Dominique Thread!

[Sylvester017]

I couldn't agree with you more re: several of your points: I love the productivity record of the Leghorn, and don't even object to their white eggs. You get a large egg from a smaller, feed efficient bird. That's why I've chosen the Rose combed brown Leghorn: Small comb, fuel efficient, smaller frame, well camoflaged. And, these girls can run! I expect them to be about as good as they come at predator evasion. After a season or 2 with these girls, and the Doms, I'll be well positioned to make some decisions about what works best in my flock. I expect that the Doms are here for the long haul. The RCBL may, or may not make the cut. I will bypass any feather footed birds, b/c IMO, they don't do well in snowy frozen conditions, even though common sense might lead you to think otherwise. Buckeyes are on my watch list. I'm thinking that i'll need to choose and stick with either rose or pea combs, and it'd be counter productive to mix the 2. Buckeye x EE might make a fun bird. (Buckeyes are pea combed, aren't they???)

Alaskan, you and I, an I'm sure a lot of other people seem to be heading in a similar direction and choosing the same breeds for the same reasons! Are you putting any broodies into your flock? Or do you have an incubator?

I LOVE Leghorns for so many reasons and because my folks raised Babcocks for nearly 15 years I am very familiar with the White SC varieties. But Mediterranean class fowl are not shrinking violets - yes they are usually mind-their-own-business independent alert foragers but for lightweight birds can really get assertive in their adult years to the point of actually bullying smaller or the larger gentler breeds so I wouldn't put any Mediterraneans in a mixed flock of non-assertive breeds. If your RCBLs turn out great layers than I would hesitate keeping them with gentler or smaller breeds.

Though Dominiques are not shrinking violets either they are less combative than Mediterranean breeds and I wouldn't mix the two breeds. EEs and Ameraucanas are non-combative gentle souls and are really lighterweight than all their fluff leads you to believe so I wouldn't put them in a mix of RCBLs either. Our Buff Leg tore out the beard/muff of our Amer (my avatar) who didn't fight back and they were the exact same age! We had to re-home both our White and Buff Legs - wonderful birds but too assertive around our gentler breeds.

Buckeyes were created with pea combs for dual purpose in cold climates and brood their own young so should do as well as the Dominiques. I just prefer Dominiques because of their overt friendliness and curiosity with human interraction - excellent feed-to-egg ratio, excellent foragers, rose combs, brood their own young, good layers, cold hardy, alert, friendly, no feathered feet or muffs, speckled camouflage feathering that is extremely s-o-f-t to the touch and some use the feathers for fly-fishing, extra cockerels dress out nice, etc etc. I love so many chicken breeds for various reasons but the Dom fits the bill in every category I come up with as either a pet or a utility breed for all climates and productivity.

 

[lazy gardener]

You should go into advertising.!!! I'll keep my eye on the Leghorns, and obviously, if they don't play well with others, they'll not be invited to stay. So far, they're doing fine, and they avoid conflict. In the younger set, the EE x PBR are the most aggressive birds, and that's not saying much!

 

[Sylvester017]

You should go into advertising.!!! I'll keep my eye on the Leghorns, and obviously, if they don't play well with others, they'll not be invited to stay. So far, they're doing fine, and they avoid conflict. In the younger set, the EE x PBR are the most aggressive birds, and that's not saying much!

As chicks and juveniles most pullet breeds mix ok. It's when they reach adulthood anywhere from 18 mos to 2 years that the battles begin. Sometimes a very hard moult or a broody period will bring on aggressive behavior and once started sometimes never stops unless the hen is isolated or re-homed. My friend has a "hen-itentiary" pen where she throws her combative girls until they either calm down in a few weeks or are sent to freezer camp. I'm not talking about normal flock politics where there is a matriarch leader that keeps others in line - I'm talking about damaging behavior like tearing out feathers, digging claws into others, or chewing off the combs or wattles of other flockmates, etc. We had an alpha White Leg leader that was wonderful for 3 years and then suddenly went ballistic on the flock. She had to be re-homed and today is still assertive but in a flock of equal peers.

Never had an EExBR mix but we have had both BRs and Doms and I prefer the Doms - lighter weight, curious, good foragers, brood their own young, easy on the feed bill because they're smaller than BRs, soft feathers that some use for fly-fishing, good egg layers, make good pets as well as utility chickens, the extra cockerels dress out nice, etc. A friend had to re-home her BR and BCM when they got aggressive. Her Buff Orp is pushy but not as aggressive as the BR and BCM.

Mediterranean class fowl (Leghorn, Ancona, Andalusian, Minorca, etc) are wonderful layers, good foragers, good on the feed bill. But they're not shy and can get very assertive in adulthood so I wouldn't mix them with gentler or smaller fowl.

 

[Alaskan]

@lazy gardener

This year is my "experimental" year. So I bought enough of good stock of a few breeds, to try them out and see what I want to stick with and breed.

As to broodies, I bought three standard sized white Cochin last year, hoping that at least one might be a broody. Of the three, one did a great job, she didn't get any of the shipped eggs I gave her to hatch, but she sat well (so it could have easily just been the eggs), but she did very well with the chicks. I will keep her as a broody, but I also have an incubator.

 

[Zone3Dakota]

I've taken steps to enter into the world of Doms...will hopefully be getting a small start next spring/summer. I've contacted a nice couple from South Dakota that said that they'd be willing to share. Heck of a drive, but that's the way that it is in this part of the country.

Have not had chickens in fifty years, lol. Our property and area is RIFE with animals and birds that would love some chicken dinners. If there is any chance that they will be able to free range on our forty acres, they need to be a 'lighter' faster bird, or we'll have to settle for a large run. Until I get stock built up, the birds will need to be able to handle a certain amount of confinement. The Doms just seemed to be the right choice.

Our area has an active 4-H and FFA community and I hope to promote the Doms in those areas. That is the reason that I want good starter stock from a breeder, rather than going for hatchery stock right away. I've always shown whatever critters that I've owned/bred, but am slowing down...may just let the kids do that part. I'm more interested in home produce and promoting the breed. If I make it to the ND state fair, that will probably be the extent of my showing. But,you never know...

Seems Doms are a rare bird in ND.

 

[Alaskan]

@Zone3Dakota Sounds like a great plan! Doms sound like the perfect bird in your situation.

 

[Zone3Dakota]

Alaskan, you are definitely north of me, but I'm betting that we get just about as much cold weather as you. Any problems with the Dom roos in the cold?

I was also wondering...if I can address those who have had Doms a while...do the northern breeders strive for smaller wattles on their birds, verses the southern breeders? If I recall correctly, Doms are to have a medium size wattle. Knowing how critter judges be, in other critter areas, there is a large range of 'middlenesses' that are allowed, or even desired. Walking on eggshells, here. I dunno if there is a short answer to this, or if it needs it's own thread,or the subject is dealt with elsewhere, or even if it could be viewed as trolling, lol.

 

[lazy gardener]

I agree with you that smaller wattles would be desirable. I'm just getting started myself, with 3 hatchery pullets. I chose that way to start for convenience. To my knowledge there are very few Doms in Maine, and I'm promoting them strongly on the Maine thread. Unfortunately, a lot of the pics I've seen show the roos sporting pendulous wattles. I'd love to hear feed back from breeders if they are breeding to decrease wattle size. I also like a nice tight rose comb. I think you'll be delighted with your choice of bird. If i could have only one breed, i think it'd be Doms. Unfortunately, I'm like a kid in a candy store, but leaning towards rose and pea combs, non feathered feet, and birds that forage well, with the aim to do a barn yard mix, and see what shakes out of the nest box!

PS: I'm zone 4.

 

[Sylvester017]

I've taken steps to enter into the world of Doms...will hopefully be getting a small start next spring/summer. I've contacted a nice couple from South Dakota that said that they'd be willing to share. Heck of a drive, but that's the way that it is in this part of the country.

Have not had chickens in fifty years, lol. Our property and area is RIFE with animals and birds that would love some chicken dinners. If there is any chance that they will be able to free range on our forty acres, they need to be a 'lighter' faster bird, or we'll have to settle for a large run. Until I get stock built up, the birds will need to be able to handle a certain amount of confinement. The Doms just seemed to be the right choice.

Our area has an active 4-H and FFA community and I hope to promote the Doms in those areas. That is the reason that I want good starter stock from a breeder, rather than going for hatchery stock right away. I've always shown whatever critters that I've owned/bred, but am slowing down...may just let the kids do that part. I'm more interested in home produce and promoting the breed. If I make it to the ND state fair, that will probably be the extent of my showing. But,you never know...

Seems Doms are a rare bird in ND.

Dom breeders are rare ANYWHERE! I'm surprised you even found a private breeder. There aren't any LF breeders in my state. I have to get my Doms from the feed store who orders most of his assorted breeds from Privett Hatchery in NM so consider yourself lucky to find a breeder somewhere within driving distance. If I wanted to pickup from a private breeder I would have to drive from SoCal to Oregon or WA or go to the bird show in the SF Bay area of CA over 500 miles away - that kind of trip would take 2-3 days one way and pretty stressful for the birds. That's why I order USPS shipped juvenile birds (no chicks) that ship to me overnight to my local P.O. for pickup.

 

[Sylvester017]

I've taken steps to enter into the world of Doms...will hopefully be getting a small start next spring/summer. I've contacted a nice couple from South Dakota that said that they'd be willing to share. Heck of a drive, but that's the way that it is in this part of the country.

Have not had chickens in fifty years, lol. Our property and area is RIFE with animals and birds that would love some chicken dinners. If there is any chance that they will be able to free range on our forty acres, they need to be a 'lighter' faster bird, or we'll have to settle for a large run. Until I get stock built up, the birds will need to be able to handle a certain amount of confinement. The Doms just seemed to be the right choice.

If you are planning on free-ranging your flock of Doms then have more than one roo. The roos will fight predators to the death to save the hens. Also provide a lot of low lean-to shelters around the property or large doghouses or several pop-up canopies anchored in soil to keep from para-sailing away. These numerous scattered shelters give the chickens a lot of snoozing/hiding places from aerial predators who don't go after hiding chickens - they prefer to swoop down in open areas. And don't clip the chickens' wings so they can fly out of harm's way of a ground predator. Doms are alert, quick, active fowl and were used by Colonials for all these desirable traits but it takes our good sense to provide adequate shelters. Shelters are crucial if you are open-ranging mommas and chicks since chicks are prime predator bait - or else keep them confined until the juvies grow out at 4 or 5 months before allowing them to free-range.

If you want to keep chickens within an open-range parameter than you will have to consider moveable fences that commercial poultry farms use to keep the chickens from wandering off during free-range pasteuring. Just be mindful to provide a lot of shelters for them in open fields. We have seen some open-range farms provide perches under canopies so chickens aren't ground targets for ground predators like dogs or foxes. These are just some ideas to give an open-range flock some security. Electric fencing is another good method.