Old and Rare Breeds

[saladin]

After 7 months of hatching, I finally shut down the incubator and called it quits for the year. The totals are looking pretty good:

(All number are estimates)

Asil.....175
Cubalaya.....150
Shamo......10 (only one old hen)
Ga Cua..... 10 (one young hen)
Malgache.............15
Malay Bantams..... 25
Asil Bantams.........20
Games...................75


That should be enough number from each mating to see who's doing what and to cull adequately. Hopefully, I'll be able to cull down to 10% of those numbers. I do have a couple of projects going on in that group and will have to really look over the young birds to decide who is going to further the project along as I desire.

I'd be interested to hear how everyone elses rare and old breeds turned out.

 

[GotGame]

Have hatched out 30 bantam shamos (from 1 hen), around 30 brazilians (from 2 hens), and have another 2 weeks of hatching. My other breeds arent rare, and these arent especially rare but not real common either...

 

[gallorojo]

My hatching here is still in full swing, I intend to hatch until about the first of August. So far, I have about 40 Cubalaya chicks hatched, between 3 weeks and one day old now. Some more are hatching as I'm typing this!! My goal this year is 50 pure Cubalayas, and maybe 20 grades. My fertility and hatchability have been excellent, 95% average so far. I plan to cull down to the best 10% roughly. I made the decision early on this year to hatch a lot of Cubalayas, many more than any prior year. So, far, it's going very well, the chicks are thriving. I think I may have some interesting surprises this year in terms of colors, but, kind of early yet to say for sure.

I also hatched 7 buff leghorns this spring, and was given 2 more recently. Another old breed as well, added to SOP in 1890 something I think?

I wish more people would work with white egg layers!!

 

[saladin]

Gallo,

Maybe we could start a thread of unusal Cubalaya colors! The duckwing pyle cross sure gives an unusal mix! lol.

Did you see the Oriental Club thread I put up?

 

[gallorojo]

Saladin, I responded to the oriental club post. Would love to see a thread for odd Cubalaya colors. This is my first year with the whites, but, in addition to from pairing white with white, I've put white with about eveything else I have as well...Should be some unusual chicks as they feather out!! The whites seem to be full of surprises...

 

[HallFamilyFarm]

We are still hatching a few. Have 4 lamonas eggs due to hatch next week.

Quote:

 

[WyandotteTX]

I have 2 Rose Comb Black Minorcas growing out currently. I think there are only a couple of serious breeders here in the US, so I would consider them fairly rare.
Now if I can just find some SC Whites so I can cross them with the blacks to get some RC Whites in the future........to me they are the most rare of all of the Minorca family......

 

[cubalaya]

Quote:
can i join this one, lol.

 

[saladin]

I really think the key with improvement is large hatches. The more you hatch the harder you can cull. That said, I believe we must get these rare jewels out on the show circuit for the public to see. I hope everyone that raises rare breeds will join the SPPA and APA/ABA. Rare breeds take time and patience, but are well worth the effort. Just knowing you are holding a piece of living history in your hands is a feeling that you can't get from chickens called by names like Stars and Comets! Give me a 3,500 year old Asil any day of the week!

 

[pride&joy]

Quote:
Ok so far I would say about, 15 May-lay(one hen) , 40 Assil (5 hens)l, 50 shamo (5 hens), just started on my Spanish assil grades now. I prefer hen raised chicks particularly if for my own keepers. I do hatch and brooder now in the summer, so I could turn them out to a pasture after a few weeks. I will probably hatch till Sept or Oct mostly broodies.