Landrace/adaptive breeding discussion

[Backroadlogic]

Any insight on using a Dominique rooster for the flock?

I didn't see you ask this, I guess I joined the conversation just at the right time. My big rooster is half Dominique and half America game. He's 4 years old and going strong. I don't use a coop or feed my chickens(except a little in winter), all my chickens are free range 24/7 and he has managed to keep most of his girls safe and fed. I loose smaller birds every once in awhile but he's so big nothing bothers him. I had an owl picking them off a few years ago but he never got bothered at all. I was going to replace him with a game rooster this past year but he's such a good guy and I've grown attached. His son has been around 2 years now and I may just let him take lead eventually.

 

[LaurenRitz]

I didn't see you ask this, I guess I joined the conversation just at the right time. My big rooster is half Dominique and half America game. He's 4 years old and going strong. I don't use a coop or feed my chickens(except a little in winter), all my chickens are free range 24/7 and he has managed to keep most of his girls safe and fed. I loose smaller birds every once in awhile but he's so big nothing bothers him. I had an owl picking them off a few years ago but he never got bothered at all. I was going to replace him with a game rooster this past year but he's such a good guy and I've grown attached. His son has been around 2 years now and I may just let him take lead eventually.

Any idea how much he weighs?

 

[Backroadlogic]

Any idea how much he weighs?

Honestly no idea but he's my biggest chicken. I've not physically held him in years.

 

[Wild Iris]

When do you plan to start breeding or collecting eggs? I would say that a rooster definitely helps in other ways. You could get him, and plan to raise your landrace roo from the game hen crosses.

Alternatively, you could keep the Dominique and start training them to free range, incorporating the game in later generations. I see lots of possibilities here, but it all depends on your goals.

If your primary goal is egglaying, you want them to return to the coop to lay, which a heavily game population may not do.

What is your predator load?

Oh, that's an interesting take: so use the dominique rooster with the hens to see what develops, paying special attention to offspring of the game hen. Then possibly replace the dominique rooster with a mix rooster that seems to have more desirable traits/genes for the flock. Is that right?

Very good point about too much game diluting the tendency to use the nesting boxes. I hadn't thought about it quite like that.

I thought I'd leave it up to a broody hen to decide when to raise some chicks, once we have a rooster. I know the OEGB and the american game go broody, and have heard that they make good mothers.

The land surrounding ours is mostly owned by logging companies that allow seasonal hunters. For predators, we have coyotes, raccoons, snakes, possum, hawks, bobcat, and some stray dogs. But we have a german shepherd, and there is quite a bit of forage on nearby hills, so the only predators we have seen recently on our hill are snakes and hawks. ETA: Forgot to mention owls, of course.

 

[Wild Iris]

I didn't see you ask this, I guess I joined the conversation just at the right time. My big rooster is half Dominique and half America game. He's 4 years old and going strong. I don't use a coop or feed my chickens(except a little in winter), all my chickens are free range 24/7 and he has managed to keep most of his girls safe and fed. I loose smaller birds every once in awhile but he's so big nothing bothers him. I had an owl picking them off a few years ago but he never got bothered at all. I was going to replace him with a game rooster this past year but he's such a good guy and I've grown attached. His son has been around 2 years now and I may just let him take lead eventually.

Oh, that's very good to hear--thank you for sharing.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

I have so much to update on the landrace line.

About 30 made it to adulthood. Maybe more. Its hard to keep track of them now.

This video is pretty much about them. I took them down to the woods and turned them loose.

 

[E flowers]

Hi newbie here! I'm interested in making a landrace for my state/habitat. I'm just a 10min drive from the beach in south coastal NC and I live on part of a marsh that leads to the ocean. My property is only 2 and a half acres so I'm limited on how much land I can use for this project and I'm in a rural neighborhood.
Luckily my pproperty has a thick line of trees/vines on either side. Most of the front acre is occupied by the house and an old 3 stall stable plus we've been considering putting a new barn next to the stable but more between it and the house.
At the very back of the property I have considered building a relatively large aviary which I could plant with native vegetation and some filler crops to make a mostly native food forest for the birds. I currently own 4 roosters and 7 hens and am planning on getting more hens for a separate project. I'm also in the middle of building a decent sized split coop which I can swap 2 of my 3 existing flocks into.
Anyway I want birds that are good mothers, predator savvy, protective roosters, human friendly, decent layers, dull brown coloration, predatory/good foragers, and small single combed.
Talking with FloridaBullfrog I've added malay, Thai, shamo, and asil to my potential flock additions for their temperament, eyeshine & crepuscular nature.

Here's my existing breeding project thread.

Thread 'Deerhen Project' https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/deerhen-project.1624128/

Any breed recommendations are welcome!

 

[LaurenRitz]

Pretty much any breed is going to have positive traits. I'm moving all of mine toward peacomb or small single comb. One of my young girls doesn't appear to have a comb as such, just a tiny lump of red. We'll see how she does. I suspect she'll struggle during the summer.

The small single comb seems to have appeared naturally, but only for the hens. The boys still have a pretty large comb so I've got a lot of frostbite right now.

Traits seem to combine in different ways as I get into the future generations mixing. The pullet mentioned above is JG/RIR/Buckeye but her siblings look much the same even though the mothers are different.

I still have several generations to go before I start letting the chickens sort out their own genetics.

The Buckeye brought in the peacomb. JG for size. RIR and BA for laying ability and early maturity. Biel for size and temperament, although that didn't work out as planned. At the moment it's a celebration of survival. Rangers...we'll see. Several breeds couldn't hack it for one reason or another.

This spring I'll be bringing in reliable broodies and strong foragers, two of which prefer tree roosting. I may be able to start transitioning to a fully free range flock.

Each breed brings something to the table, and you really won't know what the results will be for several generations.

Edit to note that I'm not focusing on appearance at all, so that makes a difference.

 

[E flowers]

Pretty much any breed is going to have positive traits. I'm moving all of mine toward peacomb or small single comb. One of my young girls doesn't appear to have a comb as such, just a tiny lump of red. We'll see how she does. I suspect she'll struggle during the summer.View attachment 4058674

The small single comb seems to have appeared naturally, but only for the hens. The boys still have a pretty large comb so I've got a lot of frostbite right now.

Traits seem to combine in different ways as I get into the future generations mixing. The pullet mentioned above is JG/RIR/Buckeye but her siblings look much the same even though the mothers are different.

I still have several generations to go before I start letting the chickens sort out their own genetics.

The Buckeye brought in the peacomb. JG for size. RIR and BA for laying ability and early maturity. Biel for size and temperament, although that didn't work out as planned. At the moment it's a celebration of survival. Rangers...we'll see. Several breeds couldn't hack it for one reason or another.

This spring I'll be bringing in reliable broodies and strong foragers, two of which prefer tree roosting. I may be able to start transitioning to a fully free range flock.

Each breed brings something to the table, and you really won't know what the results will be for several generations.

Edit to note that I'm not focusing on appearance at all, so that makes a difference.

I had been considering getting more duckwing pheonix for my other project. If I remember correctly the hens are pretty good mothers. The roosters are also protective from my experience, I've also heard they're relatively docile towards people. (had an accidental pheonix roo chick mixed in with my first 4 birds & he loathed humans).

What do you think about mixing a pair of pheonix hens with an oriental rooster? (That would just be one cross which I would breed to another breed or cross).

I had also considered hand selecting Easter Eggers with the dull brown coloration and lack of beard/muffs to cross with Liege fighters. FloridaBullfrog told me that when he crossed Liege to aseel/Thai that they were bad for mareks so he had to cross the chicks with Cracker fowl. It's my thinking that since EE'S are already mixed breeds that it would kinda cancel that lack of immunity out.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

The first 2025 hen-hatched biddies are on the ground. 15 total. Another hen just went set and a third may be. She’s biting me as if she is but she may just be being mean as she lays. I’ll know this evening.