Delawares?

[ravenfeathers]

Quote:
so, imagine my surprise after studying that chart a few weeks back to discover that my buff orp lays nearly an egg a day, putting her well up into the "very good"-"excellent" range.

you get weirdos in every breed.

 

[coopist]

Well, yeah, you can always find an exceptional individual.

But generally, if memory serves, I think the breed can be expected to lay around 160-180 per year, on average. RIRs can be expected to lay around 300, on average. That's a big difference. But Orps are fine enough layers for a dual purpose bird.

 

[Davaroo]

If I may, I'll toss my usual wet blanket here.

I would suggest you be wary of egg production numbers. They are not cast in stone as there are far too many variables to accurately say what one or the other will do. Egg laying is still seaonal for most of us unless we want to resort to controlled and confined housing.

RIR's and A-lorps have been bred for over a century to produce eggs. The Delaware was not - it was a broiler first, as I understand it. WHen going with a breed like the RIR's, A-lorp or the production hybrid, the 180 eggs per year number is closer to the truth of the matter for the most of us.
Sure, someone always chimes in with how many eggs THEIR birds gets, but that's them. That can be misleading. Yeah, you get plenny eggs in spring, but what about the summer slowdown? The winter halt? The molt? The stoppage because the coyotes have been nosing around or the lawnmower got too close?

As a newbie (and recall, the OP is a self professed newb), I would plan on an egg every other day and less outside the peak seasons. If you get more, hey, great! If not there wont be any great surprises.

 

[coopist]

Quote:
Agreed. As always, your mileage may vary.

 

[BeardedChick]

Just butting into say that I got Delawares from Ideal and they are exceptionally friendly & tame. I would love to get some more from their strain, if I had the room! Their type is not fully set - some of them are a little bigger and with a darker pattern. A couple are a little smaller and lighter. But they all have great temperaments.

My buffs from Privett - which I expected to be super friendly - are not. So much for 'big, friendly birds'.

 

[seriousbill]

You're not butting in at all.

There was someone else on here, I think it was Meesh, who said she had a great experience with Ideal's strain.

 

[Mahonri]

I got what looks like a Delaware roo from McMurray. (If it's not a Delaware, its a Columbian Rock)... but in my group of rainbow layers that were all supposed to be pullets, I got a roo.

Very skitish, picks on everyone and when he's a little bigger, he will be dinner.

 

[seriousbill]

Mahonri, is that the pea-combed bird you posted the picture of? If so, I'd wonder about it being a pure Columbian Rock, because they, like Delawares, have single combs. Also, doesn't it have barring?

 

[Mahonri]

yes, that's the one but I didn't think it was pea combed... but it has no barring.

 

[seriousbill]

Well, I can see why you thought it was a Delaware. And it's hard to tell about the comb in the picture, but it looks more pea than single to me, especially if it is, as you said in the other thread, a 10-week-old male. Columbian Rock neck lacing doesn't usually look so spotty (spots like that are usually an indication of a copy of the barring gene). Here's a link to Feathersite's Plymouth Rock page. There are some Columbian Rocks on there: http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/CGP/Rocks/BRKRocks.html