The Welsummer Thread!!!!

[pinkchick]

Denna~ You want speckles???????

This is what is coming out of the Wellie coop right now. Saving these for the trial run in the new 'bator. Hoping for some more of the darker smooth ones, I'm super excited about this gals eggs.

 

[Hens and Roos]

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Wow Pink! You have a good number of eggs, we always excited if we get at least 5 eggs in a day! Of course we only have 14 that could be laying

 

[pinkchick]

Yah, I'm surprised, the Wellies are really laying good right now. There are 5 pullets and 2 hens in that pen and 2 of the younger pullets are in heavy molt, they look horrible. Guess they took this molt seriously. I have more Marans than I do Wellies and the Wellies are running circles around the Marans right now in terms of egg production. These are not all I have received from them or from the Wellies in the laying flock, I put several in the eating egg cartons because even the Wellie girls in the laying pen are pumping them out and laying better than my black sexlinks and that is not usually the case with the sexlinks. Despite all that, yesterday out of all of the girls laying in every coop, they gave me 6 eggs.

 

[EweSheep]

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That is why Erhard prefers speckless eggs LOL! You might have to go and find another line that has speckles.

 

[EweSheep]

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For the sake of purity, I would not blend those two lines.

However seeing Gamesbirds stock, which has the mix of those two, they look like Welsummers to me. He personally didn't see anything different about them.

There are differences in the German (Verheyden) stock: they are little bigger than the Dutch, more darker and they look more like OEs in type.

Dutch, are smaller, more true to Welsummer type and color.

Here are the photos of the differences:

My German bantams:

The Dutch bantams(photo from J. Opsomer):

See the differences?

 

[fdnick]

thanks louieandthecrew!! love the wellies

Hi Pink.. yep you neeeeeed to send a couple of those speckles egg layers this way, will have to post a photo of our eggs they are dark but no speckles

I want some of your eggs!! we have the opposite problem with egg production here, the marans are laying like crazy but the wellies we get 3 eggs every 2 days out of 5 hens but the hens were all last summers chicks so hopefully they kick in soono

Our cochins we get maybe 2 eggs a week out of 6 hens!?! go figure

Ewesheep.. love those german birds what gorgeous color!!!!!

 

[EweSheep]

If you really like the Germans, you would go to Erhard Wiehls, which he lives in Washington State. So he should not be very far from you. He is not cheap if you are looking for less priced birds. If you want Dutch, be prepared to pay for much more.

I have a special heart for my German girls but I'd prefer the Dutch because of their colorings and type and size. However I will not be collecting eggs from my German girls if I was going to raise some bantam chicks.

I have two Germans and two Dutches.

 

[EweSheep]

Someone had a bad hair day!

 

[SFIcelandics]

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Yes, I do raise the Dutch - They are very true to the standard. I have seen both of them(pictures only of germans) and they are much darker. If you ask any dutch breeder, they will tell you the german stock is not something to breed with, different origins.

As far as crossing the 2 lines - I would not reccomend it. But, it would diversify your gene pool, but you will have to work to correct the imperfections of crossing the 2 totally different lines.

As of now, to date, if you breed the DUTCH LINES - there are over 5 bloodlines in the USA right now(2008 import, and 2010 import). So there should be NO genetic issues if breeding is taken carefully, and a line is not lost. This year I will be breeding an ORIGINAL import rooster to his daughters, granddaughters, and great granddaughters. I will also be breeding a new 2010 rooster out of the 2008 import rooster. This should produce some great vigorous chicks in 2011! In 2012, I will be offering chicks/eggs from the other 3 bloodlines that are in the USA, but there is only 4 hens, and 1 rooster of those other lines, so I am going to have to breed, and cull, and then build up the flock this year.

These new 2010 import birds are out of the top breeder in the Netherlands! The same breeder that received a dozen of my LF eggs(you can read what was said on my website - front page).

Nate

 

[EweSheep]