"poor hatchery quality"?

[Goose and Fig]

What does this mean? All birds from hatcheries are poor quality?

All of my starter birds were from a hatchery. I have added on from other sources and selectively bred some that I really liked. I didn't get my birds to show. They're chickens! They eat tons of bugs, till the garden, entertain us, lay lots of great orange-yolked eggs, and all that. I think they're all beautiful- no matter where they came from. They are all true to their breed as well.

Should we NOT order chicks from a hatchery?
What if you can't find what you want anywhere that makes sense?

 

[rizq]

I think they just mean that most hatchery birds are not show quality. They do not generally meet the breed standard and sometimes are not even purebred. If showing is not your thing, then this should not matter.

If your chickens are just pets or for egg laying, it does not matter. Hatcheries are a great place to get birds, just do not expect show quality.

 

[can you hear me now?]

I don't think all hatcheries have poor quality birds. I do however think that they have a broader use of the word standard. Were they hatched from a standard yes. The difference, A breeder will take the standard qualities and specifically keep ones of better quality for show and such. A hatchery will give their breeders birds and buy the eggs from them to hatch, there is no selective breeding going on so there can be a wider range of poor quality birds after years of doing so.

 

[speckledhen]

If you have hatchery birds just for eggs and to love, there is nothing wrong with hatchery stock at all. My entire original flock plus a couple of others came from a hatchery. If you want to show or breed close to the Standard of Perfection, then you'd want to probably buy from a good breeder.
Hatcheries often outcross birds so what you get can actually be a mixed breed. For instance, Delawares were outcrossed to Columbian Rock, which ruined that line, IMO, but the reason was that they were dying out. The problem was that they didn't cull out the ones that had the obvious Columbian Rock features. So, a true Delaware is really endangered and I am developing a quality flock of them. My first attempt at them a couple years ago was disastrous. McMurray stock was super flighty and aggressive, at least the ones my friend and I had. Sold them all.
Another friend got some with feathered legs, of all the stupid things! With a breed as endangered as the Delaware, you want to breed good examples, not poor ones.
Last year four (and almost five) of my hatchery girls, over two years old, died from internal laying. None of the other birds bred here or from good breeders have had this issue. Not all hatchery stock is in danger of that, certainly, however, they breed strictly for production of eggs rather than to the standard set by the APA. And high production birds are more likely to develop those infections.

 

[walkswithdog]

Hatchery stock is where a lot of people have to start. Nothing wrong with it for a "pretty" flock of layers.

But... there are written standards for a way a breed looks and is. Hatcheries fall short of it in general. Also hatchery birds are bred for "production of eggs." Fine also but if you want broodies... then production stock limits the opportunity to find birds bred for broodiness.

That's why, when I can get them, I get birds bred by people who are breeding closer to the standard and for natural broodiness and in some cases I can find people with birds being reared free range. Since free ranging is a skill set and there is a learning curve, and some birds that might survive penned up would never survive free range - that helps me as well.

If I can find someone who for several generations has been weeding out faults, selecting for proper size and type and is free ranging their birds then I am a HUGE step ahead.

I want a flock that will be very close to the Standard without losing the fertility and free range capability. Show flocks tend to get inbred and then lose fertility, often aren't broody and lay fewer eggs when they do lay.

Not the goal here. The goal is a HERITAGE quality flock, close to the Standard but not so insanely driven at it that they are not productive and do not thrive free ranging.

There are two ends of the great expanse of a breed's quality. Hatchery and Show. While Show birds LOOK the way they are supposed to, they don't produce well, and while hatchery birds produce eggs, they don't often look the way they're supposed to, and have a number or a lot of "faults" or what would be disqualifications.

I'll stick with better than hatchery and less than perfect show birds...

It's all about your choices. You choose your own goals, your own standards.

I really WANT my Partridge, Blue, Black and Barred Rocks and my Delawares to resemble their standards well. And so I do cull away from poorer examples. I also cull non-productive birds, unfriendly birds, birds that create contention in the flock, and that don't do well free ranging. Because I'm not doing this to listen to bird fights or feed what doesn't lay eggs.

I do want to be able to say I have GOOD breed representatives and know why.

But you get to do exactly what makes you happy and you should.

 

[Goose and Fig]

So I am starting a new breeding flock- do I only hatch eggs from the hens that seem the most to standard?
Or ones that have better size or personality? (Standard BBS Cochins)
I have found this breed pretty hard to find in my area- unless it's from a hatchery. 2/3 of my starter stock was shipped from 3 different breeders ( shipping survival rate was NOT great), and 1/3 will be from Meyer.

Does this sound like I'm going to get a good start?
Should I wait until a certain generation before getting "certified"?

Please forgive my lack of knowledge- just want to do this right. It's not just an investment of money- but time and emotional attachment to the flock.

 

[chickenbottom]

i personally think my ideal babies look show quality they look like any other pure breed ive seen so what makes them not show worthy

 

[Chris09]

Quote:
Most chickens have a Standard that they are juged by..
There are a list of disqualifications and colors for that breed/sex. Standard weight of that breed/sex of chicken a long with what the comb, beak, fase, eyes, wattles, ear-lobs, head, neck, back, tail, wings, breast, body and fluff, legs and toes should look like.

Most chicken from hatchery dont meet this standard one way or another..

Chris

 

[Chris09]

Quote:
Here is a good post from windchyme showing Hatchery silkies and Show Silkies just scroll down to whindchyme's post..
Just there pure breed doesn't make them show quality...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=204156&p=3

Chris

 

[chickenbottom]

Quote:
Here is a good post from windchyme showing Hatchery silkies and Show Silkies just scroll down to whindchyme's post..
Just there pure breed doesn't make them show quality...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=204156&p=3

Chris

they all are pretty but the pure breeds are fluffier im talking about my barred rocks and i see pictures on here and mine look exactly the same they look perfect and those win first place second third what ever i just dont see why a regular chicken cant win when they look the same ive always wanted to put mine in shows and try and win the ribbons but everyone tells me that the hatchery birds arnt show quality oh well i think my babies are beautiful and i dont need some judge saying they arnt. thank you for showing me the difference chris09