What are these?

[TDC123]

According to my eccentric and elderly neighbor whom provided my chics his stock are a mix of Orpington and Rocks.

The hen looks to me like what I have seen of Orpingtons.




The male is what I think to be a mix of a banded rock and who knows what else.




Here they are together...




Here are some of their chics that just hatched today, my first chics.




I originally started with a group of 12 but thanks to my canine I took in that was supposed to protect my flock and instead kept killing them I was down to two at the beginning of winter. Luckily a male and female. I raised them from pullets. Most of my pullets from my neighbor ended up being males. My hen has been putting out eggs all winter. The original group of 12 had a couple white birds, several of these orangish ones I think are Orpingtons, 3 well barred darker rock looking birds and this odd rooster who looks like a mix. Whatever they are they are great chickens, friendly and hardy birds.

What do you guys think they are?

Thanks,

TC

 

[donrae]

LInks don't work

 

[SilkiesForEver]

Links aren't working.

 

[TDC123]

My experience posting pics on other forums is failing me...I will figure it out and edit.

 

[TDC123]

Fixed!!

 

[donrae]

They both look like barnyard mix. I can see some orpington in the hen, a profile shot would help. The comb makes me think she has mixed ancestry, though.
The roo isn't barred, he just looks mixed.

Your chicks are adorable! If your hen lays well and your roo has a good temperment, that's all most backyard flock raisers want!

 

[TDC123]

They both look like barnyard mix. I can see some orpington in the hen, a profile shot would help. The comb makes me think she has mixed ancestry, though.
The roo isn't barred, he just looks mixed.

Your chicks are adorable! If your hen lays well and your roo has a good temperment, that's all most backyard flock raisers want!

That really is all I want. My original group has some of those barred rocks in it before my chicken guarding of a dog slaughtered them. I don't know why but I just liked the look of those birds.

I guess I consider myself fortunate to have some birds that fare so well. That's exactly what I want out of them. We don't eat eggs. I have high cholesterol. My son doesn't like them. It's just me and him here. I'm raising them really for meat. My son started puberty at nine!!! He's been a fully haired smelly beast that is nearly as tall as me and I'm 6'2" for a long time now.

I'm not a homesteader or anything but I do think it's a good idea to get at least some of the garbage that is fed to us from the grocery out of our diets. We grew our first garden last year too. A raised bed with old tires we cut the sidewall out of.

I think I'm way off topic by now.

So the barred rock birds are an inherited trait and it's a dominant type gene? I'm assuming there is not middle ground then. All barred birds are completely barred, In other words you're barred or your not?

I don't know why but I really like the barred birds. I'm gonna find some this spring.