Looking for Fibromelanotic Poultry

[BFFpoultry]

Hello! My name is Sarah B from the Northern Illinois area.

I am looking for any pedigree breeders of fibromelanotic poultry (these are poultry exhibiting hyperpigmentation making their cells appear black). So far, my research has noted the two breeds exhibiting this phenotype fully is the Ayam Cemani and the Svarthona (as far I understand, these birds are black all the way through, from skin to bone). Also, I am interested in any pedigree Silkie breeders who have birds exhibiting darker-than-normal pigmentation.

My main interest is in establishing a breeding flock of my own (I absolutely love black and white birds), with a long-term goal of getting a standard submitted to APA.

Here's my interesting link about this topic: https://openi.nlm.nih.gov/detailedresult.php?img=PMC3245302_pgen.1002412.g001&req=4

 

[Pyxis]

Just to let you know, in the poultry world, there is no such thing as a pedigreed bird. We don't keep pedigrees. Most breeders keep breeding records, but that's not the same thing. So you won't be able to purchase pedigreed birds because they don't exist.

In poultry, if a bird looks like a silkie, fits the silkie standard, and will breed true, then it's a silkie. If it turns out that, say, sultan blood was mixed in a few generations back, it doesn't matter. It's still a silkie.

There are a few threads on here for AC, SH, and silkie breeders, and I'm sure you could find someone with birds or eggs available if you visit those threads. I myself breed ACs, but I don't have anything available right now.

You might also want to familiarize yourself with some of the troubles facing these breeds currently as far as breeding goes. For one, they don't all hatch all black. Some hatch with white toenails, white toes, white on the wingtips, etc. Breeders are working on improving this. ACs are also running into trouble with feather stubs on the legs and color leakage. These chicks will come out of birds that have no feather stubs and no color leakage, so even if the parents look great, it doesn't mean all their chicks are going to be. I just wanted to let you know so that you didn't get these birds and become disappointed.

 

[BFFpoultry]

Just to let you know, in the poultry world, there is no such thing as a pedigreed bird. We don't keep pedigrees. Most breeders keep breeding records, but that's not the same thing. So you won't be able to purchase pedigreed birds because they don't exist.

In poultry, if a bird looks like a silkie, fits the silkie standard, and will breed true, then it's a silkie. If it turns out that, say, sultan blood was mixed in a few generations back, it doesn't matter. It's still a silkie.

There are a few threads on here for AC, SH, and silkie breeders, and I'm sure you could find someone with birds or eggs available if you visit those threads. I myself breed ACs, but I don't have anything available right now.

You might also want to familiarize yourself with some of the troubles facing these breeds currently as far as breeding goes. For one, they don't all hatch all black. Some hatch with white toenails, white toes, white on the wingtips, etc. Breeders are working on improving this. ACs are also running into trouble with feather stubs on the legs and color leakage. These chicks will come out of birds that have no feather stubs and no color leakage, so even if the parents look great, it doesn't mean all their chicks are going to be. I just wanted to let you know so that you didn't get these birds and become disappointed.

Thanks for your post! I will definitely have to dig for those threads.

I am very familiar with the troubles of breeding "new" birds. My experience in trying to establish new colors for pigeons has granted me a great respect and healthy wariness in breeds that are not readily available or known (pretty though they may be ). Hence the thrill, yes, when a young is born to advance the breed?

As far as the pedigree thing, I know there are not available in the hobbyist/small breeder world as they are with other animals (e.g. dogs, cattle, etc), but my main concern is a limited gene pool pertaining to the AC and SH stock.

Have you found that you had to bring in other breeds to boost the stock vitality and correct some of these underlying issues?

 

[Pyxis]

Nope, I've never mixed in another breed, and I likely never will. I can just see that creating more issues. It's taken me years to get as far along as I have with correcting the fibro issues and breeding for proper fibro expression. Mixing another breed in would seriously set all that back. They have good vitality and hardiness as they are, so I don't see a need to add blood from another breed

 

[MyriamKP]

Does anyone have access to information on the meat to bone ratio of the fibromelanotic breeds?

 

[6th_Happiness]

I'm in N. IL and working on my own fibro birds, for my own purposes.

Do you still work with pigeons?