Processing Day Support Group ~ HELP us through the Emotions PLEASE!

[ronott1]

Nope...they've been stellar layers from the start. I cull rigorously for laying and for the first few years they have to be a daily layer in peak season, after that they are allowed to lay every other day and I'll still feed them but they must be a layer. This past year is the first I've seen them slack off from that daily or every other day laying and they also started taking longer to recover from down times that are common for all layers, like molt, broody recovery or winter slow downs. That's when the culling started...I won't feed a slacker for very long.

That's why I was so surprised that so many on the Heritage thread are content with their birds laying 4-5 eggs per week and thinking that was good....in my flocks that better be an old bird. I'd never be content with a new layer only giving me 5 eggs a week, even a dual purpose bird.

Don't get me started on that topic!

There is way too much of the Form follows function stuff over there.

 

[Beekissed]

I've read about that and then when I read about the low egg productivity I had to ask. I know they really run down hatchery genetics a lot but I really can't see my way clear to feeding a lazy chicken for the sake of purism. I work hard and I respect a hard working animal and I won't feed one I don't respect. I can't imagine not making that number one priority of my breeding program and then worrying about the window dressing later. If the hatcheries can get that part right, they must be doing something right.

 

[ronott1]

I've read about that and then when I read about the low egg productivity I had to ask. I know they really run down hatchery genetics a lot but I really can't see my way clear to feeding a lazy chicken for the sake of purism. I work hard and I respect a hard working animal and I won't feed one I don't respect. I can't imagine not making that number one priority of my breeding program and then worrying about the window dressing later. If the hatcheries can get that part right, they must be doing something right.

Yes, the chickens we had growing up were from a Hatchery. They laid lots of eggs for a lot of years. We only got new ones once and a Broody hatched some one time but that flock went from something like 1966 to 1977.

 

[BCMaraniac]

Yes, the chickens we had growing up were from a Hatchery. They laid lots of eggs for a lot of years. We only got new ones once and a Broody hatched some one time but that flock went from something like 1966 to 1977.

Good meat + good eggs + good broody = GOOD CHICKEN!!

 

[Beekissed]

You forgot one! Good health! We grew up on hatchery chickens also and we also had good results. I'd dearly love to have the best of both worlds...the correct looking bird with the correct performance but I'd never keep a bird that didn't work.

 

[RockerHen]

I've found my Marans rooster (who probably isn't the best representation of a Marans, with his white tail feathers and all, but I love him all the same) produces large, meaty children. He himself doesn't look all that meaty, but he is a very large rooster. He dwarfed his siblings growing up. He made some big babies when crossed with my hatchery wyandottes, for sure.

Check out the breast on this son! He was quite tasty, I might add.

Even his olive egger daughter is quite large, much bigger than my hatchery leghorn hens.

I'm thinking of raising up some Cornish X this spring for the first time as well, freeranging them of course. All of my birds freerange during the day as long as the weather isn't terrible, with the exception of my Thai pair (they don't get along well with others, unfortunately)

 

[BCMaraniac]

I've found my Marans rooster (who probably isn't the best representation of a Marans, with his white tail feathers and all, but I love him all the same) produces large, meaty children. He himself doesn't look all that meaty, but he is a very large rooster. He dwarfed his siblings growing up. He made some big babies when crossed with my hatchery wyandottes, for sure.

Check out the breast on this son! He was quite tasty, I might add.

Even his olive egger daughter is quite large, much bigger than my hatchery leghorn hens.

I'm thinking of raising up some Cornish X this spring for the first time as well, freeranging them of course. All of my birds freerange during the day as long as the weather isn't terrible, with the exception of my Thai pair (they don't get along well with others, unfortunately)

I love Marans....bet you never would have guessed....LOL. I like your rooster. You can tell he's got substance. Who cares what color his tail feathers are? I don't eat feathers, so the meatiness of his offspring is what I would be interested in.......and you really can't beat hybrid vigor. I plan on pure breeding and some crosses for next year's meat production to see what works for me in terms of carcass quality. I want to have egg to freezer sustainability. I know a lady who has 4 breeding pairs of Shamo chickens. Now that is a dense bird. Not much in the leg department, but a really heavy body.....reminds me of a Dark Cornish. She is giving me hatching eggs this spring, so I can consider a test cross with them to see if they will increase breast size in my other breeds while maintaining the remainder of their size.....many breeding projects in my mind...

 

[RockerHen]

I love Marans....bet you never would have guessed....LOL. I like your rooster. You can tell he's got substance. Who cares what color his tail feathers are? I don't eat feathers, so the meatiness of his offspring is what I would be interested in.......and you really can't beat hybrid vigor. I plan on pure breeding and some crosses for next year's meat production to see what works for me in terms of carcass quality. I want to have egg to freezer sustainability. I know a lady who has 4 breeding pairs of Shamo chickens. Now that is a dense bird. Not much in the leg department, but a really heavy body.....reminds me of a Dark Cornish. She is giving me hatching eggs this spring, so I can consider a test cross with them to see if they will increase breast size in my other breeds while maintaining the remainder of their size.....many breeding projects in my mind...

I have Thai games, an oriental breed somewhat similar to Shamos, and I know what you mean about dense. They wouldn't look like they weigh as much as they do, being all stretched out and leggy as they are, but they are heavier than my wyandottes were. The pullet especially is surprisingly dense and heavy--no fluff on these guys, just muscle. I've also considered test breeding the pullet with my Marans when she starts laying, just to see what kind of carcass the offspring would produce.

I've also considered doing a single showgirl/Thai cross...purely to satisfy my own curiosity. Now that would be a funky looking baby!

 

[BCMaraniac]

I have Thai games, an oriental breed somewhat similar to Shamos, and I know what you mean about dense. They wouldn't look like they weigh as much as they do, being all stretched out and leggy as they are, but they are heavier than my wyandottes were. The pullet especially is surprisingly dense and heavy--no fluff on these guys, just muscle. I've also considered test breeding the pullet with my Marans when she starts laying, just to see what kind of carcass the offspring would produce.

I've also considered doing a single showgirl/Thai cross...purely to satisfy my own curiosity. Now that would be a funky looking baby!

I thought your birds might be similar to the Shamos. I even thought about Bresse/Shamo cross.....some funky birds a comin', I say.....LOL

I bought 3 Splash Marans roos, two blue Birchen Marans pullets, a black BirchenMarans pullet, and a splash Marans pullet who just started laying 2 days ago. I will cull one of the roos, but one of them is going to be really big like his dad who is a blue Birchen Marans. I have no clue how this birchen/copper will cross out color wise, but meat is what I want. I heard people talk about getting blacks, blue birchen, splash birchen, lemon blue......

.....makes my head hurt....

We will have to compare notes on our Oriental crosses. The Thais and Shamos aren't very common here, are they?

 

[RockerHen]

I thought your birds might be similar to the Shamos. I even thought about Bresse/Shamo cross.....some funky birds a comin', I say.....LOL

I bought 3 Splash Marans roos, two blue Birchen Marans pullets, a black BirchenMarans pullet, and a splash Marans pullet who just started laying 2 days ago. I will cull one of the roos, but one of them is going to be really big like his dad who is a blue Birchen Marans. I have no clue how this birchen/copper will cross out color wise, but meat is what I want. I heard people talk about getting blacks, blue birchen, splash birchen, lemon blue......

.....makes my head hurt....

We will have to compare notes on our Oriental crosses. The Thais and Shamos aren't very common here, are they?

Here's my pair. They don't carry themselves as upright as Shamos do, except when on 'alert'. I haven't seen very many oriental breeders at all around here. Mostly what I've seen at shows, chickenstocks, etc are Asil/Asil crosses. I will be sure to keep updates on any crosses I do. I also don't care much about color of meat crosses, but the spangling should produce some interesting babies.