Looking for beautiful Breeds

[JacinLarkwell]

What about polish. Anyone know if they're heat tolerant? I wouldn't be opposed to giving haircuts so they can see easier. Just rather surprised I don't think anyone mentioned them

 

[centrarchid]

What about polish. Anyone know if they're heat tolerant? I wouldn't be opposed to giving haircuts so they can see easier. Just rather surprised I don't think anyone mentioned them

Why not look into heirloom / landrace breeds with historical presence in your area. They could be locally sourced and may of interest to others in you area over time. Just getting a flock for looks and other short term considerations makes so you are buying so birds, then quite literally disposing of them.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Why not look into heirloom / landrace breeds with historical presence in your area. They could be locally sourced and may of interest to others in you area over time. Just getting a flock for looks and other short term considerations makes so you are buying so birds, then quite literally disposing of them.

I don't understand what you mean by short term considerations or the last part. I'm not disposing them

 

[Amer]

For some reason I thought you had mentioned zero. I must have misread

me too, lol

What about polish. Anyone know if they're heat tolerant? I wouldn't be opposed to giving haircuts so they can see easier. Just rather surprised I don't think anyone mentioned them

I don’t think so, then again I don’t know. I’ve never heard of one going broody though.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Why not look into heirloom / landrace breeds with historical presence in your area. They could be locally sourced and may of interest to others in you area over time. Just getting a flock for looks and other short term considerations makes so you are buying so birds, then quite literally disposing of them.

Most of my flock are for looks and pets and I would never dispose of them they all have a home here for life. I have some that are 5 years old and don’t really lay now (and others that still do ) and they’re just as valuable to me as my younger hens and pullets that are still laying. I even have 3 cockerels cause I think they’re pretty and 2 are my favorite rooster’s (who died) sons so they’re staying along with his daughters. Getting birds for looks or eye candy or whatever doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be disposed of. I added more layers last year so this year when I added more I did it pretty much solely on looks for once.

 

[centrarchid]

I don't understand what you mean by short term considerations or the last part. I'm not disposing them

Are you going to be breeding your own replacements over many years? The majority of people keeping backyard chickens get their start from commercial hatcheries and the bulk of their replacements are acquired from similar sources. At some point the majority of the chickens keepers drop out of chicken keeping where the remaining chickens, if any do not contribute to long-term chicken population. The some point is usually a few years or so, although some get back into chickens later with a fresh start.

 

[BleuSaphir]

I was about to say Egyptian Fayoumis. But I don’t know how cold tolerant they are. They are resilient to many poultry disease. So that a plus.

 

[centrarchid]

Most of my flock are for looks and pets and I would never dispose of them they all have a home here for life. I have some that are 5 years old and don’t really lay now (and others that still do ) and they’re just as valuable to me as my younger hens and pullets that are still laying. I even have 3 cockerels cause I think they’re pretty and 2 are my favorite rooster’s (who died) sons so they’re staying along with his daughters. Getting birds for looks or eye candy or whatever doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be disposed of. I added more layers last year so this year when I added more I did it pretty much solely on looks for once.

You are a major league outlier based on how long you have been on this site alone. 12 years. The overwhelming majority that started on this site at same time as you and no longer posting also no longer have chickens. That is pattern I see locally and areas I am otherwise familiar with.

I am advocate of preserve genetic variation, which will require more backyard / barnyard folks having a role in breeding and being a source of birds for other people, especially their neighbors.

 

[Amer]

I mean, if you breed something with historical significance to the SOP there is the bonus of making a difference.
Of course, it is a money hole.
(I saw this beautiful Asil at a show. The game breeder who bred it let me hold him and feel him. He feels like a brick.)

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Are you going to be breeding your own replacements over many years? The majority of people keeping backyard chickens get their start from commercial hatcheries and the bulk of their replacements are acquired from similar sources. At some point the majority of the chickens keepers drop out of chicken keeping where the remaining chickens, if any do not contribute to long-term chicken population. The some point is usually a few years or so, although some get back into chickens later with a fresh start.

Yeah, I hatch my own and bring in hatchery stock. I've been doing so for over a decade now