Mille Cochin Info

[Blarneyeggs]

Pics: Apparently did not get shots of all six.... not sure who is missing. We think there are 4 roos and 2 pullets because of the reddening in the comb. They are now 8 weeks old.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Amy - I have a pair of buff columbians out of your eggs. At least I think they can be considered buff columbians. They are part of the mille fleur eggs.

Do you have a picture of a really good buff columbian that you can post?

I'm not sure of the proper buff color on the hens (light or dark) or the color of the roosters. My roo looks almost like a red with excessive black

My buff Columbians do pop back out every now and then. This is a photo of one that popped out after 3 generations. She is not a good example of a buff Columbian as she is bred for MF but sometimes it is hard to balance those genes in the first part of projects.
She was hatched from the same bloodlines of Xavier.



I have kept her and am using her as she has matured out very nicely. Her type is great to use.
I have been hatching from her and my Schmoozle. This is an old photo of him. He has a lot more red in his hackles and saddle feathers this year. He is MF/Mottled.



Soon she will go with my new roo, Dude. They just need more buff brought in and the white from the Mottleds certainly won't hurt. The kids are displaying plenty of type but I am still waiting for more pattern.



I am not worried about pattern. It will come. I am getting kids growing up like the one below. They still need work on pattern but it is coming along.



Not all of them look like that but they are coming out with more and more pattern. I feel the type is there so now I can start working on more for pattern with what I have got. Still plenty of work as I try to improve the wing carriage and make sure the width stays with the girls. It seems if I breed for better wing carriage I start getting some odd shapes like the girl above has poofy feathering below the wings. These details will take time just as the perfect pattern does.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

ok, so if i can't get any mille hens short term, what color would i put to my mille/calico in the hopes of possibly maintaining the color? mottled or buff columbian? anything else i could look for that wouldn't be totally out there?

Breeding to either can help in the future depending on what your birds look like now. The Mottleds can help the chevrons and white tips and really bring in some awesome type. The Columbians help with the base coloring but those blasted dark hackle colors may drive you mad later. There are also some wonderful buff Columbians out there with fantastic type.
Just remember, you will be going backwards to breed in these patterns to your MFs. I haven't a bit of problem with it because I have to have type. That is what I love best about bantam Cochins so not having the pattern for a few years is okay with me. I really have to close my eyes and feel the bird in order to not fall madly in love with pattern or color but the type is there in most all of my birds.
I still have issues. Who doesn't? But I guarantee you it will be easier to get that pattern in there than it will be to lock in that type and perfect that to be competitive in shows. I will leave that to experts that enjoy showing. I don't care myself. I breed what I like and want to see in my yard.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

and a serious senior moment too...

i still want something to put him with for now, but hubby surprised me with 10 mfc eggs via post office miracle. mailed from washington state saturday, they made it all the way across the country and were delivered today!

mailman is a friend of ours, he almost dropped them! hubby told him if they didn't hatch he'd be hearing from ME! LOL

Fabulous! New bloodlines to work with! Can't wait to see the chicks!

 

[WestKnollAmy]

We hatched 6 eggs the first week of Feb. Here's one perfecting the stink eye: I'll post updated pictures, just wanted to subscribe to the thread and how better than with a chick pic?

Too adorable by far!
I, too, love that foot feathering. It just needs tons of kisses to get rid of the stink eye. No wonder my chicks run when they see me coming. I can't help but love on those adorable babies!

 

[WestKnollAmy]

2 new MFC chicks hatched today.

Wow, look how red they are! Can't wait to see how these pretty babies grow up.

I have been hatching all winter but not many. Now I am really gearing up on hatching out and soon I want to move my roos around. I just have so many pens now that I have a harder time stepping back and seeing who will fit with whom the best.
And I have some new hens that I am not getting fertile eggs from even though I have tried 3 different roos on them. And plucked, cut and given so many vitamins they should look like the Hulk.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Pics: Apparently did not get shots of all six.... not sure who is missing. We think there are 4 roos and 2 pullets because of the reddening in the comb. They are now 8 weeks old.

Yup, the combs tell the tale. Top photo, 2 boys and a girl.

 

[Reyvaughn]

I have been so busy this week... I hatched 4 new bantam Cochins this week! One is a buff columbian and the other 3 are MFs. One is frizzled. The frizzles are all my daughter's, I just use them for the MF project. She has another one that is 21wks and laying already! Anywho, I will try my hardest to get pics tomorrow!

 

[NancyWicker]

Such beautiful, beautiful birds in this tread!!
Amy, that last picture of that hen...

You can send her along to me, I won't mind at all!

 

[WestKnollAmy]

That is a pullet that hatched out last year. She has good type but the pattern is still wrong. I am working on it. You are getting her brother! LOL Does that make you feel better? Maybe you will get some beauties to hatch out like this but you may have to take the daughters of his back to him if you use the hen I am sending with him.