will need more food, and better food, to maintain growth and be healthy. My goal is to eventually produce all my own feed, so, most of the birds feed has to come from their own efforts. I don't see fast growing birds as well suited to that, they are more well suited to be fed heaps of grain, with foraging as more of a vitamin supplement. I have friends from Mexico, Laos, and Zambia, there are no bagged chicken feeds there, yet, everyone has chickens , and somehow they survive. Also, the normal layers comment-they lay in spring thru fall, and STOP in the winter. This is great!! There is no food to forage here in the winter, and no market for eggs then, so, why should they even lay? I sell pastured eggs, well, in the winter, they sure are not pastured, so, I can't honestly sell them as such, plus , the market I sell them at is closed. So, what do I do with all the dual purpose breeds who stupidly lay eggs all winter? I'm in the process of phasing them all out, in favor of birds that lay when the grass is green, and quit in the winter.

7) Finally, they are BEAUTIFUL!!! Hard to beat such elegant, graceful fowl. Why should productive livestock not also be beautiful to watch?

I feel strongly these are a much better choice for people just looking to put eggs and meat on the table in a sustainable way, than any dual purpose breed ever will be. No, these are not super productive, BUT, they are very low input, which, it seems to me is way better if you primarily want eggs and meat for your own family, for the least work, time, cost, and hassle. And they are beautiful, with great personality!!

I am searching for a homestead bird. Heavy "dual-purpose" are not what I'm looking for~ not interested in strapping the feedbag on. A bird that can/will survive on home grown feeds and foraging environment and continue to mate and rear offspring naturally if there is some type of disruption in the grid (ie no flock raiser no incubator).

How do these birds flesh out...or rather, what's the distribution of flesh look like; heavy legs? even overall?

How slow is slow growing....how long are extra cockerels grown out?

Are there meatier strains? Broodier strains?

Are there exhibition lines versus utility lines?

Are there any fertility or hatchability issues in general or with a particular strain?

Thanks,
M

 

[wood&feathers]

M, I love my cubalayas. Their build is a slender game type right now, though we are all striving to increase overall size. Broodiness is an advantage for me. My cubalayas (descended from Sandhill stock) brood once a year. Their preferred timing is mid summer here, and half the hens moult while brooding. This minimizes egg laying disruption - get moult and brooding over at same time. The whole flock does not brood. If they can lay their eggs with a better broody, they keep on laying.

Hatchability/vigor is a mixed bag. Cubalayas are pretty rare. Since acceptance by APA in the 1930's they have been an exhibition breed. Thus there aren't that many lines, and have never been a large number of cubalayas bred. I have kept only cubalaya roosters for the last three years. The few barnyard crosses have been EXCEPTIONAL utility birds, especially the daughters of my cuckoo Marans. Real meaty, egg producing machines. And they are still athletic and good foragers.

For true hands off husbandry I recommend American Games.

 

[southernmomma]

M, I love my cubalayas. Their build is a slender game type right now, though we are all striving to increase overall size.  Broodiness is an advantage for me. My cubalayas (descended from Sandhill stock) brood once a year. Their preferred timing is mid summer here, and half the hens moult while brooding. This minimizes egg laying disruption - get moult and brooding over at same time.  The whole flock does not brood. If they can lay their eggs with a better broody, they keep on laying. 

Hatchability/vigor is a mixed bag. Cubalayas are pretty rare.  Since acceptance by APA in the 1930's they have been an exhibition breed.  Thus there aren't that many lines, and have never been a large number of cubalayas bred. I have kept only cubalaya roosters for the last three years.  The few barnyard crosses have been EXCEPTIONAL utility birds, especially the daughters of my cuckoo Marans.  Real meaty, egg producing machines. And they are still athletic and good foragers.

For true hands off husbandry I recommend American Games.

Thanks for the information~ what's available otherwise seems to be the same info, from the same source, reworked for each website. Would you say your cock birds took a year+ to obtain full growth?
That's a clever cross you have going

M

 

[wood&feathers]

The cockerels are as big as they will get in a year I think (fellas do you agree?). Cull cockerels are certainly worth eating at 6-8 months, but will never be as fleshy as a true DP bird. For soup or dumplings there is nothing finer - connective tissue is what makes those flavors, and fast growing birds will never have much connective tissue. The advantage is cubalayas or games will do their growing off the land if you give them half a chance. Mine eat anything they can fit in their gullet, and if there are baby snakes, crickets and such around, they prefer that to store bought ration. You will want to keep one or two favorite cock birds for more than a year. Their tails grow and fill out, and their skills develop. My old white cock is an awesome mentor and will brood young chicks if the hen cultivates him after hatching.

One of the strongest reasons to own this breed is beauty. The roosters are stunning, and the hens are impressive in their own right. Both are graceful and athletic, ballet dancers for the yard or woods.