The IMPORTED ENGLISH Orpington Thread

[Elliemae 77]

Hello Richard,
Ok, trim butt fluff.....I'll make a note of that.

Those chicks from you sure are a lot of fun. Getting held, and spoiled several times daily and getting BIG. The chocolates are by far my favorites, but the lemons are very sweet too. My daughter has them all named. Pretty cold up here again. The big chickens are out in the coop with a heater. The little guys will be in the house with us till Spring.

 

[galanie]

I think whether or not to pluck or trim should be something a person tries for themselves. I had a nice SOP boy that wasn't making every egg fertile. I trimmed him and his girls.. and got even fewer fertile eggs. So try it and decide for yourself.

 

[Elliemae 77]

Thank-you, Just trying to learn all I can. .

 

[aveca]

a couple years ago my vet told me that everyone blames the rooster when eggs are not fertile..she said hens can actually reject a rooster..it appears they are being bred but hens have ability to expel and they are sometimes selective in thier choices of father of thier offspring...She recomended a film on that subject and an article ....you see sometimes the big english having no troubles what so ever with fertile eggs..They also found that if weather conditions arnt to thier liking they may do the same like a survival strategey.
They used AI to combat this , no personality issues with the hens this way.

Here is the article on BBC..I think you will find it interesting.
Hens evolve secret strategy

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14804164

and another article

http://suite101.com/article/feral-hens-seize-control-of-breeding-by-rejecting-and-ejecting-a384019

 

[juststruttin]

 

[Kiniska]

Excellent articles!

Thanks for sharing.

 

[deek]

a couple years ago my vet told me that everyone blames the rooster when eggs are not fertile..she said hens can actually reject a rooster..it appears they are being bred but hens have ability to expel and they are sometimes selective in thier choices of father of thier offspring...She recomended a film on that subject and an article ....you see sometimes the big english having no troubles what so ever with fertile eggs..They also found that if weather conditions arnt to thier liking they may do the same like a survival strategey.
They used AI to combat this , no personality issues with the hens this way.

Here is the article on BBC..I think you will find it interesting.
Hens evolve secret strategy

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14804164

and another article

http://suite101.com/article/feral-hens-seize-control-of-breeding-by-rejecting-and-ejecting-a384019

Thanks Aveca! Can't wait to read it!!

You'd also made me a big fan of the free library at Cornell, and in one of the old books, can't remember, but from the 1800's, it had mentioned that too. If the hen doesn't see the roo as the best choice/ dominant cock bird, or if she senses that they are too closely related, the hen will squeeze the cock bird's semen right out.

 

[thedragonlady]

a couple years ago my vet told me that everyone blames the rooster when eggs are not fertile..she said hens can actually reject a rooster..it appears they are being bred but hens have ability to expel and they are sometimes selective in thier choices of father of thier offspring...She recomended a film on that subject and an article ....you see sometimes the big english having no troubles what so ever with fertile eggs..They also found that if weather conditions arnt to thier liking they may do the same like a survival strategey.
They used AI to combat this , no personality issues with the hens this way.

Here is the article on BBC..I think you will find it interesting.
Hens evolve secret strategy

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14804164

and another article

http://suite101.com/article/feral-hens-seize-control-of-breeding-by-rejecting-and-ejecting-a384019

Apparently those hens had more sense than the breeder did if that pictured Roo, side sprigs and all, was one of the rejected males. Go Girls !

 

[aveca]

LOL... the chemistry just wasnt there.. I honestly had no idea they could do that until Robin told me

 

[deek]

Apparently those hens had more sense than the breeder did if that pictured Roo, side sprigs and all, was one of the rejected males. Go Girls !

Ah, geez, now I have to go back and look again. Why is it Dragonlady you always see things I miss!