The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

[tigercreek]

Don't know about an on/off switch, but there is a slow feathering gene K. It is also a sexlink gene and most RIRs have it too. In barreds it will clear any smuttiness between the black and white bars making a very clean separation of colors and of course, the bird will feather very slowly. That's pretty much all it does. I also believe the slow feather gene destroys type over time, especially the tails.

10 or more years ago a had a line that feathered quickly and still had pretty darn good barring, just not fantastic. As far as the utility breed that jumped out of the standard, that was it. Of course like all show breeders, I put weight and a long back on the birds, lost some utility and turned it into my pullet line. Last year I combined my two lines out of necessity. Looking back, I screwed up the best line of barreds I've seen by improving it for show. Selective breeding might separate the gene pool some, don't know.

The point of the story, it is possible to have good looking barreds that feather quickly, it just has to have the right combination of genes to do so. Like most other standard rocks, those birds still took 13 months to be in there best condition but they were in full feather and form at about 7 months.

I have always understood that the barring was caused by an 'on/off' switch that turned the color production on for a time making black, then turned it off for a time, leaving white. I have been told that when combined with the slow feathering, that is what causes the crisp barring?? Any truth to that??? Sounds like you have not heard that, or discounted it as a tale told by old wives???

 

[Tumbleweed Farm]

Quote: No, not really.

 

[desertmarcy]

The first of my Good Shepard X Duckworth Barred Rock chicks have hatched

I set 10 eggs. 9 were fertile, 2 died sometime during incubation and all 7 that made it to the hatcher, hatched! They all look good. I have another 8 due to hatch 5/1, and 3 on 5/4. Just set 19 more last night. It is slow going because the pullets are slowing down in their laying due to it getting up to 90 degrees here already---and some are infertile. Meanwhile, my Duckworth male is still limping about and unable to breed, so I know I will not be able to hatch as many as I'd like this spring. It gets blazing hot here very early in the year. Typical first 100 degrees is in May. It is not fun hatching chicks and all the extra work involved when it is that hot, so I will quit hatching by the end of May regardless of how many I have. Maybe will start again in the fall, just have to see how these look by then.

I also set the first eggs from my Good Shepard X Stukel Barred Rock male. Only 7 eggs. He has not been with the hens very long, so will be interesting to see if they are fertile. I am going to have the same problem with hatching these---heat is slowing down the laying and heat is slowing down my enthusiasm.

 

[racertomtom]

I have always understood that the barring was caused by an 'on/off' switch that turned the color production on for a time making black, then turned it off for a time, leaving white. I have been told that when combined with the slow feathering, that is what causes the crisp barring?? Any truth to that??? Sounds like you have not heard that, or discounted it as a tale told by old wives???

The old timers

would use the on/off switch as a metaphor to try and explain the slow feathering gene. It goes something like, “when the gene’s there the barring is great, when it’s not it’s not, just like an on/off switch.” I never really understood the metaphor. I also don’t necessarily agree with it although slow feathering birds do seem to consistently have better barring than fast feathering barreds. That does not mean fast feathering birds will be cuckoo or poorly defined when it's from good standard breed stock. I also don’t think it really matters that cockerels feather in very slowly as long as you can maintain type.

I also know what it’s like to have nice white cockerels in a run with barreds and someone say “what’s the deal on those mangy dinosaur looking birds”. I’ve looked high and low for the on/off switch, so I could flip it, but my birds don’t seem to have one.

 

[racertomtom]

The first of my Good Shepard X Duckworth Barred Rock chicks have hatched

I set 10 eggs. 9 were fertile, 2 died sometime during incubation and all 7 that made it to the hatcher, hatched! They all look good.

Ill be watching these with interest.

 

[Fred's Hens]

As an old timer myself, LOL, I sometimes forget when I say things that other folks may not take the meaning. Sometimes, as an old timer, I just plain forget things.

Tom, I'm in search for these various "switches" and yes, I believe there are more than one and how they work in combination or relationally (isn't completely understood in my mind) but, this is more fun than pressure laden work. I enjoy this. If you don't enjoy this you'll burn out quickly and get out like so many other folks Blosl used to call "here today and gone tomorrow".

I've got three sisters in a pen. I single breed them. They have the same dams and sire for three generations back, yet they each have a unique and different clarity to their barring. Does this bother me? Not particularly. They feathered out in a timely fashion, for a BR, and they entered lay at 28 weeks or less, which I consider to be excellent for quality pullet. Now, after laying for 3 months, they are all three laying identical eggs, and eggs of great quality and size. Their type is very good, but no where near perfect. They are examples of Barred Rocks any farmer would love to own.

 

[racertomtom]

As an old timer myself, LOL, I sometimes forget when I say things that other folks may not take the meaning. Sometimes, as an old timer, I just plain forget things.

Tom, I'm in search for these various "switches" and yes, I believe there are more than one and how they work in combination or relationally (isn't completely understood in my mind) but, this is more fun than pressure laden work. I enjoy this. If you don't enjoy this you'll burn out quickly and get out like so many other folks Blosl used to call "here today and gone tomorrow".

I've got three sisters in a pen. I single breed them. They have the same dams and sire for three generations back, yet they each have a unique and different clarity to their barring. Does this bother me? Not particularly. They feathered out in a timely fashion, for a BR, and they entered lay at 28 weeks or less, which I consider to be excellent for quality pullet. Now, after laying for 3 months, they are all three laying identical eggs, and eggs of great quality and size. Their type is very good, but no where near perfect. They are examples of Barred Rocks any farmer would love to own.

Well Fred, If there’s a rock breeder retirement home, I reckon we’re in it. About 10 years ago I bumped into Carl Fosbrink at an Indiana show as a spectator. As far as I was concerned, Carl was the barred master. I asked, do you still have barreds?” Naw, all I got is some farm chickens”. I said “farm chickens”. “Well……they’re pretty nice farm chickens”. Ironically, the other day I was looking at the flock thinking, these ain’t bad farm chickens.

There’s just something about breeding, raising birds, not caring what anyone thinks and doing it the way you think it ought to be done, and at the end of the day, sittin in a lawn chair with a hat covering your almost bald head with a glass of tea watching chickens peck the ground. That’s livin the dream!

 

[Fred's Hens]

There’s just something about breeding, raising birds, not caring what anyone thinks and doing it the way you think it ought to be done, and at the end of the day, sittin in a lawn chair with a hat covering your almost bald head with a glass of tea watching chickens peck the ground. That’s livin the dream!

Yes sir. My hope is that a lot of these young folk here today will still have birds 40 years from now and feel the same way we do about them and find as we have that they are strangely satisfying and endlessly challenging. You never arrive. The journey is the thing.

 

[racertomtom]

Yes sir. My hope is that a lot of these young folk here today will still have birds 40 years from now and feel the same way we do about them and find as we have that they are strangely satisfying and endlessly challenging. You never arrive. The journey is the thing.

Very well put!!

 

[Fred's Hens]

I sure wish @normanack would post a glamor shot of that cockerel she has. I haven't seen him in a couple of months and was wondering how his is maturing.