Developing My Own Breed Of Large Gamefowl For Free Range Survival (Junglefowl x Liege)

[Bigtom Turkey]

Yeah, the main limiting factor seems to be space and coops.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Yeah, the main limiting factor seems to be space and coops.

I currently have 8 coops of various sizes. 7 are occupied and I'm using the 8th as a winter planter/greenhouse. I've downsized my AGB project in order to make room for expanding both the Cracker improvement project and the "hawk-killer/terror-fowl" project with Indo and his progeny. 4 coops are devoted to the Cracker improvement project, while my largest coop is dedicated to Azog's rearing. Indo is free range and the free range farmyard could be considered a 9th "coop." One coop belongs to the AGBs. I have various dog crates that I've used in the past for separating AGB stags and keeping them on grass or storing Cracker stags I didn't want to cull but wanted to keep off of free range until I could rehome or sell them.

I have plenty of room for more coops. I just don't want to keep adding them forever. I would like to get a couple more of the 8x8 Producer's Pride Universal Poultry Pens Tractor Supply sells when they go on sale and maybe convert a covered shed to fly pens and call it good.

In truth 1 project is probably enough for a person to focus on to do right. I'm juggling 3. The Cracker improvement project may be done in a year or so. All I'm doing is infusing the American blood through 2 only distantly half-Cracker brood stags and breeding back to Crackers. The AGBs and the Indo birds are the ones that require the most space because both will require intensive single-pair line breeding at some point soon. I am single mating the half-Crackers by rotating Cracker hens in and out of the stags' coops. Its working out that hens are laying staggered so that I can keep track of which hens are laying what. By the time one goes broody on a batch the second hen in the coop starts laying and I can rotate the broody hen out with her clutch or let her set until they hatch then move them out.

Toe punching bitties has been a game changer for being able to combine chicks in coops or free range and still keep track of what is what.

 

[raingarden]

the "hawk-killer/terror-fowl" project

If I was a hawk, Azog would terrify me. He hasn't even started making spurs yet so the best is yet to come.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

If I was a hawk, Azog would terrify me. He hasn't even started making spurs yet so the best is yet to come.

He's definitely got that fire in his eyes.

He's a big baby like Indo though when it comes to interacting with humans. He purrs and clucks softly when I'm near him and he offers himself to be petted. He is the only chicken of mine to ever do so. Indo will tolerate me handling him and trusts me enough to go limp once I have him in hand, but if I reach out to Indo to touch he'll jump back like most other chickens will. Azog will allow me to stroke his back as much as I want and rarely moves out of reach. Sometimes he'll move to me if I stop petting him. He's my favorite bird of all I've produced. Number 1 was a beauty but he like the other Crackers wasn't personable to humans. Those with the oriental influence are definitely more people oriented.

Azog will still need more time to confirm he's not a man fighter (although I'm reasonably sure he isn't at all). Indo I implicitly trust after having him for so long. He likes being near us even if not being petted like Azog.

The father and grandfather of both birds, the black Wahl aseel I had, had the same personality. He was a hand pet with a dead game drive. I highly recommend the Wahl aseels for someone that wants the oriental gamefowl experience on a budget. Yes, at some point they've had straight comb gamefowl bred into them as mine have carried the recessive straight gene. But it doesn't diminish them in my opinion for my purposes.

 

[Appalachian homestead]

How the cracker and terror lines compare in egg production?

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Mature Crackers are my best layers actually. Just smaller eggs. But they lay a lot late spring through early summer then again in fall. My laying hens have been shut off since the summer solstice except for my younger RIR and Austrolorp. My AGBs also lay very well.

Indo's sister is so-so to decent, but like the layers she hasn't laid since summer. The pure Liege laid well in spurts but like the layers weren't laying after late spring.

Understand that my layers are 3+ years old. I don't cull them. I like their larger spring time eggs.

 

[drangle]

i love reading through this thread and enjoy your youtube videos about your breeding project as well. I see some egg laying breeds in the background, have you ever tried crossing your survival chickens or fighters with one of them? if so how were the results?

 

[Az OEGB]

He's definitely got that fire in his eyes.

He's a big baby like Indo though when it comes to interacting with humans. He purrs and clucks softly when I'm near him and he offers himself to be petted. He is the only chicken of mine to ever do so. Indo will tolerate me handling him and trusts me enough to go limp once I have him in hand, but if I reach out to Indo to touch he'll jump back like most other chickens will. Azog will allow me to stroke his back as much as I want and rarely moves out of reach. Sometimes he'll move to me if I stop petting him. He's my favorite bird of all I've produced. Number 1 was a beauty but he like the other Crackers wasn't personable to humans. Those with the oriental influence are definitely more people oriented.

Azog will still need more time to confirm he's not a man fighter (although I'm reasonably sure he isn't at all). Indo I implicitly trust after having him for so long. He likes being near us even if not being petted like Azog.

The father and grandfather of both birds, the black Wahl aseel I had, had the same personality. He was a hand pet with a dead game drive. I highly recommend the Wahl aseels for someone that wants the oriental gamefowl experience on a budget. Yes, at some point they've had straight comb gamefowl bred into them as mine have carried the recessive straight gene. But it doesn't diminish them in my opinion for my purposes.

Were did you get you Wahl aseel

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Were did you get you Wahl aseel

From Mr. Wahl.

There was to my recollection two members of the Wahl family who sold hatching eggs on eBay. I can check my records to confirm which one I dealt with. The impression I had was that the elder Mr. Wahl was the person who originally imported them in the 1980s and I was dealing with a younger Mr. Wahl, possibly his son or a close relative. I’ll check when I can.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

flyingfrizzle was his eBay handle. Good quality eggs and good communication with me. Actually the best experience I’ve had buying eggs on ebay. If he still sells, I recommend.