The Dorking Breeders thread

[Talithahorse]

I too came to the Dorkings via the historical research end. Since others are posting pictures I have to show off some of my flock. Amazingly enough as big as they are I had a pullet that managed to climb up to the very top of my barn today. I had no idea they were that agile. It took me 6 years to find some Dorkings.

 

[Sydney Acres]

Oh, they are quite agile. Mine roost in trees if I don't bribe them into the coop before sunset. They fly over any fence and onto the roof of my house just for fun. I free range my flock, and the grow out cockerels are in the orchard. Still free ranging, but it's an acre of trees surrounded by 8 foot high deer fencing. The cockerels can easily fly out unless I cut their wings. One can get out even with cut wings -- he runs at the fence and flaps his trimmed wings mightily as he walks straight up the side to the top cable, then glides down gracefully. Today I saw one of the 3 year old hens easily fly onto the top cable, walk along it like a tight rope walker, hop up to the top of the 9 foot tall 4X4 post, then roost up there surveying her kingdom. Luckily they like where they live and don't leave, because they can fly almost as well as my heritage turkeys. Yes, quite an agile breed in many lines. Other lines, I'm told, don't fly much, which is good for people who want to free range their birds but can't have their birds leaving a fenced yard.

 

[DesertChic]

Oh, they are quite agile. Mine roost in trees if I don't bribe them into the coop before sunset. They fly over any fence and onto the roof of my house just for fun. I free range my flock, and the grow out cockerels are in the orchard. Still free ranging, but it's an acre of trees surrounded by 8 foot high deer fencing. The cockerels can easily fly out unless I cut their wings. One can get out even with cut wings -- he runs at the fence and flaps his trimmed wings mightily as he walks straight up the side to the top cable, then glides down gracefully. Today I saw one of the 3 year old hens easily fly onto the top cable, walk along it like a tight rope walker, hop up to the top of the 9 foot tall 4X4 post, then roost up there surveying her kingdom. Luckily they like where they live and don't leave, because they can fly almost as well as my heritage turkeys. Yes, quite an agile breed in many lines. Other lines, I'm told, don't fly much, which is good for people who want to free range their birds but can't have their birds leaving a fenced yard.

Wow! I had no idea this breed liked to fly so much! I may have to rethink their housing just a bit. Luckily I'll have plenty of options since I've got a 4' x 6' x 4' coop inside of an 8' x 24' run on the side of my house; a large 4' x 6' chicken condo in a completely enclosed 6' x 24' x 4' powder coated steel run; and tomorrow my new 12' x 32' cabin is being delivered, which I will promptly be converting into chicken housing.

Did I mention I have the best, most supportive husband in the world? The new cabin was his idea.

 

[DBerryhill]

Posting to subscribe.

 

[Talithahorse]

With my Red Dorkings, they only seem interested in getting up in the rafters at bed time. Each day they fly back down to their pen with its pitiful 3 foot fence and stay happily in their pen all day.

 

[Chestnut]

Anyone weight/measure their eggs? I've got two Red Dorking pullets I'm trying to use for breeding and their eggs seem on the small side. The lengths are around 2 3/8" and the weights are averaging around 50 grams. Is this too small for hatching? Just got them separated and starting to collect the eggs.

 

[Sydney Acres]

Anyone weight/measure their eggs? I've got two Red Dorking pullets I'm trying to use for breeding and their eggs seem on the small side. The lengths are around 2 3/8" and the weights are averaging around 50 grams. Is this too small for hatching? Just got them separated and starting to collect the eggs.

I don't measure them, but I do weigh them. Most of the eggs I set are 56-64 gm, but I have set a few 52 gm eggs when I really wanted a chick from that particular hen. If you've got pullets, their eggs will quickly enlarge as the season progresses. There are many people that set the smaller pullet eggs, and many do hatch. Several people who have done this have commented that the chicks are small (of course), and that many are weak. Some of those people said that they would not use pullet eggs again, but others didn't see an issue. I personally don't like using birds for breeding that haven't matured enough to fully evaluate, or eggs that are less than ideal to incubate a chick, whether that means that they're too small, or overly large, or an abnormal shape, or thin shelled, etc, etc. So it all depends on what you want. If you want larger, more vigorous chicks only from hens that are mature enough to judge their breeding quality, then you have to wait until next year. If you want larger, more vigorous chicks that are from hens with breeding potential, but not yet old enough to fully judge all the details, then you have to wait until the pullets start laying full sized eggs, which will probably take several weeks to months. If you want chicks now, and are willing to accept that all will be small, some will be weak, some will either need to be culled or will die, from hens with breeding potential but are too young to judge all the details, then you can try to hatch the smaller pullet eggs. But you do need to be prepared to wish you hadn't made that choice, just in case things don't go well.

 

[Chestnut]

Thanks for the reply Sydney. The two I pulled tonight were 53.8g and 51.6g. I've got 3 pullets but was only breeding two. They are about 9 months old now (they were hatched July 18th). I also read that chicks born in spring do better but would waiting for the bigger eggs offset that advantage? So should I wait until next year?

Another logistics question: Right now I have the two hens separated so I can track which eggs belong to which hen. My plan is to setup 3 clans from the two clutches, breeding the Cock to one of the offspring pullets next year and two cockerels to the two hens. I can't figure out how to keep track of eggs without isolating the hens but they don't like it. Should I just group the trio and not worry about separating the eggs? I'm looking at small breeding, maybe 25 a year for now until I get more experience and just sticking to the three clans rotating sires.

 

[Talithahorse]

Great questions. I had many of the same questions as I wait patiently (ok, not so patiently) for my Dorking pullets to come into lay. I was hoping to get some Dorking chicks this summer but may have to wait until late in the season or next year. I have two Roosters and 4 pullets in my breeding pen. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Chestnut]

Mine started laying in December so if yours aren't laying yet you're probably looking at small eggs even by summer as well.