The Evolution of Atlas: A Breeding (and Chat) Thread

[1muttsfan]

Looks like you all are having another bite of winter. No snow here, but high today only 10. I am tired of frozen eggs!

 

[speckledhen]

You know, I was puzzled for about 5 minutes as to why these two pullets were not as nicely barred as I had expected, then I realized why. The hens do not pass their barring gene to their daughters, only their sons. Atlas is the only contributor to the barring of these two pullets. Dottie is the mother of three of the chicks and I believe she is mother to two of the cockerels and maybe one pullet. The other pullet is just too petite to be her daughter so it must be out of Rachel or Rowena. That makes perfect sense then that the cockerels out of Atlas and a pure Stukel line hen would be better barred (influenced more by the mother) than the pullets. And I'd say Atlas's sons should be superior, generally, to him, in the barring department. See any flaw in my logic?

Here are the little critters. I need to find them homes ASAP because it's really, really easy to become attached to them at this age for me, especially the males.

 

[1muttsfan]

So is there a way to get better barring in the pullets then, apart from using a different rooster?

 

[speckledhen]

So is there a way to get better barring in the pullets then, apart from using a different rooster?

Actually, what I would have to do is take whichever son of Atlas's that was superior to his sire and breed him back to the Stukel Rock hens. I'm not ready to keep another rooster at this stage so I may miss the boat on that entirely, I'm afraid. But, if one of his sons had better barring, more in line with the original Rex, then that would be the way to go. There is always a chance of getting a pullet that is just better than these are out of Atlas and the girls, like a roll of the dice, sort of like getting Atlas out of his single factor barred sire, a son better than the father (at least in looks-temperament is fabulous in all of them).

 

[1muttsfan]

And you have plenty of time to keep a new boy - I am sure there will be many more to come.

 

[speckledhen]

Quick clip of them sparring and running around in the spring-like weather today

Hey, Andrew/gojira, how are those chicksters? Any ideas on sex yet?

 

[speckledhen]

Okay, what is wrong with people? Just had a call off the ad on the co-op bulletin board, which reads, in part:

Quote: Now, the question was: "are you the person who posted the ad on the co-op bulletin board? The one for pullets?"

Yes, I posted the ad, but

Then, she says, I don't need the cockerels. Well, then why did you call me?

 

[Mr King]

Okay, what is wrong with people? Just had a call off the ad on the co-op bulletin board, which reads, in part: Now, the question was: "are you the person who posted the ad on the co-op bulletin board? The one for pullets?" Yes, I posted the ad, but Then, she says, I don't need the cockerels. Well, then why did you call me?

What's the weight of their parents? From the chicks not from people calling. Lol

 

[speckledhen]

Quote:
Haha!

I don't know for sure because I have nothing to weigh them with but I can tell you that Dottie, the mother of three of them, is a very hefty hen, just like all the pure Stukel line hens. I'm sure she hits 8 lbs or more. Two of the chicks are from one each Rachel and Rowena. Those two are much lighter weight, a pound lighter, but then, they are not a year old nor are they 100% the same line. I just have nothing to weigh them with-even my scale is 30 years old isn't that reliable to do the "weigh yourself, pick up a bird, weigh with the bird" thing. It won't even register a weight difference sometimes when you do that. Atlas is a big rooster, broad, lots of light between his legs, but he is just about to hit a year old and isn't fully developed. He's larger than his sire, I know that much.

 

[1muttsfan]

Almost worth a loooong road trip