Dominique Thread!

[centrarchid]

English grammar is a tool improperly used as a weapon by me. Sorry.

To clarify, I want to develop longer tails (and wings) but intermediate steps in that direction will likely result in the "smutty" appearance of bars on males where transition between dark and light areas will not be sharp. I would like contrast of existing birds maintained but suspect some sort of pigmentation intensifier allele will be needed to compensate for increased feather growth rate.

To my eye, the ample tail desired on dom by many looks like a bunch noodles with minimal flight worthiness. Too many sicle feathers that transition smoothly from saddle feathers.

I very much agree outside influence may be required. Presently dom x game hybrids being generated to replace slow feathering genes in one of my dom lines. Dom line in use has at least two loci involving slow feathering genes. One loci is on Z (male) chromosome and another is autosomal. The former I think is derived from barred rock influence for promoting barring and possibly feather sexing of hatchery stocks. The other appears present in all dom lines I have. Other slow feathering loci can not be ruled out at this time. Developing a fast feathering dom line will result in something that may resemble a rose combed California grey.

Images I refer to are from Mark Feild's book and website.

 

[WallTenters]

Gotcha... and I think a RC California Grey might be in order! I'd looked into those, but I haven't seen many of them so I figured it was a useless pursuit to even think of using them in a Dom breeding program, so I stopped thinking about it. I've also thought that leghorn influence might give a better feather length (and improve egg size maybe), but I haven't really done a lot of research into the genetics of it. Maybe in five or ten years I'll be brave enough to play around with introducing another breed to influence our Dom strain, but for now I'll leave that up to folks with more breeding knowledge and space than we have

ETA... Do you have any plans about battling the back shape out of the game influence? It seems like games have a straight, downward sloping back, but then it jots up into the tail. The Dominique should have more of a swooping back. It will be nice to see how the crosses work out!

Delight - I actually like your gal's shape. She's mid stride so I think she doesn't look as nice as she would if she were posed correctly and the camera was side-on to her instead of at the angle. I think if you found a nicely shaped rooster with a large eye and nice high breast I think they would have really nice babies. Little chickies!

Her barring is a bit even right at the transition of her breast and neck, and since her sisters have such even barring I'd really watch that with the rooster, but again, color is not everything - type is much more important.

Do you know how much she weighs? It's hard for me to tell, not being very experienced, just looking at a photo of a bird and knowing what they might look and feel like in real life. Where is NYREDS?

We need a judge on this one! I'm just imagining that hen properly posed and I think she would look very nice. I can see only a small flat spot on her back, which I again think is the mid-stride pose.

How funny that in real life, all animals look better when they're moving, yet in photos they all look worse!

 

[Gallusfarm]

Quote:
John, She is lovely. A great example of the pattern needed.

All- I do not have Mr. Fields' book, however this thread is becoming a wonderful substitute. Very knowledgeable folks here. Can't thank you enough.

 

[buffalogal]

For comparison;
Barred Rock

Dominique

When a bird has the correct shape, the only position she could be in that might hide it would be eating with her head down.

#37 furiously pacing like a caged tiger

the same bird once she finally stood still. Not perfectly posed, but still.

 

[buffalogal]

Quote:
(takes off her velvet glove)
Slap! Slap!
Pistols at dawn Sir.

Sorry, I couldn't resist...

 

[Gallusfarm]

Quote:
Great comparison. Thanks. Let me ask though, if you have a standard weight pullet, and took a ruler an measured from say where the curve at the shoulder starts and the curve at the tail starts, how long would that be? The length of the back is a toughie for me...

 

[greentree]

Hello, everyone!!! The last few pages of this discussion are very interesting. I read the first few some time ago, and have not gotten to the middle....

My brother roped me into raising Dominiques by giving me the incubator, and some eggs. I already had a mixed breed laying flock.

I should probably go into "the rest of the story"........


My brother decided to join ALBC and become a small stock raiser. No animal husbandry experience. I was shocked , to say the least!! I have a degree in agriculture and raise horses, some chickens, and hay.

He drove from Texas to Missouri on Thanksgiving holiday several years ago to pick up the remaining birds from Mark Fields flock. He was determined to keep this strain alive. He would bring me 100+ eggs, and about 10 would be fertile, and 3-4 would hatch. I could not tell you why fertility was so low.

I bought a rooster to outcross with the few pullets I hatched, and got some good hatches, but am not super pleased. I have about 10 hens that I like, and the rest in the laying flock. He has 2 roosters left, and 4-5 hens, but recently sent me some eggs, and they have no fertility!

I desperately need a GOOD rooster. His hens are BEAUTIFUL, but they are going to die off, and these great chickens are going to be lost.....Can someone please help??

Nancy

 

[Gallusfarm]

Quote:
Hi Nancy, Love to hear stories like yours, not so much the lack of fertility, but that there are more folks dedicated to Dominiques! So, are you located in Texas?

 

[Gallusfarm]

If you are in TX, I think Sam Brush has Dominiques, I think I read that somewhere....

His info is here, in the lower right...

http://www.amerpoultryassn.com/

 

[greentree]

Yes!! neglected to mention that, didn't I ??? I am between Houston and Austin, my brother, north of Houston.

I have grown quite fond of these birds, and would love to get the line up to par. We don't have a lot of chicken shows around here, but I can think of three. My brother has no interest in showing, but I love getting an outside opinion on the breeding. The Dom's I see at the shows are very different from ours, and I would like to know how ours stack up against them, to know if I can go to them for stock, since they are probably in my area.

Specifically, I am trying to get rid of some rusty color on the roosters wings, and some rough, furrowed comb. I have some decent shape, but it seems to come with the bad comb. My outcross roo had a decent comb, but throws a down-turned spike . I got some good color from him. The Fields chickens were really faded, some almost to white.

The hens need a bit more tail, I think. The few hens my brother has left are very nice, and I REALLY want some good chicks from them.

Nancy