Plymouth Rock thread!

[Wynette]

Quote:
He appears to have good BALANCE - something I am always watching for in a well-bred chicken. Also - check out those LEGS - wonderful color on them!

 

[DeannaOR]

Thanks for the invite to the thread Silver Rock =) Here are a couple pictures of my boy before he started molting. He was 5 months old here.
Edited to add:
My cock bird I hatched from eggs I got from Die Fly Ranch in California. Her birds are Dick Hortsman, Padgett, and Adamson Acres.
The hens are from a breeder in Washington state who has Hortsman lines.







and one of a couple young girls....

 

[LaLa Chickie]

Thank you! We hatch all year round so let us know when u r ready for chicks or eggs!

How long does it take to ship to Calif?

 

[Silver Rock]

Thanks for the invite to the thread Silver Rock =) Here are a couple pictures of my boy before he started molting. He was 5 months old here. and one of a couple young girls....

Hi DeAnna You are very welcome and I am very happy to see your Silver Penciled Plymouth Rocks on here. They look AWESOME!

 

[TNBEARCHICK]

Ok I need to get pigs of mine and post them, I just so love the intricate detail of the penciling.

 

[Robert Blosl]

THOSE OF YOU WHO POSTED PICTURES COULD YOU TELL US THE SOURCE OF YOUR ORIGINAL STOCK. IT WOULD BE INTERESTED IF THEY ARE ALL DICKS BIRDS OR THEY CAME FROM SOMEONE ELSE. VERY NICE PICTURES AND GLAD OTHERS ARE WORKING ON THIS COLOR PATTERN. BOB

 

[Silver Rock]

Very happy to see the Silver Penciled Plymouth Rock breeders coming together on this thread. Very nice day for the SPPR breed and I agree with Bob VERY NICE PICTURES Today!

 

[Robert Blosl]

Glad to see this picture. Maybe you can see why I am so partial to a black and white standard picture from the 60s. These are true type photos that you want your rocks to look like.

Look at the station of the legs on this male. This is the first thing you want in a big rock legs dead center PLUMB.

Look at the Gravy Bowl or upside down Derby Hat look you want that is classic in a Rock and in a Red you want that Classic Brick oblong shape.

Print these pictures out and have them laminated in a 5x7 sheet of paper. Have them in your hands as you cull l your young birds. Frame them in your chcken house to look at.

You should have this bird or these pictures fixed in your minds eye all the time but you got to go back and look at these pictures as you can get barn blilnd some times. I have.

My best to all of you on this color pattern. and all the tough color patterns of the Rock variety.

 

[Wynette]

Balance is something that I am very keen on; not only with the Rocks, but with my Giants (as well as Marans). An unbalanced bird is just sloppy to look at, and I feel like in a bird with good balance, everything else has a much easier chance of falling right into place. What Bob says above, regarding the legs being in the center of the body. If you have a bird standing square/straight, draw a line up from the legs - all the way past the topline, then fold that picture over. The body should almost almost have the same lines when you look at that folded paper through the light. This would be for a mature bird only.

Here's an example of a silver penciled rock with bad balance; see how front-heavy she is? (I will not reveal the bloodline as I don't want to offend anyone, but she is not from my line.):



This bird is a mess, in my opinion. Her topline is incorrect, as is her tail. Wing carriage is even an issue. I feel like if this bird posessed proper "balance," these issues may very well be resolved. She does have nice color, and her penciling is complete in the front of the neck - many fade out to white in the front of the neck toward the head. Something else to watch for in the breed.

Now, here is a young male with excellent balance (this is not a Rock, but it's the best picture I have to illustrate balance). If you chopped off this guy's head/neck and his tail, then drew a line straight up from his legs and folded the picture over itself, you would see the good balance of this male. The topline in this breed, per SOP, should run slightly uphill from base of tail to base of neck, so obviously that won't replicate if you fold a paper over) - but, the idea is that they should not be too "front heavy" nor to heavy behind:



Although it's not a great picture, and he's not relaxed, can you tell that this silver pencield rock male is of the same bloodline as the female above? (However, look at those GORGEOUS yellow legs!)

 

[TNBEARCHICK]

Here is a picture of my oldest SPPR, They were about 6-9 months old here. I am growing out 4 more pullets and 3 cockerels. I also have a 1 year old Rooster who I am currently using for a breeder. Plans are to have 3 breeding trios and choose from the best offspring to further my program. All of my new stock cam from DieFly Ranch but my original hens came from Chuckie CHickens and I am not sure where Heather got her birds from. All this being said I am looking very forward to working with this breed. I am no expert but love the SPPR. I am going to use these for egg and meat purposes also I think it is only right to use them for what they were intended, allow them to serve their purpose and be eye candy also. I am currently building a large coop with a good sized run so I can work with a bigger number of these. We have several varieties of birds on the farm and plan on working with all of them on a rotating basis but these are going to be a yearly project. As gorgeous a s the hens are I think the rooster is the show stopper.