When people ask for good dual purpose breeds, I have two recommendations: Brahmas and (good) marans. Brahmas for me are the epitome of an all rounder: excellent size, good layers eggs (I actually prefer my Brahma eggs to my Marans eggs) and they are sustainable as they are good broodies.I like this, thanks for sharing. On my silkies, some of my earliest maturing boys have turned into hormonal mean heathens, but a reasonable early maturing cockerel seems to turn into my best bodied bird. On the large fowl, all the boys I've kept specifically for breeding have been reasonable early developers. I haven't kept any late developing cockerels for breeding.
Now you have me thinking more on this, and I'll pay more attention to it next year.
Since I process all my extra boys, I'm starting to put more importance on having birds with decent carcass size. This was my first year though, so I'm just starting this journey. I've started getting more people interested in home raised non-CX table birds, I don't want to completely go away from the breeds I've selected, but if I can shape them to fit both the SOP as well as having a decent table bird, that will make me happy. Not everyone who has tried them has come back for more, but I'm getting a few repeat customers now who are giving really good feedback on the flavor
Marans are fancier and more suitable for muddy terrain, but very slightly below in the other aspects. Both breeds are great in all types of weather, as long as Brahmas keep their foot feathers dry. I’m under the impression that marans are nicer tasting but I’ve never tried myself.
Leghorns are egg birds
Cornish game are meat birds
Many, like marans are dual purpose, and should be bred as such. Staying true to this is very rewarding for the bird (until dinner time) and the breeder.
