Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Perris]

Is there a natural size and shape nature will select when left alone to do it's own thing (?)

Yes; it's called natural selection

But of course you meant in the short term, and in the domestic chicken specifically. One of the main reasons I chose the Swedish Flower to start the flock was because it is/was a 'natural' 'landrace', not something created by human breeders doing the selecting of parents. I think most humans (me included) make more or less bad choices most of the time.

The rare breeds that I naively wanted to help save, by buying them and thereby supporting their breeder 'rescuers', have had poor health and dreadful hatch rates. I have come to the conclusion that the smaller the gene pool, the poorer quality it is likely to be.

You could say I am currently running an experiment on what nature selects from a backyard gene pool when left to do its own thing.

Not a sign of the tufts that Fret and Mow have in Tull and Sylph. The feathered legs have bred through though.

What bad luck! Quincy has a really cute tuft. She looks like a Weeble in this photo taken during the cold snap last week

 

[Shadrach]

Yes; it's called natural selection

But of course you meant in the short term, and in the domestic chicken specifically. One of the main reasons I chose the Swedish Flower to start the flock was because it is/was a 'natural' 'landrace', not something created by human breeders doing the selecting of parents. I think most humans (me included) make more or less bad choices most of the time.

The rare breeds that I naively wanted to help save, by buying them and thereby supporting their breeder 'rescuers', have had poor health and dreadful hatch rates. I have come to the conclusion that the smaller the gene pool, the poorer quality it is likely to be.

You could say I am currently running an experiment on what nature selects from a backyard gene pool when left to do it's own thing.

What bad luck! Quincy has a really cute tuft. She looks like a Weeble in this photo taken during the cold snap last week
View attachment 3971587

It's what nature selects and the speed with which all those carefully breeder selected attributes fall away that I find interesting. The hybrids in Catalonia (Marans and mainly Old English game) looked very similar to the field hybrids in a couple of generations free breeding.

 

[MaryJanet]

Yes; it's called natural selection

But of course you meant in the short term, and in the domestic chicken specifically. One of the main reasons I chose the Swedish Flower to start the flock was because it is/was a 'natural' 'landrace', not something created by human breeders doing the selecting of parents. I think most humans (me included) make more or less bad choices most of the time.

The rare breeds that I naively wanted to help save, by buying them and thereby supporting their breeder 'rescuers', have had poor health and dreadful hatch rates. I have come to the conclusion that the smaller the gene pool, the poorer quality it is likely to be.

You could say I am currently running an experiment on what nature selects from a backyard gene pool when left to do it's own thing.

What bad luck! Quincy has a really cute tuft. She looks like a Weeble in this photo taken during the cold snap last week
View attachment 3971587

You should put this photo in the photo of the week thread. It's charming!

 

[Perris]

the speed with which all those carefully breeder selected attributes fall away

Indeed. Most of our societies' 'breed standards' do not make the bird more fit to survive and reproduce, since they have been overwhelmingly selected for appearance and pay no attention to longevity, fecundity etc.. By contrast, so-called village chickens or landraces have been selected for survival and reproduction by people who depended on their eggs or meat, without much regard to their appearance.

 

[Perris]

You should put this photo in the photo of the week thread. It's charming!

thanks; she is a cutie. And she looks very like Cadoc, so I have a bit of a soft spot for her.

 

[Perris]

As most readers of this thread will know, I have been investigating chicken nutrition for some time now, and recently more specifically on how they know how to select a balanced diet from what's on offer to them. I posted something on it on another thread yesterday, which I repeat here because Shad mentioned it and I think he at least might be interested in it.

Recent research in ecology, biology, and associated subjects has shown that the sense of taste has a large role to play in animals' selection of what to eat and how much of it to eat. Broadly speaking, the sweet taste detects carbs, and the umami (savoury) taste detects proteins. Calcium, phosphorus and sodium are detectable by many animals, and since they are nutrients that are essential in small quantities but are toxic in large quantities, the tastes for these are either consumptive and aversive, depending on circumstances; the taste is appealing if that nutrient is needed at that time and is in an appropriate concentration, and aversive if that nutrient is not needed or is in a too-concentrated form for that animal's metabolism to process. That is why, for example, we and our chickens may eat something with gusto one day and be sick of it the next.

If you want to read more on this, the key terms to research are 'nutritional geometry' and 'ecological stoichiometry'.

 

[fuzzi]

The adults are still moulting. I can't recall having chickens moult over such a long period before.
View attachment 3971355

Maybe they're expecting a colder winter?

 

[BDutch]

Maybe they're expecting a colder winter?

I would think a very slow moult. Which has less impact on their health.

Mine always have a slow moult , they never get naked patches. Except once, poor Pino my lavender Dutch about 8 years ago.

Black showing how heavy its gets most years.

 

[Ladies-Eight]

Ex Batts good morning one and all!

Tea is ready.

Temperature is in the 60s sunny.

Have a great day!

 

[MaryJanet]

the tastes for these are either consumptive and aversive, depending on circumstances

Fascinating!