Plymouth Rock thread!

[Ashburnham]

My little BRs - almost completely feathered now.

 

[7&8]

Evening, all. Yup, Erik has some nice birds. I've had his bantam & LF stock for a few years now. He has been breeding "this" line for many years. He's not inclined to say it is one line in particular. If pressed, he will recall from whom he acquired a new cock bird, but it's from l-o-n-g ago. Almost as if it's less about where they've come from, and more about where to go with those you now have - if that makes any sense.

I wonder at what point the original line becomes so dilute as to no longer be relevant?

Ashandvine, enjoy your birds. They are lovely to behold! And don't worry that anyone felt as if you "stole" birds at the auction! We're just glad that they've gone to a good home!

 

[chickenandchick]

Silver pencilled Plymouth Rocks on Prince Edward Island enjoying the late fall weather

Today, snow - chickens don't wander so far these days.

Wow, he is beautiful!!!!

 

[7&8]

Ashandvine, this is gramps. He's three generations back from your cockerel. I'm a retirement home for good old boys.

 

[kathyinmo]

Do you know whether these birds are from the Frank Reese, Good Shepherd line?
They look as if they may be. Maybe Marvin Stuekel's line, but to my eye, they look a bit more like a Reese bird.

They are excellent examples of a pair. Nice birds, good conformation. The pullet's head is not the best. We struggle with this as well. Not all the pullets have a dignified head, but we'll work on that going forward, in the out years. That cockerel is too young to judge yet. They take 13 months before they show what they have. He's a looker though. I like his flat back and his good breast. Watch out for high held tails, if you get tails. Some of these rocks need tail work, for sure. Photos are deceiving but they look very, very good. A great start.

They sorta remind me of Jamie Duckworth's birds.

 

[DMRippy]

Ashandvine, this is gramps. He's three generations back from your cockerel. I'm a retirement home for good old boys.

LOOK at the SIZE of that guy!

He can retire at my place if needs a second retirement

 

[ashandvine]

Ashandvine, this is gramps. He's three generations back from your cockerel. I'm a retirement home for good old boys.

Thank you for posting this. I usually delete pics from my responses to save room but he was too handsome to crop out. This is a great hope for me. Mine, being this years birds, are still growing out. Gramp has a great comb and barring and

Okay, this breed of single combs isn't too bad. ha. Thank you for the information about the line. Someone suggested they looked a lot like Reese but if Mr Erik isn't saying that's good to know. They are the Erik line! So if Gramp is retired does that mean you aren't breeding him anymore?? Depending on where you are located I would love to come take a look and ask some more dumb questions.

 

[Mr MKK FARMS]

Ashandvine, this is gramps. He's three generations back from your cockerel. I'm a retirement home for good old boys.

Wow, what a beautiful rooster you have!!

 

[ashandvine]

Some more pics. They always look better on grass. A few more natural poses to judge them by...







There is something very 'classic' about seeing them in the back yard.

 

[Robert Blosl]

Inhere is my wpr breeder this year. gonna focus on gettin the lift in te tail. looks small but he weighs right at 9lbs

I heard you had a picture of your top cockerel of the year on this thread. I got to brothers out in conditioning pens and maybe tomorrow afternoon I will put them on the ground and take a picture that are about two months younger than this brother or the male above. His lift is not bad considering what I had to use to cross onto this line or my friend Anthony had to do a few years ago. All my males died and I shipped a a flat back male to Penn to use on a Colombian Rock Large Fowl project. That project produced nothing but barred rocks so my friend up there tabled the project. I then got that male back and Anthony crossed him onto my three to five year old hens. Each year we have been selecting birds with higher lifts in the back section a very slow proces.

Now as cock birds this strain of white rocks there tails and back section will rise up about five more degrees. You got to remember the picture in the black and white standard that Schilling made for us is a 18 month old cock bird so our cockerels do not have to look like that bird he left us in the standard.

This guy has great feather quality which makes them look small among the normal FLUFFY white rocks out there. But if you weigh him he will be about one pound or little more over standad cocerel weight which is perfect but not part of todays fad on white rocks. They want them to fill up the cage. Sorry this is a pet torn in my side on what we see in the show coops today. That is not what the old boys wanted 30 and 50 years ago.

Sorry I could not help myself saying that. I use to have FLUFFY White Plymouth Rocks but I breed them out of my old line. I figured out this line is somewhere about 20 plus years old and the guy I got them from had them about 20 years was a great breeder and booster of the Plymouth Rock Club. His name was Oliver Bowen from Calif and he got most of his from Harry Halbach of Wisconsin. I breed mine like Harry's dad did who's name was Bill Halbach. My first White Rocks came from Carl F. Hove of Seattle Washington as a young boy but gave them up when I left home to join the Air Force. Carl got his White Rocks from Bill Halbach in the 1940s.

So I just tried to breed them like Carl did that classic white rock look.

By the way if you go to the Plymouth Rock Web site and look at the Hall of Fame. The same year Bill Halbach and his student Carl Hove where installed into I think the 1964 White Plymouth Rock Hall of fame. That club and the Present Plymouth Rock Club merged about 30 years ago so those Hall of Fame members joined the other clubs Hall of Fame members. I was privileged to be the National Sec. for four years giving up my duties about a year ago this News Year Eve we have a great club going and you should be a member of it if you love Plymouth Rocks.

Keep pushing these old Rocks. Those barreds look very nice and such crisp color. bob