Reliable Russian Orloffs

[Minnowey]

Last year, I bought two Russian Orloffs from Ideal. One of them lasted 3 days, the other 3 weeks. They were extremely inbred. This year, I searched for a more reliable breeder. I found one, who confirmed that Russian Orloffs bought at hatcheries were indeed inbred, because they are a very rare breed and cannnot be directly imported from Russia. If anyone knows of a reliable breeder or hatchery whose chicks may not be so inbred, I would really appreciate it, because the breeder never got back to me. I know that Sandhill has them, but I am not sure if they are for sale. Would Sandhill's Orloffs be inbred?

 

[wild chick]

I'm also interested in Russian Orloffs, so I was perusing these threads and saw your post, Minnowey. Hope someone answers!

 

[Minnowey]

Me too, I doubt they will, though. Russian Orloffs seem to be very obscure. If you happen to find some, will you let me know?

 

[mishka67]

There is a breeder up here in Washington called Rare feathers farm. She doesn't have any available now but maybe you can email her about getting on a wait list.

 

[Minnowey]

There is a breeder up here in Washington called Rare feathers farm.  She doesn't have any available now but maybe you can email her about getting on a wait list. 

I will let ok her up, thanks!

 

[aJadeMagnolia]

Sand Hill Preservation Center has sold Orloffs in the past, in both Mahogany and Spangled -- sometimes called 'speckled' -- colors but I don't know if they will have any in the future as my order from them could not be fulfilled due to the fact that a mink wiped out their Orloff breeding pens. I don't know whether there is a single bird left of their line at their Preservation Center. Which is why it is so vitally important that we find out if anyone who has received Orloffs from Sand Hill earlier this year or in the past can preserve those birds as his was one of the only breeding lines in the United States! And genetic diversity is so important to such a rare breed! Mind you, this breed is not only rare here, it is rare all over the world!

I do know that Sand Hill is not a hatchery in the traditional sense. They are a preservation center dedicated to preserving rare breeds and emphasis on genetic diversity is very important to them. Glenn Drowns, who runs Sand Hill Preservation Center, is a professor of biology and he is a dedicated and professional poultry breeder. I have raised some of his stock for others of different breeds and they were top quality, and not in-bred at all. I can recommend his Preservation Center VERY highly.

I've been burned before by other hatcheries so I know how heartbreaking it can be to spend hard-earned money, time and effort raising birds that arrive from hatcheries and turn out to be sickly, weak and not really worth breeding, if they make it to that age.

For non-hatchery sources, I don't have any experience with them or their stock personally, but High Hopes Farm sells chicks and hatching eggs out of their prize-winning lines. High Hopes web site is: http://highhopesrussianor.wixsite.com/highhopesfarm/russian-orloff

You might also want to check out the Russian Orloff Society of USA & Canada, they might be able to provide a list of breeders. Their web site is: http://orloffsociety.wixsite.com/russianorloffsociety

Hope that is of some help!

And would anyone out there reading this who has purchased Russian Orloffs from Sand Hill in the past please take the time to reply as to their experience or PLEASE let us know whether they have original birds or any purebred descendants of Sand Hill's line available? It would be very much appreciated! It is free to post a reply, and very simple to set up an account and click 'Post Reply' at the bottom of this thread. Thank you so much for your help in preserving this rare breed!