If I want to breed quality chickens, what would I look for?

[delsi64]

I want to breed pure bred chicken. What should I look for and how should I breed them, as far as relationship goes. Can I breed any chicken to any rooster as long as there are no defects and both are healthy?

 

[McSpin]

I guess first, you should define what is quality to you. Show quality? Production quality? Or, just healthy and hardy?

With show birds, you will probably want to stick to known show lines and expect to cull vigorously. Learning linebreeding and inbreeding principles will be very useful.

For production, you can stay with known breeds that are bred to be heavy producers, or you can create your own hybrids, which will often be prolific and possibly more healthy.

Specifically, to answer your question, you can use any rooster with any hen, but the results will vary greatly depending on your choices. There is no way to predict what will happen in advance. Any given pair could have genetics that produce poor birds or good birds.

 

[cybercat]

Since you are intersted in breeding pure line stock first thing to do is pick the breed you wish to work with. Then read everything you can on that breed and get the Standard of Perfection so you know what a good chicken in that breed looks like. Attend a few local shows and find out if your breed has a club for it. Read the real old posts here on BYC search is great for that one.

Study the different breeding programs and pick one to work with and then start building pens. For breeding pure line chickens you need more than one coop/pen. This should take you about six months and by that time you should have been able to find some good stock to buy. If not then start looking for breeder in the breed you are interested in after you have done your reading. If you buy stock before you do your reading you could end up waisting your money and lots of time. Do not rush this it is better to learn then buy than buy then learn. That way you will be not taken advantage of when someone tries to sell you poor stock and says it is good. You will know it is not if you do your homework first and not waste money on poor stock. Good luck and do not get discourage it is not all that hard and lots of fun.

 

[greathorse]

Breeding livestock has everything to do with watching others and asking questions of those that have success. You will not duplicate in a few months or years what others have taken a lifetime to achieve.

I have a saying that has helped me a lot in the arena's in which I compete. Horses,cattle, BBQ contests, and soon poultry.

"There is no substitute for learning like polite curiosity"

Ask a polite sincere question that indicates you pay some attention and you will get great answers.

Ask for "the answer" and you will get very little

 

[delsi64]

Where can I find the standards for a breed? Is there a website i can go to so I know what to look for?

 

[cybercat]

The only way to get the standard of the breeds is buy the Standard of Perfection book. You can find it on the APA website so you know what to look for if you choose to buy it somewhere else. A few breed clubs post the standard to members of thier breed but not many. So you will have to buy the book. It comes in black and white or colored. B/W is around $15.00 colored is around $50.00.

 

[minister man]

"Study the different breeding programs and pick one to work with and then start building pens. For breeding pure line chickens you need more than one coop/pen. This should take you about six months and by that time you should have been able to find some good stock to buy."



I know that this is an older thread, but I am sure that the answers are the same. If a person that was looking to start breeding chickens was to "start by building pens", (which I agree with. After all I have brought things home before and then tried to decide where I was going to put them), How many pens would one build? what size would they be?

would they be full height of the building or would they be stacked one above the other. I have purchased some silkies. They are currently all living together, but I want to get
ready for spring by building pens this winter.

My breeding goal is to have a closed flock of what I want to call "BYB Silkies" ( BYB= Back Yard Broodies) they will be used to reproduce themselves and set out leghorns.

So what do I need to build?