Show off your Delawares! *PIC HEAVY*

[HighSpringsChix]

My big Braden roo Tarzan just fell over dead today.

I had thrown them some scratch and was cleaning the water pan. When I looked up again, he was on the ground flopping around, dead. He didn't swallow anything, I checked.
I'm at a loss. He wasn't sick, acting normal. I guess he had a heart attack. I have no clue what else it could have been. I did check his liver, it was perfect looking. I didn't have time to disect the heart.

And I hadn't hatched any eggs from him and his new girls yet. I guess I am going to posthumously hatch all their eggs until they are no longer fertile.

I'm still kinda shocked. My daughter and I buried him. We said goodbye and thanked him for all the nice babies.

Tarzan, RIP

 

[rancher hicks]

Quote:
Tim, I think you focus on the hackle barring. In my opinion the focus should be on "type," meaning the shape of the body and head first and foremost. In the pictures you showed the thing I noticed (differences) is the hackle barring. Is that what you are talking about? Perfect barring is not gonna happen every time, with even the best matings. Smutt is another issue that crops up. I just don't see that as a big deal myself. Not where I am anyway ..... building the barn. Guess I will deal with that when I am painting it.

Do you look at your birds' bodies .... width between the legs, size of head, angle of tail, "bowl shape," etc? Or are you looking the color of the feathers?

To answer your question .... can a bird fit the standard and not be perfect .... Of course they can! There is no perfect bird, but you can get darn close with careful breeding practices and lots and lots of hatching. I do believe this. It may take years, but it is possible.

As far as hatcheries go, I believe Sandhills is one of the better ones, from what I read anyway. But, a hatchery is a hatchery is a hatchery. You simply can not expect quality SOP stock from retail stock. After all, they breed in quantity, not quality. Most hatcheries do not even have their own stock, ya know.

Of course you are right about type and I am looking for that too. Which is why I have a pen full of pullets and brooders full of chicks. Type is why I went to the ALBC conference. Don Schrider gave a talk about type and how to look at a bird and determine whether it was a good layer or meat bird or both. So I agree with you there. I don't mean to seem as though I'm only concentrating on feather pattern, only that the wrong pattern may mean something else is in there. On the other hand the point of a "breed" is that every chick should look similar to the parent breed. Or am I wrong? You simply can't get the APA to admit a breed that doesn't breed true. The characteristics must be stabilized. Which of course is where we are at. To stabilize the type and the rest of the breed.

Sand Hill was recommended by Karen Thornton who I met at the conference. I did contact them and they did suggest ordering early. I just was not up to ordering their minimum of 25 chicks. The average price for a chick is $5 and that is more than I want to spend. $5x25 that is. Not to mention my wife would kill me. I haven't told her what the chicks from Hinkjc are going to cost and I won't if I want to live. Those I can drive to pick up.

While there are many interested in Delaware they are not close together and certainly not in New York State, so there was no splitting an order with someone else. I hope to make a trip to Iowa and see Phil Shank also recommended by Karen. So stay tuned.

Have a good night

Rancher

 

[rancher hicks]

Quote:
I am sorry for your loss.

rancher

 

[HorizonSon]

Camille; bummer deal...

Tarzan, rest in peace.

 

[kathyinmo]

Quote:
I am so sorry for your loss. I hope you hatch out some great babies!

 

[X2Farm]

Quote:
Oh no

So sorry to hear this. He sure was handsome. Good luck with the hatching

 

[cubalaya]

i got sandhills catalog today and they are sold out of delawares for the whole year

 

[TACEYPERKINS]

ah Camille- I am so sorry. I hope you get a good replacement out of his offspring.

 

[Bassleg]

I had an order for 25 chicks from Sand Hill last year and I have 3 Roos and 13 pullets that are ok as far as the sop the rest were good with rice and beans.

 

[HighSpringsChix]

Thank you for the condolences. I sure hope I get some chicks from his last eggs.