Dominique Thread!

[Sylvester017]

As tiny chicks my 3 Dom girls were skittish as one would expect tiny chicks to be but one was especially skittish. Working with all the chicks as they grew has now made that one skittish chick our most pesty-friendly one of the bunch. I was worried she'd always be stand-offish but she's an absolute delight now -- flying to our arm or lap, jumping onto the treat in our hand, standing on our shoes or pecking at our pant leg.

The littlest Dom girl has turned out at the bottom of the pecking order as I predicted and like lower-status chickens she'll wander off to scratch around and waits until the other 2 dominant girls lose interest in treats before she comes over for her share. Most of the time all 3 girls rush for feed or treats and they each have their favorite food preferences.

At first, I only wanted one Dom but with chicks it's best to get at LEAST 2 chicks and I played it safe and got 3 chicks in case of a loss -- but so far all 3 are doing well and after losing 2 adult birds unexpectedly I'm rather glad I opted to get the 3 chicks so that my zoned number of chickens is back to 5 total again. They've lost most of their downy feathers with just a little more to go.

 

[Alaskan]

pretty looking girls.

 

[Chickassan]

They're beautiful!

 

[Sylvester017]

@Alaskan
@Chickassan
@holm25
Thank you for your kind interest.

These 71/2 weeks-old Dom chicks are like mini-adults now -- scratching, foraging, dust-bathing, alert to aerial flyovers or stray cats, excellent insect/snail catchers, etc. They grew so fast in the blink of an eye! And of course, they're extremely pesty-friendly. They all look different to me so I'm looking forward to which one will look best when fully grown. Since they are hatchery birds I'm not expecting perfection but I'm pleased that they have the unmistakable Dom personality for which they're renowned. Still, I hope at least one will have the distinct U-shape concave back or else a lovely leader at the end of her rosecomb. They all still have the dark shading down the front of their legs and toes which I thought would've disappeared by now.

Because of their outgoing friendliness they've been a real hit with visitors and one couple are excited enough to get their own flock when they set up their new spacious property. They already have their coop with plans to do it right with a roomy protected run in their rural area.

To give an idea of the size of our girls now, the 3 of them as tiny week-old chicks used to stand on the bottom green feeder-ring and chased each other on the feeder-slots as if it was a racetrack!

These girls don't stay still for photo shoots but this one looks promising for a U-back.

Their funny juvenile tails are still filling out

My DH calls them the "Powerpuff" girls! But I've named them Dana, Jewlz, and Opal. Dana on far left is the littlest girl and has the lightest color feathers. They now have blue eyes until the eyes will turn reddish-bay as adults.

 

[Sylvester017]

@Faraday40 Has Bubbles ever gone broody?

 

[Faraday40]

@Faraday40 Has Bubbles ever gone broody?

Not yet. We have a couple bantams that are crazy broody, so Bubbles not being broody is a good thing for me. I collect the eggs several times a day to discourage it. Bubbles hatched in 2015, so she's also still young.

 

[holm25]

Got this Cockerel yesterday... What do you all think? I liked him so I got him...

 

[Alaskan]

I really like his small smooth comb (but that is me, most prefer small bumps)... the back comb point though is too close to the head.

What I find a bit odd though. ..is his color...he is a bit dark.... could be the photos...

in the one feather close up the black is in nice 'V' shapes, which is good.

He has a good top line.

Looks like a good boy to work with.

 

[Sylvester017]

@Faraday40 I've had hens as young as a year go broody -- my year-old Cuckoo Breda decided she'd go broody for 3 weeks twice this year which surprised me since my Blue Breda never did. My Cuckoo would sometimes lay eggs 9 days in a row so I was relieved when she'd go broody. My Blue Breda started laying as a pullet, continued laying without stop for 10+ consecutive months, her last two eggs were soft-shell, and then died at 11/2 years old -- so I get nervous when prolific layers don't take a broody break. I guess broodiness depends on the individual.

I like broody-type breeds that don't lay productively so they can give their bodies a nutritient-replenishing body break between laying cycles. I guess it's wait-and-see if any of my Dom chicks grow up to be broody which I hope they will since my understanding is that Doms do hatch and raise their own young. I don't want new chicks, just want the Doms to go broody for laying cycle breaks other than molting breaks which are just as stressful as laying cycles.

 

[Sylvester017]

@holm25 Your cockerel is young but I love his concave back -- the boys do show off the best qualities about Doms! His wattles are not huge but his smaller comb is going to make his wattles look slightly bigger than they are. Like Alaskan said, some people like a bumpier comb or a smoother comb and I personally like something halfway between. I like how straight your cockerel's comb is -- I've seen some really crooked ones. As for leaders (spike at end of comb) it's something to shoot for in breeding. I don't breed but I would love it if at least one of my Dom chicks grows up to have a bit of a leader at the rosecomb end that doesn't lie flat against her head. Sometimes the spikes fall off from injury or frostbite anyway. I'm also hoping that at least one of my girls shows off a U-shape Dom back. My highest ultimate hope for my Doms is that they retain the sweetness the breed is known for because they wind up being our backyard pets for years.