Langshan Thread!!!

[mrheinz77]

I just read that many other breeds were created using Langshan blood in the foundation matings. These include Marans, B arnevelders, Black O rpingtons, and Jersey Giants. Maybe that's why we see some of the Langshan characteristics popping up every once in a while!

That is true. That's why I'm using my bantam Langshan over my bantam Marans project hens to try and shrink them and decrease egg size.

 

[PetRock]

Boy #3 One of the black boys from Jim, 15 weeks old

I am having a hard time deciding which of the last 3 boys that I like the best. And yesterday, I came home from Cheryl's ranch with 9 more boys who are 4-6 weeks older than these boys. They are all from Meeks' line, I believe. I'll have to take some pics of them before I move them out to the farm. The oldest one is crowing up a storm in the morning. I'm praying that my neighbors are patient with me until I can get them moved!

Boy #3 has a broader back than Boy #1 and is rapidly catching up to him in size. He has very few feathers on his middle toe which is good. He has a nice wide tail spread. Do you think that his chest/body isn't deep enough? Here are some new pics of him:

 

[PetRock]

Boy #4 Another of the black cockerels from Jim, 15 weeks old

Boy #4 has kind of a goofy comb at the back. His body is about the same width as Boy #3. He has more feathers on his middle toes. Do you think that his chest/body has more width than Boy #3? Here are new pics of him:

 

[mrheinz77]

I think they will fill in quite a bit as they mature.

 

[PetRock]

Boy #5 The last of the boys from Jim. This guy either has one midget wattle or it was pecked off by one of the other ones. It looks like I missed the back shot of this guy.

I like Boy #5 but his goofy wattles put me off.

He is broad in the back like the other 2 and seems to have a deep chest. I think that I have some new pics of him. I'll post them as soon as I find them.

New pics added:

 

[PetRock]

Yesterday, I came home from Cheryl's ranch with 9 more boys that are 4-6 weeks older than the black boys that I have here. I'm up to my eyeballs in Langshan cockerels! The oldest one crowed for several hours this morning so they are all going to the farm tonight after dark. I took some pics of them and will post them later. I'm going to keep the younger cockerels and the pullets here at my house until the boys crow and we get the pens built at my friend's farm.

 

[mrheinz77]

Well Debi,
Just 1 more from the first 6 that you showed us. After that, would you want to rank them from most likely to be used to least likely? (Or atleast your top 3?). Your doing great so far.

 

[PetRock]

Boy #6 Splash cockerel from Pawhead, 15 weeks old

Okay, the last boy #6. He is very sweet and already takes care of his little group including one ditsy white polish pullet. I like the depth of his chest but his body seems narrow. His back is narrow by his tail and his tail is pinched. He also has feathers on his middle toes and his eyes aren't quite as dark as they should be. He might fill in as he matures but will his tail spread ever widen? I will list my top 3 choices in a separate post tomorrow.

 

[mrheinz77]

Okay, the last boy #6. He is very sweet and already takes care of his little group including one ditsy white polish pullet. I like the depth of his chest but his body seems narrow. His back is narrow by his tail and his tail is pinched. He also has feathers on his middle toes and his eyes aren't quite as dark as they should be. He might fill in as he matures but will his tail spread ever widen? I will list my top 3 choices in a separate post tomorrow.

I doubt that you will end up with a nice full tail on him. Sorry

Remember, I had a really hard time picking my favorites from the bunch because over half of them were from my lines. I wanted to be fair to the others..When you post your picks, I'll post mine.

 

[PetRock]

Just came in from letting the chickens out and staring at the boys some more. Boy #1 crowed and went to the farm with the newest group of older cockerels. In my mind, he is out of the running due to width of body. The remaining 4 black boys each have wide bodies and nice tail spreads. Except for #2 Biggie Little, they are almost the same size and width. I think that if I'm able to give them a few more weeks, maybe it would be easier to choose between them. I like #2 Biggie Little but he has to catch up size wise for me to keep him plus his comb is starting to lay over in the back so he would have to be exceptional in all other areas to be a keeper. I also like #5 but he has the uneven wattle thing going (could he pass that along to his babies?) along with quite a bit of feathering on his middle toes. Boys #3 & #4 look very similar in all ways except #3 has very minimal feathering on his middle toes. If I was forced to chose one at this point, I would probably chose #3 with #5 and #4 close backups.

Okay, I made my inexperienced choices! How far off the mark am I???