What breed of rooster to get chicks do I need?

[chickenjen]

We have 15 black sex-link hens.

What would we breed them with to get chicks to keep our flock going? I know I have been told that the Rhode Island Red roosters can be some of the meanest rooster breeds out there.

I can not remember 100% if the sex-link is the RIR mixed with the barred rock or ... something else... Horrible, I know.

So what would be a good choice to breed these ladies with? Or do I need to get a different breed of hens that are my designated reproduction hens?

I get so confused after reading a bunch of stuff on the internet that I end up back at square one (which is where I am now)

 

[cubalaya]

black sex links are a hybrid and don't breed true although if you use a black roo (jersey giant, australorp) you should get black colored brown egg layers.

 

[chickenjen]

Ok. So maybe I should start with a few hens and a rooster just for breeding more? IE, get new chicks.

What make good meat chickens as well?

 

[rancher hicks]

What you could do is keep a roo and two hens of the breeds for your hybrid sex-links and breed those to get the stock to replenish as you need to. I don't know what breeds are crossed to get black sex-links. You will of course need to replace the two breeds for your sex-links on occasion but they should last a few years I would think.

 

[cubalaya]

Quote:
in that case get a ri red roo and some barred rock hens.

 

[tn.lou]

I am crossing mine with a Cuckoo Maran Roo.No chicks yet but i wanted a big roo that would be an outcross a produce dark brown eggs.The dark brown eggs sell much better in my area for some reason (for eating not hatching )

 

[chickenjen]

So are the ri red roos mean? The neighbor said they are the meanest of roosters... I have boys ages 5 and 7 that are with me in the summers. Don't want them to be flogged!

 

[ncarper]

I have a RIR Rooster and he's anything but mean. I've had him for a year and have never seen any agression from him towards people; he also does a great job looking out for his ladies. As a breed, however, I have no idea what the average RIR roo temperment is like.

 

[Davaroo]

GO here and read this, for starters:

http://www.journeytoforever.org/farm_library/ppp/ppp6.html


--------------------------------------------Breeding for Effect -----------------------------------------------


"Both Red and Black Sex-Links use a red male for the father. Either a Rhode Island Red or a New Hampshire may be used.
Black Sex-Links are produced using a Barred Rock as the mother." - - Feathersite

As can be seen above, the sex-link is a hybrid; a deliberate cross between two distinct breeds. This means you won't get true representations of the parent stock in successive generations - but, they will be close at first. However, I'd caution you to remember that their appearance will be of less importance than their performance.

Crossbreeding usually results in some disadvantages. For example broodiness tends to be more prominent in cross breeds. And while sex-links are good egg layers, succeeding generations are liable to see egg production reduced by about half unless you intervene. On the plus side, crosses tend to be more robust with reduced mortality - this is good for what you are considering.

A lot of people will tell you that you cannot improve on a bunch of cross-bred hybrids. To that I'll say, "Phooey - all chickens are cross breeds. Expect, though, that it will likely take several years of successive breeding to make anything of them."

Since egg laying is the most desirable trait in a dual purpose bird, I would suggest you start with a male from a line of birds known for good egging. Ideally, he will be the full brother from a line of hens that display the traits of the good egg hen:

Early sexual maturity
Reduced bridiness
Good rate of laying
Persistence of production.

AS you can see, this is not the simple matter it may seem at first. Once you find this superior strain, stick with it. Someone should be keeping records on the hens and their siblings, which implies some effort and expense. This sort if work is priceless as a resource for the farm breeder, so be faithful to whomever you find that has this sort of quality stock.

Remember, just tossing any old cockerel in with your pullets and hoping is too random. What that will get you is more chickens next year... and little else. Oh, it wont hurt much, really, and if that were all you wanted, then it would be fine. But imagine of everyone did that. Where do you think the state of breeds would be today?

Just tossing birds together will lead to the crossbreed problems already mentioned above. And since you are starting with hybrid crossbreeds in the first place, odds are those issues will be made only worse.

 

[chickenjen]

Wow Davaroo! Thank you!