The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

[Fred's Hens]

Man, I really like that “Maine” line.

Gotta get aoxa to rehearse again the history of her birds.


A big breast on that guy at seven months and we’d really have something. I don’t have an issue with egg production out of my Barreds, I’ve never put it to the calendar but the point of lay and rate of lay is comparable to my Ausralorps their pullet year, and the Austalorps are, and were bred to be, brown egg laying machines. The Barreds fall off quite a bit as hens, but I think that’s the way they should be. By then you have a new batch of pullets and new meat for the skillet. My Grandpa raised White Rocks up until the sixties and that was the cycle on his farm. Always eggs, always meat. Grandma sure could make a fine pot of chicken and dumplings out of that corn fed hen that quit laying.

Exactly!!! A dual purpose female doesn't have to be an egg machine for years and years, as long as she's a good layer her pullet year. She too is considered eligible for the table after that.


The grow out rate in cockerels is a very different story. I’ve raise White and Barred Rocks side by side pretty much from the beginning. At 6 months, the cockerel pen looks like there are two different breeds of chickens in it. That’s not right. The whites can fill a skillet by then.

Yup, yup. That is a huge issue. Just a "guess" on my part, but the Whites of today better reflect the Rock's heritage of by gone times.

 

[aoxa]

Can you tell me again the history, as you know it, of your lines?

He told me 5 years ago he bred in some very good imported White Rocks to improve type and size. Since then he had been working on barring.

I can't seem to find his information to call him. I would like to know more now that I've had time to really study them

I just hatched 27/30 chicks yesterday. Up to 299 so far this year.

 

[Silver Rock]

Clay, I know that you're a FB person - are you a member of the APA's FB page?  If so, why not make that suggestion on that page?  There are several judges that regularly post there (Walt Leonard, Monaco, Rip Stalvey, etc.), and they mentioned recently that any APA members wishing to make suggestions may do so there.  (it's been quite lively over there the last couple of days!)

Yes Wynette this is being talked about on Facebook and I think Walt is looking into putting this back into the next edition of the American Standard of Perfection. I do think the Plymouth Rock breeders here on BYC could greatly benefit from this valuable part of the Standard from the past.


Instructions To Judges : For Economic Quality of Standard-Bred Fowls
I would encourage anyone that has not seen this part of the 1930's to the 1940's American Standard of Perfection to look is up and study it.

 

[Yard full o' rocks]

Here is the one I was describing that I don't care for...notice that "hump" along his back. Does anything think that will go away? I'm thinking not

I was able to lay my hands on this one between t'storms yesterday evening.....it's definitely feathers, as if a "cushion", no skeletal deformity that I can feel

Very strange as I've NEVER had a male like this before.....hopefully never again,

 

[colburg]

We just had the most disastrous hatch I've ever even heard of. We had a hen go broody so she got 12 White Rock eggs, and we put 8 more in the incubator. There was a second hen that went broody, but when we tried to move her to the broody pen, she went unbroody and got kicked out a few days later. We candled ALL of the eggs at 18 days, threw out the non-developers and ended up with about 12 under the broody. The morning they were due, there was a black chick and a white chick that the broody kicked out of the nest, they both died with in hours. A day or so later, there were 2 black chicks with fuzzy legs and 5 toes on each foot. Apparently, our Mcmurray "free chick Favorelle cock" was doing a swell job with the laying flock and the 2nd broody laid 3 fertile eggs in the nest.

We only got 1 WR hatched and it had shell stuck all over it and died. I'm thinking I may have started collecting eggs from my new WR's a little too early, but they laid for about 1 month before we started collecting them. I'm not sure what else could have happened, the mutts did just fine.

We have 18 more due to hatch in 6 days, and I guess we need to put the WR's back into the breeding pen. Though they would be hatching in June. If we have some survivors out of this hatch, we will only have offspring out of one cock and two hens.

 

[Silver Rock]

I got 15 "Mother's Day" Silver Penciled Plymouth Rock chicks yesterday.

These are offspring chicks from the Horstman line "cock" over three Padgett line "pullets" breeding pen.

 

[uphilljill]

We've had odd BR hatching luck this year. While we've been having great hatching results (about 90%,) I seem to be having a cockerel year. Right now I only have 3-4 pullets out of 21 hatched.

I have one last batch hatching now. Hoping for better percentages this time.

 

[Fred's Hens]

In my "brooder", (which is my utility trailer, divided into two compartments), are 3 White Rocks and 4 of our own line of Barred Rocks. These are the Beaver Creek 75/25 blended birds.

At 4 weeks today, it is time to start judging the feathering competition. Old timers like me believe that early feathering is a sign of an earlier layer.

The Whites are 75% feathered out. Half the Barred are still virtually naked. Only one Barred Rock is keeping up with the Whites. It's a female. Raising these two varieties side by side this year has been a thrill and wildly educational. I believe that time marking the achievements of the Whites will give me a goal to shoot for in the Barreds.

.

 

[aoxa]

If feathering in really does relate to laying, my Silver Pencilled did not get the memo. They started at 34 weeks I believe it was? They feathered in really fast where the Barreds did not. The Barred Rocks started at 26-30 weeks.


Same age. I think they were 4 weeks. I can't remember exactly to be honest, but they weren't much older than that for sure.....

 

[Fred's Hens]

If feathering in really does relate to laying, my Silver Pencilled did not get the memo. They started at 34 weeks I believe it was? They feathered in really fast where the Barreds did not. The Barred Rocks started at 26-30 weeks.

It's all that Brahma blood in the SP.