The Heritage Rhode Island Red Site

[Ur-ur-ur-urrr]

That makes sense and sounds like a good plan! So you just sell the older ones then? And yeah, and honestly the people just wanting wggs or yard candy or whatever probably don't even know what the faults are and wouldn't be able to tell anyway!

Exactly. You have to grow them enough to properly evaluate them, otherwise, you might unknowingly sell off all your best chicks and end up with nothing left worth breeding.

"don't even know the faults and wouldn't be able to tell anyway!" can cause a lot of problems for people looking to get started. People will get birds from XXXX line, and start breeding them together without any idea of what they're doing. Then they start advertising purebred RIR eggs or chicks for sale, and the poor soul that buys them will have a nightmare on their hands. As long as those people who buy culls keep them for eggs only, everything will be okay. As soon as they see $$$ signs, the problems begin. There's been more than one or two people who have written in this forum that have been victims to such incidences. Long-time, trusted, and reputable breeders are who you need to seek out. Don't know why I went off on that rant, but I felt it needed to be said...

Yes, at the fall and early winter shows, the sales area is filled, over flowing with excellent poultry brought to be sold by the breeders/show folk. It is THE time to find your next spring's breeding stock.

Again, 90% of the new folks ask about stock when? In spring. Wrong time of year completely. You can get wonderful birds in fall. Then in spring, make yourself 70-80 chicks and pick through them for some really nice birds to center your own program on.

That

+1

 

[gander007]

Quote:
I sell a lot of them. I do sell very nice birds as well as my culls (not for breeding). People who seem to be more interested in preserving the breed (line), I sell the better birds the ones looking for yard candy or lawn ornaments and just want eggs don't really care as long as they are pretty.

That is the way things should be but there are more people out there just the other way so please keep up the good work

 

[cmom]

Quote:
I don't sell only older ones, I sell pullets and cockerels too.

 

[Ur-ur-ur-urrr]

I know... it's a little cheesy, but I do have a bit of a soft spot for fuzzy butts.

 

[cmom]

Quote:
I don't sell only older ones, I sell pullets and cockerels too.

Actually I have some older girls that are in my breeding pens who have produced some very fine chicks that turned out great.

 

[onarres]

By the way onarres how are your chicks doing? I thought I had some due to hatch today but just candled and they're not ready. I must have marked the wrong day on the calendar. I have done that before a couple of times over the years.

They are doing great, all are healthy and eating me out of house and home. Are you sure you didn't breed some piranha blood into them?

Hard to get them to stand still for a clear shot but here are some pics

 

[cmom]

 

[Rhodebar Lover]

Wow... talk about deep mahogany! He's gorgeous. Maybe getting down lower and tilting the camera down on the head side will make it flatter in the pics? It's pretty hard to capture with a camera what you see with the naked eye. Most of the pics you see of champion birds are with the birds on a raised platform and the camera pretty much level with the bird. 

Thank you!

 

[ShrekDawg]

Exactly. You have to grow them enough to properly evaluate them, otherwise, you might unknowingly sell off all your best chicks and end up with nothing left worth breeding. 

"don't even know the faults and wouldn't be able to tell anyway!" can cause a lot of problems for people looking to get started. People will get birds from XXXX line, and start breeding them together without any idea of what they're doing. Then they start advertising purebred RIR eggs or chicks for sale, and the poor soul that buys them will have a nightmare on their hands. As long as those people who buy culls keep them for eggs only, everything will be okay. As soon as they see $$$ signs, the problems begin. There's been more than one or two people who have written in this forum that have been victims to such incidences. Long-time, trusted, and reputable breeders are who you need to seek out. Don't know why I went off on that rant, but I felt it needed to be said...



+1

Yeah, I can see why people would want to grow them out first.

And sorry, I didn't mean that breeders should deceive people and give them bad stuff cause they don't know or that people who buy them should willy nilly breed them and ruin lines or deceive them. I was referring to exactly what you said near the end, the people that only want eggs. Of course, you don't know what someone will do with the birds or if they'll breed them, but I was assuming they wouldn't and referring to just the "average joe" so to speak that just wants eggs and pets.

That is the way things should be but there are more people out there just the other way so please keep up the good work

Agreed

I don't sell only older ones, I sell pullets and cockerels too.

Actually I have some older girls that are in my breeding pens who have produced some very fine chicks that turned out great.

Sorry, I should have clarified. I didn't mean older as in only adults. I was referring to the pullets and cockerels too. Basically by "older" I meant "not day olds" haha

 

[cmom]

I only sell eggs in the spring and early summer. When the weather gets hot the boys aren't as fertile so I don't sell eggs then. Years ago I did some year around hatching and always had poor hatches in extreme heat and cold. I have been working on my Rose Comb Rhode Island Reds. I have been breeding them for around 3 years now and still not where I want to be with them yet. I'll keep working with them. They are the ones that will be put in the new coop. Currently they are in the chick/Grow-out coop and I need to get them out because I need it for chicks.

We did get the roof on it but have been having well problems. We just replaced the pump some of the pipe and the control box a new check valve and a pressure regulator valve as well as not long ago the regulator. Will work on that more tomorrow. It is a mystery. There is enough water in the tank tonight for flushing and washing hands. The well and water is top priority.