D'uccle breeders Database

[k0r1nag]

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Thank you so much for the link and the good info.

 

[SunshineSilkies]

Here are some of my d'Uccles. Been a long process getting my flock to where I am satisfied with it. It's always a project in the works! Next to my silkies, they are my most docile breed!



2 of my hens placed BB and RB at a sanctioned show in Georgia last spring out of 19, so I was pretty pleased with that! They go thru spells though on their laying habits..one minute you have tons of eggs and the next...none!

 

[Yeagin1]

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Very very nice!! You can ship me a box full of those beautiful hens any day!!

I just checked out your site and your Silkies are drop dead gorgeous too!! You can throw a few of those in that box too

 

[SunshineSilkies]

Yeagin1-Thanks for the compliment! Appreciate it.

wegotchickens-Very nice birds! I look for the spots on the tips of the tails...nice!

 

[wegotchickens]

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Thanks! Love yours, too. Are they from a particular lineage?

 

[NateinFL]

I agree, those are some of the best d'uccles I've seen!

 

[Gypsylion]

I know this question has been asked a zillion times, but what do you guys do to keep their foot feathers in decent condition leading up to show season? I've read a lot of recommendations, and based on what I've read, I have them in a coop with a thick bed of shavings, with a run of mostly sand and some dirt. I occasionally let them out to range the backyard, but only for a few hours at a time and that's all grass and veggie gardens (some concrete on the pathway and porch).

My MF hen is just finishing her molt, and her foot feathers are already starting to break. I have bantam cochins and silkies, too, and I'm really starting to feel like I either need to keep all my show birds totally confined in cages with thick shavings, or just give up on the idea of showing!

Suggestions?

 

[spook]

Beautiful birds guys. I am trying to figure out how to tell who's lineage etc. I'm a beginner obviously!

 

[wegotchickens]

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I have a coop with a thin amount of shavings, and the run is playground sand. I let mine out to play in the grass as many afternoons as I can, after work. I guess I've just been lucky because I was looking at all the millie feet last night and they are all looking good. One of my millie girls couldn't turn around without falling over because she kept stepping on her own foot feathers.

I've been selecting for heavy foot feathers when I breed because I think that duck walk of their's is adorable! Nothing is cuter to me than to see tough old Tennessee, my rooster, lalloping across the grass as he checks on his girls.

Does anyone besides me really up the protein for their d'Uccles?
Mine get regular meat fat mixed with oatmeal, and even the trimmings from pork or beef roasts when I do a crock pot Sunday dinner (we have a local grass-fed pork & beef guy in the area, so there are no hormones or antibiotics in this meat).
This is in addition to the bugs they eat free-ranging, and sunflower seed treats.
I don't even consider the protein that they get from the layer feed. I just watch how they act when they eat the leftovers, and if they're fighting over meat scraps I add more for a while. Like now, as they complete their molt. I think giving them the extra protein as they form the feathers may make a difference in feather strength.
My young birds get these treats too.

 

[Gypsylion]

Quote:
I have a coop with a thin amount of shavings, and the run is playground sand. I let mine out to play in the grass as many afternoons as I can, after work. I guess I've just been lucky because I was looking at all the millie feet last night and they are all looking good. One of my millie girls couldn't turn around without falling over because she kept stepping on her own foot feathers.

I've been selecting for heavy foot feathers when I breed because I think that duck walk of their's is adorable! Nothing is cuter to me than to see tough old Tennessee, my rooster, lalloping across the grass as he checks on his girls.

Does anyone besides me really up the protein for their d'Uccles?
Mine get regular meat fat mixed with oatmeal, and even the trimmings from pork or beef roasts when I do a crock pot Sunday dinner (we have a local grass-fed pork & beef guy in the area, so there are no hormones or antibiotics in this meat).
This is in addition to the bugs they eat free-ranging, and sunflower seed treats.
I don't even consider the protein that they get from the layer feed. I just watch how they act when they eat the leftovers, and if they're fighting over meat scraps I add more for a while. Like now, as they complete their molt. I think giving them the extra protein as they form the feathers may make a difference in feather strength.
My young birds get these treats too.

Interesting... thanks so much for the suggestion, maybe I'll try that. And I agree... the duckwalk is AWESOME. As is the bantam cochins' waddle.