Landrace/adaptive breeding discussion

[fluffycrow]

Landraces aren't breeds to begin with. A breed is a deliberate human creation typically made through some degree of inbreeding and high amounts of artificial selection. A landrace on the other hand is a feral animal that nature has recrafted through the process of natural selection. They typically have a lot of genetic diversity because that's what it takes to actually survive out in nature

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

So all this leads me to another question: if my goals are more self-sufficient chickens (healthier, not easily predated) living their best lives then would adding an established landrace or game fowl to my current hatchery chickens be the best route to that? By best I don’t necessarily mean quick although that would be nice. Really I mean what would be the most likely route to achieving that goal given they will be mixing with my “backyard” chickens (assuming those chickens survive until that time). I am thinking a game rooster would be especially nice given we have lots of hawks. If anyone has some good resources I should look at that would be appreciated as well. It will probably be next spring before I can even start acquiring birds.

 

[LaurenRitz]

So all this leads me to another question: if my goals are more self-sufficient chickens (healthier, not easily predated) living their best lives then would adding an established landrace or game fowl to my current hatchery chickens be the best route to that? By best I don’t necessarily mean quick although that would be nice. Really I mean what would be the most likely route to achieving that goal given they will be mixing with my “backyard” chickens (assuming those chickens survive until that time). I am thinking a game rooster would be especially nice given we have lots of hawks. If anyone has some good resources I should look at that would be appreciated as well. It will probably be next spring before I can even start acquiring birds.

A landrace has been adapted to a specific area, with its accompanying soils, weather, diseases and other conditions. That does not mean that they would function as a landrace in your particular area or under your management practices.

You could get landrace birds, but the local adaptations might or might not give them an advantage under your conditions.

You could get a game rooster, but there's no guarantee that he would be what you need.

Currently I'm just throwing breeds at the wall to see what sticks. My mutts are healthier and more adapted than their parents, and each generation adapts more.

Game might work here. I throw American Game at the wall. Iowa Blue might work here. I throw Iowa Blue at the wall.

Each breed leaves its own mark on the project, not necessarily the mark we want or expect.

 

[No Coop No Problem]

If my goals are more self-sufficient chickens (healthier, not easily predated) living their best lives then would adding an established landrace or game fowl to my current hatchery chickens be the best route to that?

There are many different kinds of gamefowl and landraces out there. I've had a variety of both here and I definitely recommend you plan your first flock out seriously. It's much easier to make a good start than to recover from a bad start

In regards to landraces they're typically adapted to particular regions, such as Icelandic chickens being obviously adapted to Iceland, Egyptian Fayoumi being adapted to the Fayoum oasis in Egypt, and Sumatra being adapted to the tropical island they're named after in southeast Asia

I've personally had both Egyptian Fayoumi and Sumatra here, and you couldn't pay me money to take in more Fayoumi. They're absolute monsters and impossible to work with. Sumatra on the other hand have sweet, intelligent females and human aggressive males. I suspect landraces are all extremely different from one another temperamentally

Gamefowl on the other hand come in two main types, the velociraptor shaped ones (Malayoid) and the normal bird shaped ones (Bankivoid). It's theorized that the Malayoid types developed in landrace fashion on isolated tropical islands that lacked mid-size predators, so they did great in island grasslands with tigers running around because the small meal isn't worth losing an eye

Speaking from experience I've only ever had two gamefowl breeds here, American Game and Asil, and they're both extremely noble in character. Perfect survival chickens for my homestead. I've heard that some gamefowl can be human aggressive such as the Malay but I can't say so personally. The two game breeds I have here are the kindest (and toughest) of all my chickens

I am thinking a game rooster would be especially nice given we have lots of hawks.

I think the fastest path would be a game rooster and hen pair. The females are fantastic mothers that put all other types of chickens to shame. If you went with a rooster alone you'd either have a production hen raising half-games (not ideal), or you'd have to brood them yourself. With a game hen though you'd have a devoted mother that will do all the work for you and will fight predators off ferociously

If anyone has some good resources I should look at that would be appreciated as well.

This is a good article about someone in the US creating a landrace for his homestead. It's pretty simple really

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

There are many different kinds of gamefowl and landraces out there. I've had a variety of both here and I definitely recommend you plan your first flock out seriously. It's much easier to make a good start than to recover from a bad start

In regards to landraces they're typically adapted to particular regions, such as Icelandic chickens being obviously adapted to Iceland, Egyptian Fayoumi being adapted to the Fayoum oasis in Egypt, and Sumatra being adapted to the tropical island they're named after in southeast Asia

I've personally had both Egyptian Fayoumi and Sumatra here, and you couldn't pay me money to take in more Fayoumi. They're absolute monsters and impossible to work with. Sumatra on the other hand have sweet, intelligent females and human aggressive males. I suspect landraces are all extremely different from one another temperamentally

Gamefowl on the other hand come in two main types, the velociraptor shaped ones (Malayoid) and the normal bird shaped ones (Bankivoid). It's theorized that the Malayoid types developed in landrace fashion on isolated tropical islands that lacked mid-size predators, so they did great in island grasslands with tigers running around because the small meal isn't worth losing an eye

Speaking from experience I've only ever had two gamefowl breeds here, American Game and Asil, and they're both extremely noble in character. Perfect survival chickens for my homestead. I've heard that some gamefowl can be human aggressive such as the Malay but I can't say so personally. The two game breeds I have here are the kindest (and toughest) of all my chickens

I think the fastest path would be a game rooster and hen pair. The females are fantastic mothers that put all other types of chickens to shame. If you went with a rooster alone you'd either have a production hen raising half-games (not ideal), or you'd have to brood them yourself. With a game hen though you'd have a devoted mother that will do all the work for you and will fight predators off ferociously

This is a good article about someone in the US creating a landrace for his homestead. It's pretty simple really

Thank you! This helps a lot. I was kind of thinking the Swedish Flowers because the farm is very close to me might be a well adapted bird for this area but I have no idea if that’s true. I have seen lots of game birds for sale and wondered if maybe there was a lot of cockfighting going on in the south so until now I hadn’t thought of them as an option. This gives me lots of ideas though! Once I get things rolling I will post an update.

 

[LaurenRitz]

If you get Swedish Flowers, check with the breeder to see if they go broody. Apparently that's one of the traits they're losing as humans breed them.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

If you get Swedish Flowers, check with the breeder to see if they go broody. Apparently that's one of the traits they're losing as humans breed them.

Interesting. I plan on talking to a few people-the Swedish Flower breeder, a local game breeder and an acquaintance who has what they call “apocalypse chickens”

 

[LaurenRitz]

...and an acquaintance who has what they call “apocalypse chickens”

Oh, now that sounds intrigueing. I wonr if they would ship eggs?

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

Oh, now that sounds intrigueing. I wonr if they would ship eggs?

I will ask. First I need to get clarification on what they mean by that lol. They were offering chicks this spring but I had already ordered pullets. Plus i am never brooding chicks again. It stresses me out.

 

[LaurenRitz]

I will ask. First I need to get clarification on what they mean by that lol. They were offering chicks this spring but I had already ordered pullets. Plus i am never brooding chicks again. It stresses me out.

Years ago, I listened to a friend of mine talk about her chicken coop. One of the things she wanted but didn't have was a built in brooder, so when I designed my coop I built one in.

As soon as I'm sure everyone has hatched they go in the outdoor brooder with their heater. They can see and be seen by the adults, I don't have to babysit them, and they're not in my kitchen!

When they're two weeks old I let them out to free range with the adults.