Line breeding is a good thing, and it's how you improve a flock, but it will also enhance undesirable traits if you don't cull birds with imperfections. It's good that you are asking these questions now, because your long term goals will affect the decisions you should make now. Siblings will breed each other, they don't care, but it doesn't damage the offspring like it does in humans, it just enhances the traits, good or bad. What do you want for yourself, and what do you want to sell? Do you want to improve on the qualities of your birds and breed towards selling them for show? Then you will have to separate the breeds and ruthlessly cull any imperfections. Pick the best rooster, and keep breeding him to the same hens and his pullets. That can get very involved, and is more than I do with all but 2 of my breeds. Do you just want pets, and to sell the extras as pet quality egg layers? Then keep the boys and girls you want and let them have at it. If you want pure breeds, then you still need to separate, but culling isn't necessary. You will wind up with too many roosters, no way around it, and that's another decision to make. Will you ever be able to butcher your own birds? If not, sell the roosters very cheaply, and don't ask the buyer what they are going to do with them. I advertise roosters $20 for 5, and they will sell within a week.Thanks! I hope sales get better for you.
So should I get rid of the roos, if I don't want siblings breeding? Because not on purpose, but they will try, right?
I guess next year I could shoot for getting more eggs? If I call the same guy maybe he'll have them. I would rather do it this year, but the twins will be here too soon, I won't have enough time I don't think.
If I get them from him and its the same rooster and hen though, and get a new batch of eggs, they're still related right?
As far as getting eggs from the same man, surely he has more than one hen? I would still get my eggs from there.
I enjoy this discussion, because I have learned some of these things the hard way, so anyone lurking on the thread feel free to ask any question that you might think is "stupid". We all started somewhere
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