The Rhodebar thread!

[RedRidge]

Uh oh... Penny's wheels are turning. LOL

She's one of the few people I know who thinks as many generations ahead in her breeding program as I do. ROFL

LOL, oh so true. I am already planning on building another outdoor brooder and getting more heat plates for fall breeding.

Penny

Yep... We are building another set of breeding/grow out pens for Aug breeding. Never a dull moment. Lol
Now if i can just decide where to put them. I'm wanting them further away from my other coops and pens for cockerel grow out and roos. But not so far that it is inconvenient for daily care. I figure I have a month or two to decide.
Git a few real nice dark chicks in yesterday's last F1 hatch. Will get some pics today. Then I think I will go ahead and sort all my F1s into two groups, those I know will not be bred regardless of how they feather out and those who are potential breeders. I think this will help prevent me from being tempted to use a bird with nice type who didn't have correct down. ;-) not that I'll be that tempted but... I'd rather be able to look at a group and know they could all have potential. Must be my anal side showing up again. ;-)

 

[melroseladi]

All my females looked good at hatch and since I don't have that many I will be keeping them. I have 1 nice cockerel from first hatch, at least nice so far, broad back, decent chest, nice wing carriage, and lower tail then the others. I will probably keep him for breeding unless a decent cockerel from second hatch pops up. The rest will go to freezer camp. It looks like I have a total of 9 females and 11 males between both hatches.

I am really not happy with first hatch females tails at all. I am anal about the tails, lol, I hate tails pointing to the sky. Having that HRIR orphan chick growing out with them makes their tails look even worse, lol.

Penny

 

[RedRidge]

I have more than 8 females out of that first batch but have decided to only breed the darkest 8. I figure I'll just put the other ones in with my production layers. I had none in the third hatch that were as dark as wanted, but 2-5 in this last hatch. So I will end up with 10-12 females to breed. Haven't quite figured out which male i wanna keep. I just know it's not one of the two wheaten ones, or the oldest one who thinks he should peck my hand every time is close enough. ;-)

What did the chick down look like on the male you like?

 

[nicalandia]

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Yes,

 

[nicalandia]

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your killing me here..

 

[RedRidge]

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OK... Keep in mind these are F1s.... RB over HRIR.
I pulled the 6 darkest... took first pic.
Then I pulled 2 more... divided into 2 groups (the third group not pictured is the lightest and quite wheaten).
I'm thinking the darkest 4 are my keepers.
Opinions welcome.

 

[nicalandia]

oh I love them.. and how they keep still with their own group

 

[RedRidge]

Trust me that was a left hand just out of the picture after separating them and a quick shutter finger. Lol

 

[melroseladi]

OK... Keep in mind these are F1s.... RB over HRIR.
I pulled the 6 darkest... took first pic.
Then I pulled 2 more... divided into 2 groups (the third group not pictured is the lightest and quite wheaten).
I'm thinking the darkest 4 are my keepers.
Opinions welcome.

Okay this is what I think, lol, for all that is worth, top picture: top left male, bottom left female. On the far right top female, bottom male. In the middle, top female and bottom male.

Bottom picture: On the left top 3 females, bottom male. On the right all male

Penny

 

[RedRidge]

So "if" you were going to keep a male to use over either a RB female or a HRIR female, would you keep one with the darker stripes more similar toa the females or would you keep one like the less obvious striped ones?