Discussing Chicken Breeds Based on Emotions Rather Than Facts

[Bullitt]

The resent thread I started about best all-around chicken breed was interesting to me because of the way some people argued for a chicken breed based on emotions rather than facts.

One person might say, my breed of chicken lays more eggs than that.
How do you know? Do you have any information to support that? Or did you put each hen in a separate cage and track egg-laying for a year and then average out the numbers or something?
No, but my chicken breed is the best and you will just have to take my word for it.
Ah, okay.

I was trying to use all the information I could find -- chicken websites, hatcheries, breeders, the Livestock Conservancy, whatever. I was gathering information on size, number of eggs, broodiness, foraging ability, and any other information I could find.

My Leghorns are the size of Brahmas and and are the greatest all-around chicken.
What information do you have?
Just take my word for it.
Ahh, no.

Or a person might say, I owned one of that breed and it is the worst chicken breed.
You owned one of those? Even if you had a whole flock of that breed it still would only tell you what that strain is like. There are many variations among a breed of chickens.

I have favorite breeds of chickens that I know are not the greatest all-around chicken breed. I like Brown Leghorns, but they are not very good for meat. So I am not going to argue that the Leghorn is the best all-around chicken, even though it has many other excellent qualities.

It is interesting to me that people have difficulty looking at breeds of chickens objectively, and rather, will argue based on emotions.

By the way, the Silkie is the best all-around chicken. I do not care what anyone else says. They are great at free-ranging, lay 300 eggs a year, and rarely go broody. Believe me, I know.

 

[sylviethecochin]

By the way, the Silkie is the best all-around chicken. I do not care what anyone else says. They are great at free-ranging, lay 300 eggs a year, and rarely go broody. Believe me, I know.

No, no. You're confusing them with the Cochin bantam (Pekin.) Or possibly the bearded Polish. Silkies don't gain enough weight to be a good meat-bird.

 

[Bullitt]

I am laughing. I hope that was a joke.

 

[HaikuHeritageFarm]

The problem is that your question is a poll based on anecdotal evidence, personal experience, and potential dramatically different needs and expectations and each of these people may be entirely telling the truth about *THEIR* birds. Not to mention that five different lines of the same breed could present five totally different valuations.

When I was single and lived alone, bantams WERE hands down the absolute best all-around breeds for me.

Not to be mean but "what is the best all-around chicken breed" is kind of a pointless question.

 

[sylviethecochin]

I am laughing. I hope that was a joke.

You don't think Cochins banties can be good meat birds? You doubt my word?

Anyone who disagrees with my opinion, or likes different birds than I do, is an utterly daft moron. No arguments.

 

[Bullitt]

The problem is that your question is a poll based on anecdotal evidence, personal experience, and potential dramatically different needs and expectations and each of these people may be entirely telling the truth about *THEIR* birds. Five different lines of the same breed could present five totally different valuations.

Not to be mean but "what is the best all-around chicken breed" is kind of a pointless question.

No, it is not based on anecdotal evidence. It is based on many years of data about chicken breeds. You can look up the numbers from egg-laying contests, for example.

Didn't I just write that there can be variations among a breed? But there is a consensus about what a breed is. That is why we have breed standards.

Are there slow thoroughbred horses? Yes. But if I ask, what breed of horse is best for running a mile? The answer is the thoroughbred.

If you do not believe breeds have particular traits, you are wasting your time with a breed of animal.

I guess we should use Australian shepherds to retrieve ducks.

 

[HaikuHeritageFarm]

There are probably lines of Australian Shepherds that retrieve ducks far better than some of the lines of Labrador Retrievers I've seen.

If you want to do a meta-analysis based on facts and data and research, ask for that. Otherwise it's pointless, because a hatchery Barred Rock is NOT even remotely comparable to a standardbred Rock. People reporting their experience with various breeds is not a reflection of their emotions, it's a reflection of their experience and considering how much INSANE variation there can be within a single "breed" in poultry, it's likely accurate reporting on their part.

 

[ValerieJ]

You don't think Cochins banties can be good meat birds? You doubt my word?

Anyone who disagrees with my opinion, or likes different birds than I do, is an utterly daft moron. No arguments.