The Buckeye Thread

[Arielle]

Quote: Fowlman is a judge. ANd a masterbreeder-- 6 times over. I take stock in what Walt has to say. On other threads we have discussed how points are used and how the judges work thru a room of birds in just a few hours.

 

[Blueface]

On other threads we have discussed how points are used and how the judges work thru a room of birds in just a few hours. 

I'd be interested in learning how that all pans out if its not written down to reference at the time of show (I'm talking about the actual point score per bird).

 

[fowlman01]

Sop states head medium in size carried well up. The description I gave came from page 28 of the sop were a description of medium head is given.

you are correct, but in all cases the actual breed description supersedes the general information. Head and skull are different but you have done an excellent job studying the Standard.

 

[slfarms]

Thank you Walt

 

[Arielle]

There is a scoring system for poultry and that is in the first 40 pages of the Standard. Those pages are designed to help novices understand the Standard. I find it helpful to track weight in my flock. Weight in the wrong places is obvious. I don't believe the SOP calls for flat heads in Buckeyes

Walt, for clarity, the scoring system I'm referring to is the body fat score. 0-10, or 1-5. where 10 is extremely obese, like a very fat dog. My cornish x didn't have the body fat under the skin so I was completely surprised to see so much fat deposited inside the bird.

 

[fowlman01]

Thank you Walt

I wanted to make it clear that the skull was different than the head, but seriously you have done a great job of reading the SOP. I wish everyone would read those first 40 pages....it would make things easier on them.

w.

 

[fowlman01]

Walt, for clarity, the scoring system I'm referring to is the body fat score. 0-10, or 1-5. where 10 is extremely obese, like a very fat dog. My cornish x didn't have the body fat under the skin so I was completely surprised to see so much fat deposited inside the bird.

It is interesting to see the fat that can accumulate in various places on a chicken and it could very well be a cause for "cushions" in some females, but the APA only uses the weight of the bird , not body fat. In some area's the fat could be noticed, but with such a small animal it is hard to identify until the bird is processed. Judges go by the way the bird feels and the way the bird looks in the cage. I also make the birds move to check their gait. If you don't have them walk you can't detect possible leg/foot problems. Judges get used to birds and can ID things pretty quickly. When judging I judge 300-600+ birds in a show, so after years of handling those birds and my own I can see/feel most problems rather quickly. It takes time to develop the eye and feel.

Walt

 

[Regin]

I wanted to make it clear that the skull was different than the head, but seriously you have done a great job of reading the SOP. I wish everyone would read those first 40 pages....it would make things easier on them.

w.

I will be reading those first 40 pages very soon. I ordered my SOP from APA three days ago. I've been reading and studying from a lot of sources over the past year or so and feel like I'm ready for the SOP now (I know the difference between the hackle and the saddle, etc.).
The price of the book is high, but necessary if one is trying to get a serious start in breeding. I figure it would be best to know what I'm about BEFORE I get in too deep.

 

[Arielle]

Quote: I bet you can sum up a birds condition in a matter of seconds.

In the last 75 + years the carcass of most farm animals, espcially the pig, has been streamlined and the excessive fat has been eliminated in the body type. I wonder if the cushion fat on some birds was a benefit in the not so distant past, before the easy access to vegetable oil.

I too watch the birds move--when mine are free ranging. I see differences-- It is something I learned in livestock judging, but you are the first to mention evaluating the gait of a chicken. I have one hen that is rather wide, and her rocking motion is much like the movement on the cornish crosses. Seems to me that when the legs are close together the movement lacks the rocking motion.

 

[Minniechickmama]

It is possible that that hen was just an oddball who had a whacky metabolism that caused the fat to deposit that way. I have never seen a bird with back fat like that, it's a pretty gross thing to see. Poor girl.
But when you talk CRX, I don't think you can really use them to compare to pure birds. They are bred to be big, fat and juicy, and fat does have a lot to do with that. Why else would they have so many health related issues? They aren't what I call a natural kind of bird, so to see excessive internal fat or external fat on those is no surprise at all.
I raise rabbits for meat, and it surprised me the first time to see that they have internal fat deposits but none on the outside of the carcass.


I would think that if a person a came across a hen with that lump of fat on her back, that it could be felt rather easily. There isn't much on the back in the way of meat, so what I feel is pretty hard/solid. That fat lump would have felt soft and cushy which is not like any breed should feel, even with a good amount of fluff.