Show off your Delawares! *PIC HEAVY*

[JoAnn_WI_4-H_Mom]

How is everyone doing with keeping those 5-points ON in the colder regions?

My poor Sussex Rooster will not sleep inside the roost shack in our pole shed coop (no insulation, everywhere but the roost shack is same temp as outside, around 0F. Heat lamp in the Roost Shack) I am so sad, I think he will loose part of his wattles and points of his comb. I'm a bad chicken mom.

So Deli roosters with those big combs and wattles, what is the experience in northern tier states?

 

[speckledhen]

The comb points on the girls take longer to be able to count; often what you think is a little bump on the front part turns into a full-blown point later on. The boys' points are easy to count much earlier. I have BRs and my big blue Orp besides Isaac and they all get bag balm or vaseline on their combs on really cold nights. So far, the only one who has ever had any frostbite was Zane on a couple of tips--he is crippled and is in a pen by himself, so has no one to snuggle with (though he does have a red reptile heat bulb on him)

 

[delawaregirl09]

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YESSSSSSSSSSS! Lol. Maybe. Yes, I would love to have some, but I need to make room! Trying to sell my older birds...

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So you use Vaseline too? That stuff is sooo sticky, but it works good

 

[Mrs MIA]

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It's so nice to hear that Zane is still with us.

Cyn, you've seen this one already, but I want to see what people think of these up-and-comers.

I got two pullet eggs from their pen this morning.

Here's one girl...

... and her backside...

Another girl...

And another...

The barring on their hackles seems to be too bold. There's a couple that are so light as to almost be pure white, but a couple look more like light brahamas. They're just now about 6 months old.

So inquisitive, gentle, and sweet...

 

[Germaine_11.20]

I think they look great! Can the hackles on the ladies be too strong?

 

[kathyinmo]

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Hey, we are only 160 miles apart! We could meet half way, and the eggs wouldn't have to be shipped! Then, we could go out for lunch! Or, I could incubate the eggs for you ... since I am lovin' this incubator .... and deliver the chicks!

 

[speckledhen]

The standard doesn't say the girls' hackles should be lighter than the males'. Tori, the last girl has a sort of lacing/barring rather than straight barring (which looks more like stippling since the hackle feathers are so narrow--not much room for an actual bar on there, LOL). My Georgie and Ellie have that type hackle, but they have very nice tail black, too. The first two girls looks great, very distinct barring in the hackles, but I am no expert myself.

 

[kathyinmo]

I ordered a SOP book, but it still has not arrived. Is there a certain amount of hackle coloring preferred? How dark is too dark? Can it be too dark, or too light?

 

[speckledhen]

The Standard says for females:

"Hackle- showing irregular indications of black and white barring, entire web edged with white; quill and shaft white. Front of neck-white"

Says almost word for word the same thing for the male hackles.

 

[joletabey]

Mrs.A.K.Birdbrain- I love the shape of the neck on that first hen, and the second one has such a sweet look - and nice markings- I can see what Cynthia is saying about the third, but she is still very pretty.

I have the color SOP, and the pictures show the same kind of barring on the hackle in both male and female, and it appears very black, and very irregular, almost like dotting- And, as Cynthia said, it does definitely say black and white, so I would read that as saying the dark can't be too dark - I mean, what's darker than black?