Cubalaya Thread For Sharing Pics and Discussing Our Birds

[troyer]

Temperament is important. I would like to breed her son( 2022 cockerel, half brother to mine) to the hatched pullet chicks next year. Is that a possibility?

Are you asking about this one? If so, yes indeed! He is being bred to two hens this year, I'm hoping for some good chicks out of him.

 

[miss heny]

Honest question with bit less drooling:

Do they live up to their reputation of being a duel purpose or are most of the stock in the US show stock?

 

[troyer]

Honest question with bit less drooling:

Do they live up to their reputation of being a duel purpose or are most of the stock in the US show stock?

Most are show stock, but if they are bred according to the standard they should have good meaty body. Not mushy-meaty but rather a bit more of a solid meaty feel. For most of my breeding years I have selected for meat and eggs with keeping show quality in mind. In my opinion if someone doesn't really breed for show at all it's pretty easy to lose the defining characteristics of what makes them Cubalaya.
That being said, I think there are some breeders that don't really care to show, because that's not what they're doing it for, but rather because they love the birds and are content to have them for the enjoyment. There is nothing wrong in keeping a bird because they love them either.

 

[artMontague]

Are you asking about this one? If so, yes indeed! He is being bred to two hens this year, I'm hoping for some good chicks out of him.View attachment 3411094

Yes, this cockerel. Awesome . Looking forward to seeing your chicks.

 

[troyer]

I think there is a proper and improper egg shape for our Cubalaya. I don't remember who it was that I got this from but he considered it very important from the perspective of selection for the whole bird. His dream was that Cubalaya would become so highly competitive in the show room that egg shape would play a factor on which one ends up being the winner.
Here is a good example of what I do, under the circumstances where the line needs more chicks hatched I make exceptions. The narrow tip can be to long (too elongated) and too short, meaning the rounder ones can be too round, they are still oval, but the tip is not pronounced enough. In my experience the elongated ones struggle to hatch. The ones that dont have a well defined lower tip, pip from the wrong end too much, enough so, that when I incubator hatch I don't use those.

 

[troyer]

My best black standard cockerel from the 2022 hatches.

 

[fluffycrow]

My best black standard cockerel from the 2022 hatches.View attachment 3445554

He's gorgeous

 

[artMontague]

My best black standard cockerel from the 2022 hatches.View attachment 3445554

The way he stands has a nice command about him. like him.

 

[troyer]

I'm hoping the next generation will have less wattles.

 

[fluffycrow]

I'm hoping the next generation will have less wattles.

Oof that hit way too close to home