Mixing breeds

[dixygirl]

I have to get mates my birds. I have 2 white rock females, 3 pekin duck males, 2 mallard males.

I want a phoenix rooster. So the chick babies would end up cross breeds i guess? Would that be ok?

For the ducks, any suggestions on what types of females to get for pekins and mallards?

How would the babies turn out from parents of 2 different breeds?

 

[Wolf-Kim]

Mixing breeds is fine, either way you'll end up with a chicken. LOL Certain traits will be dominant over others, so the offspring would look fairly similar to each other, although not near as close as pure bred chicks.

The ducks, it may be best to get them females of their breed. Ducks will crossbreed just like chickens though. I say get females of their breed because you will not have to worry about any kind of size issues. We had a pekin drake on our pond that would mount our mallard females and it seemed like he would nearly drowned the poor things. Too big of a male on smaller females. If you get muscovy hens, the offspring will more than likely be sterile(not able to produce fertile eggs) because Muscovy mix ducks are a "mule" so to speak.

Hope that helps!
-Kim

 

[dixygirl]

Wow lots of useful information. Thanks so much ! So i could house the breeds separately to keep them pure. That's a lot of coops :|

 

[dixygirl]

OK I only want one rooster. But I want the breed of rooster that can BEST protect the flock from hawk, buzzards, etc.

What breed of rooster is the biggest and can kick but the best?
I have read that the Saipan Jungle fowl is 30" tall and they hunt aggressively more than flys. I like that even though this one is quite ugly.

Now this Red Jungle fowl is much prettier but I haven't read anything about how big it is or how good a protector it is....Anyone know?

I had also considered a Phoenix rooster because of the tail feathers that can get up to 20 feet. How tall are they and can they really kick but?

If I get the biggest rooster, would it cause discomfort to the white rock hens in breeding? That might make a nice hybrid with the height and ferocity of the rooster and the heavy meat and lighter color of the mother. So a lighter colored tall,fat, ass kicker.

Oh and is the Ameracauna and the Easter egg hen the same chicken?

 

[chicken_boy_Kurt]

Only onagadori get 20 ft. long tails. Phoenixs were bred from onags but they don't have as long tails. To answer your rooster question, any breed of rooster can be protective of their hens but some aren't. My friend had a rock rooster that would herd the hens in whenever he sensed danger. My roosters never do that. Just get a rooster that fits into what you like. Unless you are really worried about hawks.

 

[dixygirl]

I am really worried about hawks. I had a parrot killed by one. So I want the roughest, meanest, tallest rooster available. What is it?

 

[Wolf-Kim]

What you can do is put those three potential breeds in your thread title to attract people who own them already. I have not had any of those breeds myself, so I can only tell you second hand stories.

If you are looking for an aggressive/protective bird, I'm going to guess and say the Saipan Jungle fowl is your best bet of the choices provided.

Do not worry about the Phoenix's tail. To get an individual whose tail gets 20ft long, you have to hunt down a special breeder and even then 20ft is amazing(I don't the breeders would let it go). Most run-of-the-mill Phoenix roosters get tails 2-4ft and then they shed every year or two. To get the really long tails you are going to need to look for the Onagadori and even then Onagadori require special treatment and diet, not typically the type of rooster you want protecting your flock. So, do not let the Phoenix' tail discourage you from that breed, if an owner gets on here and says they have the right temperment and protectiveness you are looking for then get a Phoenix.

I do not know much about the Red Junglefowl. I have heard because they are largely undomesticated they tend to be flighty and unfriendly. They are more wild than your usually chicken, and wild-things rarely make great pets. There are people who have raised these breeds for years, just put the breed names in the title and ask questions about each breed.

The thing about looking for aggressive-protective birds is that they have a tendency to act aggressive towards humans as well. Not always, but a good percentage of the time.

If you want purebred animals, unfortunately the only way to have purebred offspring is to have individual pens. Or at least individual pens for the males. I tend to pen up my roosters and let my hens roam around together and then when I want some offspring, I will put a pair or trio into a cage by themselves.

-Kim

 

[Wolf-Kim]

Quote:
No, one is purebred and the other is not. The Ameraucana is a purebred chicken and the EE is a mixture of an Ameraucan or an Ameraucana that doesn't follow standard. Both breeds lay beautiful eggs, the EE's tend to have more variance in color because the mixing with other breeds.

-Kim

 

[DTchickens]

saipan will even attack you if you mess with the hens,. But i honestly do not think a chicken will stop a hawk from swooping down and picking it up. You need a good watch dog. or need to keep your birds in pens. Junglefowl hens are about 2 lbs maybe,. rooster 2.5 at most. not very tall birds. about.. im not sure maybe 2 feet on the rooster. hens are almost like bantam size. BUT. junglefowl are very skittish birds. i turned my 2 hens out. and cant catch them anymore. too smart. so they just run the yard now. Phoenix's are i believe.. the same size as a Junglefowl maybe a bit bigger. and not near as skittish. But i heard they can get broke legs easy due to them having weak legs?. I have no idea. i haven't had any of these breeds besides the junglefowl. thought of saipans but a 15 lb rooster that will attack me for messing or even scaring his hens even if it was a accident was enough for me not to get one. and the phoenixs would be bad around here due to the mud

My info probably doesn't help you much. if any. but oh well


EDIT:I thought i might suggest a breed for you?. Well. for what your looking for you cant go wrong with the american games,. Pretty birds. Agressive towards predators. and usually very gentle around people. also. very good mothers. setters etc.

 

[KierBri]

Quote:
no. there is the auracauna-rumples(no tail) with ear tufts

then there is the americauna- tail and muff(feathers instead of wattles)

both lay colored eggs. at some point they got crossed, hence the easter egger, colored eggs but no defined other characteristics.

many people don't know the difference and call everything an auracana, and think that americauna is just a mispelling/pronouciation of auracauna, not a separate breed. my americauna lays blue eggs therefore she must be an auracauna. when i say no, i get the "well wants the difference?!"