Show quality percentage ???

[cochin44]

I saw a thread the other day on this, but I can't find it now. I was wondering what the percentage of SQ birds is on average
hatched from two SQ parents. I know it will vary, but there should be an average percentage.
I'm fixing to start my first breeding season, and I would like to know how many eggs to roundup and how many chicks I
need to prepare for.
Thanks for any help.

 

[greathorse]

Many breeders state that to get the best birds you hatch as many as you can afford to feed from the best birds in your flock and then cull from there. I am not sure there is a correct number. I think it would depend largely on how many you have in the breeder pen.

 

[cochin44]

The feed cost I can deal with. My biggest concern is the housing, and I having figured out a way to "cull" just yet.
I guess I will try to give away the non-show quality birds in the neighborhood. My son gets really attached to every
bird we have, and it's hard for him to see them go.

 

[Elite Silkies]

I was told by a SQ breeder that she might keep 5 out of 100 chicks. She that was a good number, sometimes only one or two.

 

[greathorse]

Quote:
I have given a fair number of birds to freinds and others, I don't think it is a great idea to just give them willy nilly, they should be represented as having value, but for friends it doesnt bother me. If you have some of the better genetics even the culls can have some value. There are a lot of folks that like having the nice birds around even if they wont breed, so a good looking bird with a fault or two can still look pretty good in someone's back yard.

 

[cochin44]

Quote:
She must have meant keeping 5 out of 100 for breeding stock right?

 

[Elite Silkies]

Quote:
She must have meant keeping 5 out of 100 for breeding stock right?

The way she told me was that she only kept between 1 to 5 chicks out of 100 that might be Show Quality potential. She sells the rest as culls.

 

[PremierSilkies]

My thoughts and experience would be how old is the bloodline you are working with or are you combining lines?
In the case of combining lines you will loose consistency in the stock and it takes time to build that into your line.
Also the colors you are working with can affect how long you need to hold onto them or how true they breed.
Black and whites have been bred for some time so are overall more consistent in most show lines. A good buff line is hard to find in silkies, and mottled cochins that are good are not easy.
I breed less white now after 10 years than the blacks which are a combination of lines. Higher numbers mean more chances of some good gems.
This is just my experiences with the cochins & silkies I have bred.
Connie

 

[Rock N' Faverolles]

The general rule is, 1 out of 10 is a good bird; 1 out of 100 a great show bird; and 1 out of a 1000 a phenomenal show bird.

 

[josh44]

just because parents are SQ does not mean their offspring will be.
True they have a better chance because of their parents good genetics if SQ, but you can never really tell
how many SQ chicks you will get. Just Hatch And Cull.