Show off your Delawares! *PIC HEAVY*

[delawaregirl09]

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Looks like it, A! Loving it. These birds are so amazing, and McSpin, yours are BEAUTIFUL. I dont judge on Heritage and Hatchery until I buy birds. They are all lovely to me

 

[speckledhen]

Nice chunky ones you have there, McSpin. Great leg color, too. They are fabulous layers, aren't they? And I like the shade the eggs are, too.

 

[chickinlickin]

I've got 2 pullets (about 22 weeks) right now...BUT by the end of the week, I'll have 3 more 16 wk olds!.....My current ones are hatchery birds and I'm just tickled to death with them. They have just started to lay....I'll get some pictures up soon...

I'm loving this thread!

You all have some awful nice birds.

 

[Bassleg]

Are they a meaty bird at that age? Nice birds!!

 

[Lizzy_Lane_Farm]

Wow,

All this is very interesting. Guess I had better do some more reading up on these if there is any info to be found on line. I did find the standard image mentioned earlier.....
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=2606843

Guess to the untrained eye (mine!) these birds look much the same to me....Would anyone like to take the photos on this thread and compaire it to the photo of the standard, (the heritage line vs the hatchery stock).... It would be educational to see what the thoughts were on them.... I am speaking for myself here, it won't hurt my feelings to have their flaws pointed out.

I choose these birds because they were a heritage breed and want heritage birds here on our farm. I would like to spend my time and energy on a line worth preserving for their historical value not simply for eggs and meat. Although this is there purpose, here any way.

As I mentioned before mine came from Ideal Poultry this summer. I forgot to mention that one in the crowd ( I don't know which one now) I hatched from eggs purchased from Shortcakes (https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/profile.php?id=3945

If she ever offers eggs again I would buy more from her, I see the low hatch rate as my fault due to my inexperience and not her eggs. In reading other posts, others have had great success with her eggs.

I had 20 or so and only 1 hatched, 2 days later my order arrived and I put them in with the one. I have a good idea which one it is, this one is heavier and seems a bit more calm, but all of mine would love to climb in my pocket....

Anyone?

 

[McSpin]

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Thanks,

They're starting out better than any other breed I've had. Even their first egg wasn't small, and once they started laying, the eggs have been coming every day. I started out with 30 birds and didn't have to cull one for any reason. They all had the exact same leg color and reasonably good patterns on them. Every one of them grew fast and large. This is another thing I haven't experienced in the past. So far, these are proving to be what a chicken should be - fast growing and prolific egg layers.

 

[speckledhen]

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Thanks,

They're starting out better than any other breed I've had. Even their first egg wasn't small, and once they started laying, the eggs have been coming every day. I started out with 30 birds and didn't have to cull one for any reason. They all had the exact same leg color and reasonably good patterns on them. Every one of them grew fast and large. This is another thing I haven't experienced in the past. So far, these are proving to be what a chicken should be - fast growing and prolific egg layers.

Fabulous to hear! So glad your experience is so positive with them. I'm very impressed with them as layers as well as their curious and active nature.

Lizzy, the artist's rendering of the standard is actually a much stockier bird than most hatchery Dels. Note the extremely deep chest, especially. The first time I saw that picture, it was what surprised me, that they are supposed to be such a big, broad bird, since all I had seen were narrow, badly colored hatchery birds till that point.

 

[OutInTheStiks]

Our Delaware, Dale (original name, I know), and a couple of her chicks. I'm 99% sure she is hatchery stock. Not nearly as pretty as many of the others postd here, but still a great layer, setter and mom. Her chicks were sired by our rooster, Knowles, who we think is half Delaware; making these chicks 3/4 Delaware. I'm intersted to see if they look like Delawares or not.

 

[joletabey]

Does anyone have a good straight on shot so I can see width? Is it on here and I missed it?
Thanks!
Beth

 

[Lizzy_Lane_Farm]

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mmmm....I have been looking for one too.