Russian Orloffs

[NCSprout]

That looks like crossbeak. It can seem to appear in a very short period of time, but is a malformation of the skull and jaw which when left to grow will get worse over time. I have a crossbeak bird that I have not culled and she gets along fine as long as she has a deep feeder. It can be genetic, so I would be not breed a crossbeak bird. It may be an injury as you suspect. If it is I am not sure how the bird would be able to eat if it can't use its jaw.

 

[DTchickens]

Orloff question, Has anyone had problems with the beak? I have a guy - I think - who seems to have injured his jaw. His bottom jaw now sticks our 1/4 inch + more than it did. It took place overnight so I'm pretty sure it was an injury. A friend told me there was not much to do for him but cull him. He's my best boy.

Any suggestions?

I could be wrong, but doesn't look like crooked beak to me; it looks like a injury. From what I can tell the bottom is just longer than the top and seems to be pretty straight from the photo. You can file/clip the bottom beak back if it causes a large issue; he may recover (at least for the most part) with time.

If it is cross beak, I second to cull. But for now, from what I can see; I'd let it play out and see.

 

[Chris09]

I could be wrong, but doesn't look like crooked beak to me; it looks like a injury. From what I can tell the bottom is just longer than the top and seems to be pretty straight from the photo. You can file/clip the bottom beak back if it causes a large issue; he may recover (at least for the most part) with time.

If it is cross beak, I second to cull. But for now, from what I can see; I'd let it play out and see.

I agree with DT, Thats not a crooked beak that is a under shot beak where the lower beak is longer than the top.


Chris

 

[taprock]

It looked to me like the bottom of his beak grew out a 1/2 inch overnight, which led me to think injury but I'm new to Orloffs and their beak is such a large part of the breed. I just wasn't sure with their beak size if they were prone to such things. Tonight he seems to be having trouble moving his tongue but since I haven't really spent much time looking in mouths it may actually be normal.

 

[ashandvine]

I'm terrible about this sort of thing so I defer to the earlier comments with this added thought- if he is your best boy, close him in with a couple hens quick to make sure you get a few good offspring out of him before having to cull.

 

[mississippifarmboy]

Quote: Sorry it's taken me so long to reply Ash, I've had some pretty severe medical problems and am just now getting back on line....

What I mean by what I said was that I have a flock of Orloffs. Around 12 up to 30 birds in a large coop that opens up into our rear pasture. There are two or three of my best roosters in there and the rest are hens. (The growing birds not being held for breeders are all in another pen with all the other growing birds or just they free range, so they never come in contact with my main flock). If I hatch any eggs from my main flock pen, I can never be sure who is the sire or which hen laid that egg, so that to me is "flock breeding". I have over the years gotten some very nice birds that way, but it's a terrible practice to breed to a goal as you are just never sure who mated who. Most of the hatching eggs I sell do come from the flock pen. The first few years to build my numbers I flock bred all of them.

I also mate birds by picking the breeders myself for my breeding program, to try and get improvements in size, color, egg color or whatever. In this case I put a hen in a small coop and keep her there for about 30 days. (Sometimes I have several cooped like this). I then mate that hen to the rooster I choose, then I mark any eggs from that hen with a code so I know which mating it was from and I hatch those eggs in baskets in the incubator and when they hatch I toe punch them so as they grow out I know their parentage. In this case I only put the rooster in with the hen overnight a couple of times a week. The same rooster might be breeding several hens a week, but I can keep each mating separate that way. My code on the egg might be something like SRO/3/42. (Spangled Russian Orloff / Rooster #3 / Hen #42) The toe punch might be outside right foot punch for rooster parent and center left foot punch for hen 42. Just examples.

It's a real pain in the butt, and unless someone is OCD like me, really not worth it I guess, but it's my way. I'm the only fool I know that takes a notebook to feed...
I hope that made sense, I'm having a terrible time with my head working right the past few weeks. If I read this later and it's in Chinese I'll edit it...

 

[mississippifarmboy]

I have been searching online for anyone breeding large fowl Spangled Russian Orloffs...UUUGGHHH! I can't find any breeders...Does anyone on here breed SRO's or know someone who does?? I ordered a couple from Ideal Poultry this past spring, and I want more!! I'm not yet positive, but I think I have a cockerel & a pullet. I'm trying to line up where I can get some more. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Check your PM's.... I might be able to help.

 

[mississippifarmboy]

Welcome to all the new people! Glad you're here. As far as getting Orloffs goes, I think you will find later in the fall or nest spring to be the most opportune time to get them. Mine have handled the heat and humidity here in NC well, and I have no fans or temperature regulating system, just a few frozen water bottles and frozen veggies. I house males together in a rooster coop until I have decided which ones to keep as breeders then cull the rest. I let them run with the flock until I breed. I breed either 1 or 2 hens per pen and move the roo between them every other day. The boys squabble a bit when put back together, but usually work it out in a few days.
MFB, I hope to get down to your place sometime next spring and get some of what you've been working on. Definitely looking forward to it. Hopefully I'll have something worthwhile to bring with me and broaden the gene pool a bit.

Sounds like a plan!


As far as the heat question from the other poster;

Ours are never babied. We have had temps this year from a low of around 10 degrees last winter to a few weeks of over 110 degrees (The record was the end of June when we hit 117) I do nothing different. Fresh water, the same feed, no fans, ice cream or heaters. I've never lost an Orloff to heat or cold. They really are very easy keepers.


edited to add; Anyone looking for stock will find most breeders hatch in the spring and cull in the fall, so your best chance to get stock from other than a hatchery is to contact breeders for spring chicks and in the early fall/winter for started birds. JMHO

We set our first eggs here on February first and hatch until around mid July. I cull from February 21st. (First hatch date) until the end of December when I separate out the following years breeders.

 

[BlackPanther]

Thank you! I think you just revived my hopes for keeping Orloffs!

Aside from crazy 105+ degree days, how active are your Orloffs in the spring and summer?
Do they move around and chase bugs and forage well enough?

 

[mississippifarmboy]

Thank you! I think you just revived my hopes for keeping Orloffs!

Aside from crazy 105+ degree days, how active are your Orloffs in the spring and summer?
Do they move around and chase bugs and forage well enough?

We have had about 20 or so different breeds and the Orloffs are the best foragers of any of them. The Orloffs, guineas and Muscovy ducks forage in any kind of weather. Hot, cold, rain..... they pretty much ignore it all. Yes, they do tend to forage in the shade on super hot days, but where we live that's not a problem. There are plenty of open pastures, overgrown fields, woods, swampy areas, sapling thickets.... They hit them all.

The other breeds like the Rhode Island Reds, Buffs, Doms, Yokahamas, Faverolles, hatchery production reds... all stay within 50 feet or so of the coop most days and tend to run in flocks.When I turn the Orloffs out they scatter in all directions. I've seen them as much as 100 yards from the coop and they might range further. (I can't see them if they go into the overgrown area behind the farm).

Orloffs are beautiful birds, great layers, broodies, foragers, protective mothers and easy to keep. If you are looking for show birds or wanting a breed that pops out little clones and grow out fast.... I'd go with another breed.

I'm culling almost all of mine due to health reasons, but they are one of my favorite breeds.