Going "whole hog"

[MrChicken207]

Stupid choices like breeding Welsummers that lay pink eggs (or one dark choclolate egg, once a week), or that are all buff, to put out a couple of very simplified examples (not to trivialize anything as such).

The hardest part, I think would be to pick a specific breed to go with.

 

[patandchickens]

Actually by "stupid choices" I did not mean breed-standard trait selection issues, I meant breeding system and flock health selection issues. For instance pen management systems that make it reasonably likely that you are not getting good amounts of progeny from ALL individuals; or systems that make it likely you will unknowingly lose male or female lines; etc.

But, pink-egg Welsumers would also be probably a bad idea <g>

Pat

 

[NYREDS]

Quote:
As to starting with hatchery birds & selecting to improve remember the old saying "you can't make a silk purse from a sows ear.
As to the rest of you plan the surest way to ruin a strain of birds is to indescriminately add "new blood> if you want to help preserve a rare breed great, I wish more people were interested in doing so. The way to do that is first learn the breed, then locate reasonably good stock & line breed within that strain. That's how you end up with a flock that well represents the breed.

 

[MrChicken207]

So, if both Joe Smith and myself obtained some RIReds from NYRED, and all other selection being the same, I bred for greater broidiness and mothering. Joe bred for greater egg production. Would it be better for me to obtain new blood from Joe, directly from you, or from someone else who obtained your birds and was also breeding for mothering ability? In which order should I be choosing new blood (best to worst)?

 

[patandchickens]

I don't think it's possible or useful to give a blanket answer to that, IMO. It depends so much on the details of the situation. How each person's flock has been kept/propagated/selected, and how their traits compare to what you want in your flock.

Pat

 

[33yardbirds]

Go to Sand Hill Preservation Center's Web Page sandhillpreservation.com they have a nice selection of heritage breeds and maintain the integrity of the breed. First come first served...I have placed an order for Mar 2011 Single comb RIRs. I believe they are in Iowa

 

[NYREDS]

Quote:
Since I have a show line of RI Red Bantams I can't imagine why anyone would buy them & select for the traits you identified but that doesn't really affect the answer. Any of the choices you proposed would be fine but I suspect that getting a bird from the person selecting for the same criteria, mothering, would be the best.
That said, I have a strain of Red Bantams I've bred for 25 years w/o feeling the need for new blood so don't be too quick to go that route.