not all birds are created equal

[CelticOaksFarm]

. Excellent thread idea Celtic! Another thing I've noticed is people will buy from Show Quality stock then expect all of the offspring to be show quality. That unfortunately is just never going to be the case. Genes are so complicated that even the best of stock can have very faulty offspring.

Kevin, yep so many times they pay that extra high fee because the parents are listed as SQ only to get a pet quality bird as the result. I dont believe off spring should sell for more because of potential to maybe possibly be SQ. If the bird has been shown and did well, price appropriately to sell it, if you so chose to. If you have a group of SQ you are breeding i can see a slightly higher price because the chances are better for better quality.

Just wish that more would understand that buying from a hatchery (even if it is labeled the same breed) doesnt always give you a bird of equal quality.

We cull hard for our flocks, goto others asking for thoughts on birds and pairings for future breedings. We are honest about day olds not being labeled as SQ or otherwise.

 

[ChicagoDucks]

This is a neat thread topic.

We have a small backyard flock of 6 ducks. We hatch a very small number of eggs mainly to improve the flock, replace culled ducks, keep up egg production, and as an educational experience for the kids. This spring, we will probably also give away or sell a few fertilized eggs or ducklings to local friends who want to add a couple of Khaki Campbells to their own backyard flocks. One reason we want to hatch our own is due to the difficulty involved in purchasing small numbers of good quality ducklings. I look forward to reading others' suggestions and ideas for selecting breeders and good breeding practices.

Last spring we ordered some Khaki Campbell hatching eggs that were shipped from Privett Hatchery. We also hatched a few eggs from our backyard feed-store ducks (pet-quality Cayugas & Rouens). Since then, we've culled 4 drakes and 2 ducks to arrive at our current flock. They were culled because they were non-standard, poor quality, or didn't fit our plan for the flock.

We ended up with some good-looking ducks. Two in particular we plan to breed in the spring:



Our breeders for next spring, "Mayor Wilkins" & "Ringo"

They are calm, quiet, good foragers, Ringo has proven to be a very productive layer (so far) and they are both strong and healthy. Mayor Wilkins is not an aggressive drake and doesn't abuse the ducks. As far as my amateur eye can tell they seem to have good coloration and shape for the breed.

We have some others that we won't breed for the next generation. For example, we have a crested Khaki Campbell drake we won't breed. He is very handsome and a good ambassador for our flock in our neighborhood--people come by our yard just to see him strut his stuff. We'll probably keep him around a while for those reasons, but he won't have any offspring:



We're fortunate that we have a big enough lot in the city to segregate the flock for a few weeks to get the fertilized eggs we want. We're also planning to get NPIP certification in the spring so that our daughter can show some ducks in the local county fair, and also so that if we give away any ducklings we can feel assured that we're not spreading pullorum or any of the other diseases they test for in Illinois.

Any thoughts or tips for breeding with a small flock?

I am curious how others who breed with a small flock keep the gene pool healthy after a couple of generations. It would be nice to meet some others in the Chicago area who keep KCs, and then we could swap ducklings every so often to keep the lines healthy.

 

[CelticOaksFarm]

on the Khakis avoid yellow toned bills, they are a fault. Avoid birds with any white. Drakes with long head to neck color (the coloration falls down the neck and doesnt stop creating an even ring). Hens should be the color of dead grass (lol best way to describe it) with dark bills (the darker the better). Those are the basic reasons to cull. Love your pictures.

 

[Carcajou]

Thanks Celtic for starting this thread. I am a long, long way from the possibility of hatching my own eggs and may never but what you say echos duck literature I have read and I would take it to heart as I am a firm believer in listening to those who have the voice of experience. If it is not already perhaps this thread should become a "sticky".

 

[TheJadeChicken]

Bravo! I agree with you. I am wanting to get into breeding and showing. But I have to wait, because I want the ABA and the APA standards. Preferably the ABA, because I love Bantams. Plus I have to setup some pens for them.

I also agree this should be a Sticky!

 

[ChicagoDucks]

What about behavioral traits? What kind of behaviors should you avoid in a good breeding program?

I've heard that you shouldn't breed overly aggressive drakes. What about nervousness, skittishness and loudness? Or foraging ability? How hereditary are these traits?

 

[CelticOaksFarm]

Mean is mean, we dont breed it no matter what the breed or species.

Nervousness sometimes is a breed trait in general.

Foraging depends on the breed as well. Like our Silver Appleyards will never cover as much ground daily as the Khakis do. Very different ducks though.

Voice? Well most girls are just loud no way around that, some more than others. Some breeds are known to be.

 

[TheJadeChicken]

Mean is mean, we dont breed it no matter what the breed or species.

Nervousness sometimes is a breed trait in general.

Foraging depends on the breed as well. Like our Silver Appleyards will never cover as much ground daily as the Khakis do. Very different ducks though.

Voice? Well most girls are just loud no way around that, some more than others. Some breeds are known to be.

I do have a question, since someone mentioned this. Say you breed chickens, in particularly D'Uccles or some other breed known to be docile . Would it be fine to breed an aggressive rooster or hen of that breed? It makes me think that would make the breed worse, instead of improving it. Or does it matter? As long as he/she meets the standards due bone structure, feathers, and any other quality.

 

[CelticOaksFarm]

mean has no place in a breeding program

 

[Narragansett]

This is a great topic, but boy is it in the wrong place.

It seems to me that I was criticized a few months ago for doing just what is now advocated here. I critiqued some Sebastopols that were poor representatives of the breed which had no place in a breeding program, would have been laughed out of a show hall and did not measure up to the Standard. I meant no hard feeling to their loving owners, but they were what they were. Which is it? Are only quality birds supposed to be bred from, or does anything go just because someone has an emotional attachment to it? You can't have it both ways.

edited by staff