The Aloha Chicken Project

[notinoz2007]

do they all have that wonky single comb ?

mine dont. king for example got his name because he has a crown comb. its single near the front but double in the back. looks very cool i think. i also have one hen like that. i cant speak for the project leader but i do think we are trying to get a single comb.

 

[Tam'ra of Rainbow Vortex]

Mine have an assortment of combs, most of the keepers have singles, though.

The reason for trying for single comb is that it is easier to tell early on who is going to be a rooster.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

Hey notinoz, I have a couple with quirky combs. Is this maybe what King's looked like when younger? Sorry the pic is blurry but the comb ends in a little circle.

 

[alohachickens]

Hey everyone!

Back in town - what a whirlwind of activity that was! Wow. Boy did I put in some serious hours.

Anyway, I'll take some new pics ASAP but here's the latest . . . .

Everyone here is doing GREAT. My boyfriend did a wonderful job of taking care of everyone!

Cheeto's three spotted sons are having the same "color fade" issues as some of the previous roosters - the white is just starting to disappear. I am still going to use at least two of these roosters, however. The spots may be fading but the body type and size is still going strong.

I have two thoughts on this. One, it could be just a "rooster thing" because if you notice, Speckled Sussex roosters actually don't have a ton of white on them. Mostly speckles on the chest, but often the back and most of the wings/tail are totally solid colored. Compared to the hens, who are usually way more colorful.

Now, I haven't yet had a hen chick with spots out of Cheeto that has grown up yet. He had two colored hens here, but one was culled for leg issues, and another was culled when she grew sick from a respiratory issue that was going around the flock. So maybe the hens out of Cheeto would stay colorful, if we only had any?

The second thought is that it has something to do with the out-crossing? Maybe it is related to the fact that one parent (Cheeto) has no spots at all, and that if I put the fading-spot roos in with the pure Alohas, pure Sussex, or half-Sussex hens, we will see "permanent" spots in the next generation.

Two of the rooster chicks in particular still look really nice. Big! Yellow legs. And they still do have some spotting, but it's not as neat looking as it was before. But, I'm hopeful that this is just a temporary issue and we'll resolve it in the next cross. I can't wait to get this two boys from Cheeto in with the half-Sussex, half Aloha hens. And maybe toss in a few of the small colorful Aloha hens, too - that would make 3/4 Alohas with yellow legs and probably a bit more size. (And most certainly, LOTS of color!)

Plus, I do see a couple of baby hen-chicks that look like Cheeto's offspring in the baby grow-out pen, so hopefully in a few months we'll be able to see if the fading spots is anything gender related? It's hard to make a call on this without both boys and girls to look at.

When I first crossed Oddball the Banty with an Exchequer/Sussex rooster, the rooster Vanilla didn't look like Oddball at all. But he threw lots of chicks that looked like her. So we can't discount Cheeto's babies or this color fade issue until we cross them with some spotted hens and see what happens. It could be nothing more than a temporary glitch?

In the incubator is a new group of chicks that include some of Stephen's stock, plus a bunch of eggs from Cheeto's breeder pen. Hopefully we'll get some colored baby HENS out of Cheeto so we can see how those look as adults!

Oh, and I have isolated Flame away from the adult hens while I've been gone. The only roosters in the main pen are the three Swedish Flowers with all the Aloha hens plus the half Sussex hens, who are now laying! So in a week, I will start collecting eggs, and if those eggs are fertile, they will be our first Swedish Flower x Aloha cross chicks. Will keep everyone posted!

 

[Deerfield Acres]

Oh, and I have isolated Flame away from the adult hens while I've been gone. The only roosters in the main pen are the three Swedish Flowers with all the Aloha hens plus the half Sussex hens, who are now laying! So in a week, I will start collecting eggs, and if those eggs are fertile, they will be our first Swedish Flower x Aloha cross chicks. Will keep everyone posted!

Welcome back!!! Wow! I can't wait to see how the SF X A cross chicks feather out!

It's funny that my SSX seem to be the opposite of yours. I have several males that have plenty of spots all over, while the hens are only just beginning to spot up and they are more conservatively spotted at this point. Maybe that is going to change soon since they are only now spotting up. If it will stop raining tomorrow, I'll take some pics of my favorite SSX cockerels and hens and see what you think about them. I'm feeling pretty confident that I have a few really good SSX to choose from for the program.

I have some deep orangey, heavily spotted Aloha cockerels that I'm really excited about too. I sure hope their white doesn't fade! Even if it does they still carry the spotting and are really nice big boys who are very friendly. I have lots of cockerels here in the Aloha/Aloha crosses. I do have a few pullets but LOTS of cockerels. I'm going to have a terrible time culling anything because I get so excited over every single birds coloring!

 

[alohachickens]

I know, Karen, that you should have lots of tiny, colorful birds in your stock, since I penned Cheeto up for a bit so the other Aloha roosters could "do their thing" as well. I am seeing some very colorful (but of course, small) roosters in my own batch.

I can't believe that I'll have to wait until next fall to see the offspring of some of these new birds. I am so excited about these crosses! Let me go take some pics right now . . .

 

[alohachickens]

Just took tons of new photos!

First off - the babies! These are the siblings of Runswscissors' chicks. I sent her the first 30 to hatch, and these are all the "extras". So, check out the "old bloodline" Aloha hen and compare it with all the photos of the babies to follow.

Look how this ultra-colorful hen is a BLUR in every single photo, while the bigger chicks (with more new blood from Sussex, Buff Rock, and NHR) just stand there and watch her race around!



So small - so colorful - and such a spaz! Looks like a new Ginger girl, could be a good replacement for the older hens, because she has pink legs, not gray. A step in the right direction. Even though she is small, she still looks like a "keeper" to me. Will just have to cross her with a really big rooster. Would go great with about anything, a full Sussex or even a pure Buff Rock or NHR rooster.





And here is her tiny, old bloodline, itty bitty rooster brother. Let's see THIS guy lose his white spots! Not likely - ha ha!



What a cute little guy! Would probably cross great with pure Buff Rock or NHR hens. If he can catch them, that is. He's sure to be a small fellow!

 

[alohachickens]

Next up - the most exciting hen in the group! Look at how HUGE she is compared to the little pure Aloha hen standing next to her . . . WOW. Now that's serious size improvement!



I am super excited about this hen. No, her legs aren't yellow, they are pink. But she has everything else I'm looking for, so far! And her size - she towers above all the other hens!



That's her looking up over the other chicks, so you can see her size.





What a big, pretty hen! In the above photo, you can see a pretty darn cute rooster to the right - looks like a half Sussex?



Kind of a dapper fellow, isn't he? I might keep my eye on him . . . . he's a bit lighter than a normal Sussex rooster. Nice round body and looks like his tail will be long.

 

[alohachickens]

OK, here is what looks like a possible colored daughter of Cheeto? But can we actually keep this one alive, ha ha. What a disappointment to have the only other two colored hens by Cheeto end up having to be culled! Well, this little girl (at least I think it is a girl) sure looks healthy and bright. Look at those fabulous yellow legs!



She kept getting hidden behind everyone. Size wise, she's bigger, but not quite as big as the hen shown in the above photos. Calm, domesticated temperament, not flighty at all.



She can be seen quite clearly in the bottom right of this group shot.

Note this photo also includes two purebred Buff Rock and one pure NHR chick. Okay, the Buff Rock and NHR are about one week younger than the other chicks. But, note the size difference? Oh wait - there is none! LOL! These new part-breed Alohas with some outside blood mixed in, are every bit as large as the pure Buff Rock and NHR chicks. (At least at this point they are.)

 

[alohachickens]

More photos of the younger chicks! (From the same batch as the Runswscissors chicks.)



(don't forget the few Buff Rock and NHR that are in here - looks like three of those are in the foreground of this pic. Obviously, those won't show spots because they are not Alohas.)



Blurry Buff Rock in foreground - Alohas behind her.



Above: I love the cutie pie looking at the camera! Sure hope it's a hen. Looks very much like a hen I already have and just love - this could be her daughter?

The very dark, dull chick with gray legs behind her will be culled. (Just not flashy enough.) Many neighbors are asking for culls!