hatchery stock VS seeking out some reknown backyard stock of dominique

[jacobandjess]

I am 25, when i was a child my grandpa and dad had mutt chickens and had done it that way their whole lives, they added to their flock by hatches and buying a few from individuals here and there. We had plenty of eggs and meat and healthy rugged chickens. i am on my own and in my youngness took to the internet for research, learned of the decline in productive genetics, discovered all the different breeds, i now have a sweet spot for Dominiques. About 4 years ago i ordered 50 from ideal poultry, and have added to them a few times from ideal, i have lost some to dogs some to an owl and have eaten several, i was and still am disappointed in the quality of genetics i got from ideal. there was occasional deformities, several very unproductive birds, and a general un-uniformity across the board. i am down to under 10 birds with the idea of scraping them and seeking out "top quality utility stock" I didn't consciously manage breeder stock out of them but im learning and intend on trying manage a top shelf flock, so what should i do, how to go about it... specifically on acquiring quality stock and the social relations of the matter, not the hands on flock management part, (but i will accept any advise) what qualifications should i look for, etc, i joined albc and soon will join Dominique club, but still feel awkward. any help or advise is welcome

 

[fowlsessed]

I think that hatchery stock shouldn't be too bad if your looking for highly productive birds. Show quality birds will not be what you want because they are bred for conformity with the standard and not for the highest productivity. If you obtain stock from several different hatcheries such as mcmurray, sandhill preservation center and others you could have a wider diversaty of genes and then just cull out the unproductive birds from your flock and only breed the highly productive ones to develop a highly productive strain of dominique. yup, that's what I would do. Maybe it can give you something to think about.

 

[galanie]

Breeder birds aren't neccesarily Show quality. One of the top breeders of Orpingtons in the country doesn't show their birds, though many are shown by the ones they're sold to.

Keep an eye on the auctions here at BYC and take a look at the Breed threads. There is a Dominique thread in the "Breeds, Genetics, & Showing" section. Find it and read, and ask. There should be plenty of people in that thread willing to give you a hand.

ETA: Hatchery birds are bred for nothing but productivity yet the OP got lots of unproductive birds. I'd be unwilling to go that route again if I were him, too.