The Poultry Keeper

Wilt · Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 6:52 pm Post subject:

Funny you should show the Cochin Club of great Britain site, normally people use Gareth Osborne's Cochin-Brahma site. You can see the difference between the two.

http://www.brahma-cochin.com/pics.php

However, Back to your Cochin club reference. I am a member of said club and the fine smiling face of Peter Heywood. Our life president on the home page. Is the breeder of the Buff and mottled you see in my pictures, well they are his stock. If you would furnish me with your real name (mine is Tim Lockett) He is sure to know you as he is 80 and (as it says on the site) has been breeding Cochins all his life. Alternatively, his phone number is on the club site, I would suggest you phone him and tell him where he is going wrong. Laughing

And if he's got it wrong what chance do I stand I'm only 50 and been breeding them for 17 years. I'm sure we've probably met. Laughing

There are birds such as the gold laced and barred that are work in progress and the do have the fan tail of the wyandotte, but they are only 18week old pullets so have not had the chance to fill out yet. And these are just snap shots of the birds for interest. They are not all washed and blow dried ready for the show cage they are free ranging getting some sun on their backs and some mud on their feet

Now the Orpington came from the cochin so there are bound to be similarities, some obvious some not so. But if someone would choose not to see them,, then that is their choice of course. However Mr Cook used Dorking and langshans in the breeding, which has given the orpington white skin/legs. The white skin pigment is dominant over yellow, and as you can see both Peter's and my birds have yellow legs.

I find it a little strange the first photo's of my birds were posted 6 months prior to you joining the forum, but you have waited all this time to notice?? Confused

I could have learnt the error of my ways much sooner. Laughing

I'm absoloutely sure Henwife does not keep Cochins. Janet keepsmore utility type breeds I have had some Cream legbar eggs from her in the past.

I think you might find Fenwoman was a winner at the Federation a few years ago! ( I think that ones a big one?)

You don't appear to have posted pictures of your own birds?? Shocked

All the best

Tim

Henwife · Joined: 31 Jan 2006 Posts: 3540 Location: Monmouthshire

Quite right Tim, I don't keep cochins, but I do have some brahma bantams, and very well bred they are too.

Wilt · Posted: Tue Nov 18, 2008 6:46 pm Post subject:

Are they coronation Brahmas Janet? They do look very nice indeed.

Tim

Henwife · Joined: 31 Jan 2006 Posts: 3540 Location: Monmouthshire

The answer is yes, but because they are Brahmas not Sussex, they are called Blue Light. I always though colour names were confusing, but these I keep for their beauty, although they also lay well, big eggs for banties, and are fantastic broodies and/or mother-hens

Wilt · Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2008 8:50 am Post subject:

Having been trying to get to grips with Wyandotte nomenaclature, I didn't think it would be named in such a logical way Embarassed

The trouble with blue it's so leaky, I suppose you will have use a Bantie Confused

light Brahma to top up the pigmentation in the Colombian restriction won't you? Wink

They are nice fluffies.

Henwife · Joined: 31 Jan 2006 Posts: 3540 Location: Monmouthshire

Genetics is not my strong point, but Paul from Cleulow brahmas has been incredibly helpful in making sense of what I should get with which colour cock I use to breed with. A I have an unrelated blue light cock, I know I should get 50%BL, 25%Light and 25%white. OK, that's next year. If my brain is still working the following year & I have a L cock (carrying blue) I should cross that with black for 100% BL - at least, I think that's right - but I don't have any blacks unless I get some eggs next year!.
I'm supposed to be bringing the Cream legbars up to Standard and increasing my flock of little black vultures, not swimming out of my depth!

Hen-Gen · Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2008 10:27 am Post subject:

Not surprisingly I have followed your duologue with interest because such things are of great interest to me.
From my own small scale breeding programmes it has become very clear that though much is now known (and therefore predictable) about the major colour genes there is still a great amount that has still to be worked out. Whenever I, or anyone else, gets a result which does not conform to expectations in terms of currently accepted theories then there are those who will mention 'modifiers'. Really these are just weasel words for saying that current theory, as it stands, is wrong.
So Tim/Janet if you struggle with the complexities of all this then welcome to the club! Very Happy

Wilt · Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2008 11:36 am Post subject:

Well Murray, with a considerable amount of your help and guidance over time, I am sort of getting my head round some of it.(only sort of, though) But it's like life in general, just when you think you've cracked it. Something unexplained and strange comes and bites you on the bum.

I used to refer to blue as a leaky colour, before I read Clive Carefoots book. Only to find I'd been plager. Plagier.. Erm copying him Wink

Putting a slate coq to an even darker slate blue pullet. Hatching the eggs egg-specting the perfect blue! To get pigeon blue, with a splash thrown in for good measure Crying or Very sad

Hen-Gen · Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 1:56 pm Post subject:

Thats a good example, Tim. Though the black/blue/splash thing is worked out the actual shade of blue that you get seems to be random. Mate any two blues, hatch enough eggs and you get all shades from pale to dark.
There are some colours that for reasons that are unclear just produce a lot of wasters. Mate two blacks together and from the colour point of view most of the chicks are acceptable. On the other hand breed blues or pyles and it seems that 80% of your youngsters just look mismarked or the wrong shade.
In addition those like you and me who dabble in the creation of new colour varieties seem to be looking for the needle in the haystack when going through the youngsters looking for the keepers. Have faith though. One of my little projects is beginning to give me what I want after 6 years of enormous wasteage and hopefully instead of getting 2% of keepers this figure will now climb. 20% would be good! Very Happy

Wilt · Posted: Thu Nov 27, 2008 9:18 am Post subject:

Cochins love over crowded conditions. Wink

This isn't their hut, they have a large grass area to wonder, but oh no!! Lettttttttttt's see how many we can cram in this broody run Laughing

Wilt · Posted: Thu Nov 27, 2008 9:29 am Post subject:

Leggy pointy tailed thing????????

Pekinout · Joined: 29 Apr 2008 Posts: 1219 Location: Cornwall

That ones not bad, better than some of the long legged ones in the broody coop.

geek

Wilt · Posted: Wed Dec 03, 2008 8:02 am Post subject:

Pekinout · Joined: 29 Apr 2008 Posts: 1219 Location: Cornwall

Wilt · Posted: Thu Dec 04, 2008 10:17 am Post subject: