Heritage White Dorking Thread

[kimberly35042]

Well said Syd....

 

[Yellow House Farm]

A few pics:

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Greetings, Mary! I m glad you are experiencing some success. I'm sorry for the difficulties. Just keep with them, and I'm sure you'll spread them around.

We have recommitted to our strain and are currently invested in giving them a big push. The chicks are growing fast, and I have strong hopes for end of season selection.

Best,

YHF

 

[3riverschick]

Of the 6 Dorking embryos that made it to day 18, only one hatched. One even zipped completely and died without emerging. The surviving Dorking is extremely weak, and I'm doubtful it will make it. From the same incubation, 8 of 9 mixed-breed chicks hatched successfully and are thriving. Don't know what to think. Very disappointed. I plan to try again next year.

Mary

Mary, get some Poultry Nutri-Drench ( TSC 6.99) into that chick. I know it is too weak to help itself. This stuff does not need to be digested. it mainlines directly into the bloodstream and is measureable in the blood in 30 minutes with 99% utilization. http://www.nutridrench.com I use it on all my chicks to get them off to a strong start. Instructions: 1 drop only by mouth. Repeat as needed every 8-10 hours until it is perky. Put 2 ml per gallon in the water for the 1st 2 weeks to get it off to a strong start. My solution looks like very weak tea. If your Tractor Supply Company (TSC) or feed store is out of the Poultry, use the Goat Nutri-Drench ( TSC 9.99) formula with the poultry instructions. I raised 42 Light Sussex on the Goat Nutri-Drench using the poultry instructions with good success. None died, no sickness.
Best,
Karen

 

[Sydney Acres]

Thanks for the suggestions. However, she's given up altogether. You've mentioned before using broodies extensively to hatch and brood. Have you had luck moving Dorkings that are broody? Or do you have a setup that allows isolation where they decide to set in the first place?

Mary

Yes, I move my broodies every time. My birds free range and refuse to use nestboxes -- they only use natural nests. When they start to brood it isn't safe for them to stay in their outdoor nests, as there are raccoons and opposums on the property. Every night they get moved off their nest into their coop. They brood so strongly they just sit on their roosts overnight, then rush to their nests as soon as they are released from the coop in the morning. If I'm going to allow a bird to brood I let this go on for 2-3 days, leaving 6-10 ceramic eggs in the nest. At around the third night I put a nest inside an appropriate sized box (nothing fancy, just a cardboard box with 3 full sides, one half-height side, and no top, with 2" very soft timothy grass hay on top of 2" aspen shaving -- American Pet Diner brand hay), put some of her original nesting material, her and the ceramic eggs into the box, and move her to a private area in the barn. The broody apartments are about 5'W X 6'L X 6'H, and the wire is covered with 1/2" hardware cloth to keep out rodents. The nestbox is set on the floor in the center of the apartment, with some placed under a table or "tent," and others just in the open, depending on the hen. The apartments are in a dimly lit area of the barn that is away from any commotion or activity. If she sticks the brood for 2-3 days after the move, then I put the stored fertile eggs under her. Once I figured out the appropriate transitions, I haven't had a hen break her brood because of the move. The broody apartments are a safe and comfortable place for her to brood the eggs and raise the chicks

 

[Sydney Acres]

Someone has asked me for pictures of brood spots on my hens. Unfortunately, I've never taken any pictures of their spots. But I will say that the term "brood spot" is completely misleading. It gives you the impression that there is a 1-2 inch area involved. Basically, they pluck their undersides naked. From front end of sternum to back tip of keel cartilage, and from side to side, all those feathers are plucked out and the hot bare skin sets directly on the eggs. The feathers from the sides, front and back fluff come down to cover the eggs on the sides, forming an incredibly warm wrap around the eggs. The brood spot isn't really obvious when the birds are walking around because the side feathers reach around a bit, but there's a lot of skin contact with those eggs.

 

[clayhillcoo]

Thanks for your pictures Jwhip!!l I was able to take some pictures today as well. I still have two roosters to cull

 

[CGilbert]

I am selling some eggs to folks locally, possibility prematurely, but I'm trying to recoup some cost of production. That mindset may be wrong in the preservation world, but buying feed gets expensive.

The interesting thing is, the hen with black is the heaviest hen and probably closest to SOP, I'll keep her around but her offspring are showing equal amounts of black.

I was worried about egg production, but my hens are now 42 weeks old and are laying well...when my Barred rocks shut down, these Dorkings are chugging right along in 20-30 degree weather

Don't think twice about charging to cover your expenses and hopefully make a little extra. The only hope these rare birds have is to offer qualities worth paying for. It's wonderful that we're in a new age of chicken loving, but it will come to an end, and then the birds with true value will hang on. I'm guessing that's why Dorkings have lasted 2000 years. They've got a lot of built in value.

Right now I'm waiting on White Dorking chicks to arrive, and I'm starting to set hens, and I'm going to have to butcher about 10 old hens in February, so it's not a good time for me to buy an incubator and start raising chicks, but I do plan to add stock in the future. If my current order doesn't work out by late spring I'll probably be ready to go the incubation route. If my chicks do arrive I'll certainly want to place an order for eggs next spring to increase my genetic depth. Do I remember correctly that your birds are a blend of Sandhill and Yellow House lines?

Anthony

I completely agree with AnthNDacula. Don't feel bad about charging a little extra to cover your own expenses. If you have an incubator, that's another way to make a slightly larger profit margin, selling chicks. Sell chicks for $X each versus a dozen eggs for virtually the same amount.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Greetings! It's exciting to read this excitement and consideration surrounding White Dorkings.

I can see the type in those flock pics of White Dorkings. I recognize the type as being representative of our strain. They're looking good.

Some quick thoughts that might help:

The big male with type issues: use him, pairing him with the best typed females possible. Use the others, too, though.

If you're receiving stock this year, raise everything you receive, and wait to see what you get. Even watching faults grow out teaches you something, even if it's why you don't let them grow out.

If you're workings with an established flock. Check chicks for color, comb, and toes. Cull anything but pure white, RC, and five perfectly formed toes. Also, the shape of the toes on day one is the shape of the toes at 6 months. You're not going to want to use a completely mangled toed bird; so, don't bother. Cull and keep hatching until you have out the number of chicks that you want. Also, remember that RCs comb with lots of easy to come by faults, males especially can be culled young for comb, certainly by broiler age. Therefore, you can hatch more males than you intend to grow out because you can drastically reduce their numbers for comb at, say, 13 weeks old if you want young spatchcocked broilers for the BBQ.

Look at the down, and if you see a black splotch, cull it. That black splotch is going to become black feathers, and when it comes down to it, you're not going to breed from a black feathered bird. A word on white, remember that white isn't a color. It's the masking of color. So all white birds are a color underneath, if you scratch the surface, usually birchen or cuckoo. Moreover, there is dominant white and recessive white both of which are present in YHF Dorkings. Occasionally on has some color seepage, no big deal, just cull it out. Try to never breed from a male that shows reddish seepage. It will lead to a dominance of the golden gene, which is unfortunately present in our strain, and it will lead to brassiness in cocks, which is a a serious defect.

Keep 'em hatching!

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Yes, keep that chick.. That is not a "silver-grey" chick; it's a chick that's silver and grey--big difference. It is possible that it will do as you mention, which would be a boon. Watch the leg color as it ages,as I have found this chick down can run blue in the shank. Make sure s/he's well marked so that you don't lose track of it.