Pictures Comparing Dark Cornish Hatchery Stock with Breeder Stock

Hi All,
I thought someone posted a picture of a dark cornish hatchery stock chick and a breeder stock chick for comparison. If I wasn't dreaming would someone post me the link as I can't seem to find it and my DH was wondering why I try not to buy hatchery stock.
Thanks.

Triple J probably posted those pictures. Try doing a search on her posts.

my dark breeders ( shrek, fiona, leona)
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their babies
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hatchery stock
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Oh geeze, now you've done it. I have mentioned this before (think it was Heather's post) on the dark Cornish and the eyes and shape of head. I can't stand it. I love the look of the eyes and head on some breeds and I, well, I just can't stand it!! I love that so much. I seriously think I need to get some dark Cornish or, even better yet,.....a Malay breed, I just can't stand it. I am driving myself nuts!! What colour of egg do they lay? Colour tone definition please. Gads, and I love the stumps for legs, sigh....need more room, need more room, need more room. Have a most wonderful day, CynthiaM.

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your right tara, these guys really are no comparison with the breeder quality, but her eare the pros/ cons with both

breeder pro :
super friendly
very big eat the culls you can feed a family of 8 LMAO
cant fly well
i dont find they eat any more than any of my other birds
i think they are decent layers i get 1 egg a day from my 2 hens

breeder cons:
fertility SUCKS
they NEED HEAT in the winter as they have no down feathers to keep warm
eggs small for their size but not to bad
truly this is all i can find thats discouraging with them

Hatchery Pros :
excellent layers ( i get about 7-11 eggs a day from 11 hens) since january
winter hardy, ( never had heat for them all winter unless it was - 30 in insulated coop)
good for eating, the roosters are fairly beffy ( not as much as breeders but still good)

Hatchery cons
CRAZY CRAZY flighty
CRAZY flighty not good for kids pet
can fly VERY high
eat TONS


cynthia here is your pic of their eggs far right compared to ameracauna, marans


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I have to agree about the hatchery quality Dark Cornish although I was disappointed with the body size. We have breeder quality chickens in other breeds that still lay well, but have more size. They are very flighty. The rooster we kept is not aggressive. The White Laced Red Cornish were very slow maturing and are almost bantam size. The two roosters had a visit from the axe this week. We started with 10 straight run WLRC from the hatchery and ended with 4. With the other breeds we raised almost all of what we received.

triplejfarms wrote:

breeder cons:
fertility SUCKS
they NEED HEAT in the winter as they have no down feathers to keep warm
eggs small for their size but not to bad
truly this is all i can find thats discouraging with them

Here are three more cons:

Their eggs are the same size as the bantams I have, and the bantams eat even less. The bantams are identical except size but good quality bantams are much easier to find.

They are very prone to CRDs.

They are very prone to mites.

Cynthia, they lay a brown egg. The size is interesting. Circular, like the bird! I will try to get some pics of the whites. It is easier to see the body shape.

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Cornish are a really neat breed but definitely not for everyone, esp ones that are bred to the breed description. I find both the Large fowl and the bantams to have wonderful quite temperments and very easy to handle. The large fowl do lay well but are not great proformers the bantams on the other hand are egg laying machines. When I am ready to start collecting eggs I move my bantams into my heated breeding room and generally have fertility right away. I have already stopped hatching from them this year as I have lots out already. As for the Large I generally move them out doors here at the beginning of March rather than push them earlier in the breeding room, I find they are happier and generally I start getting good egg laying and fertility from them starting in April. I am incubating from my Large Cornish now. The females also make very good mothers but must be watched carefully the first while as they can crush their young, but I have had at least 3 females that I have gone broody on me and raised babies. The one nice thing is the Large Fowl and the bantams are great eating. We esp. love the bantams as they make a great meal for 2 with lots of meat.

I am lucky here that I do not have to heat my barn in the winter and my Cornish and Moderns do great here as close hard feathered breeds.The Cornish do have to be watched for mites which I have always found odd as you will never find a mite on Moderns or my Ko-Shamo also hard feathered breeds. If my Cornish go to a show they are treated before we go and then are in isolation pens for at least 2 weeks until I am sure that some mite somewhere at the show didn't land on them like heat seeking missles LOL. I will have Jayme post some pictures of mine under this thread and just for Cynthia a picture of a beetle browed Ko- Shamo.

Heather

First 2 pics are bantam females, nice birds but still looking for that elusive pearl eye color but worthy breeding specimens
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While not a great picture this is a Large fowl cockerel, note the width between the legs, this bird had a great wide body and head, short legs and breeds naturally
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The next 2 pictures are of bantam cockerels raised last years, great bodies of these boys, thick legs and massive heads, the picture of the single bird looks odd because of his massive head and neck and me taking the picture in the sun at a weird angle but he turned out to be a great bird winning a Reserve of Show. Of all the males reared last year I kept 3 here and the rest have long since been eaten, nice carcasses on them.
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For those who might like Cornish type you might try the Ko-Shamo, nice bettle brows, thick bodies like a Cornish but in an upright stance, very nice birds come in Bantam only, hardy. I have not butchered any culls yet but might try this year.
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I love my little cornish bantams so much that I have given up the thought of any other breed! They are such sweet birds. Mine do not seem to lay as well though. They lay great in the warmer months, but this has been a very cold spring and they as still not laying like I think they should. They likely need more light, but I am not going to worry myself too much over it.

viczoe wrote:..The Cornish do have to be watched for mites which I have always found odd as you will never find a mite on Moderns or my Ko-Shamo also hard feathered breeds. If my Cornish go to a show they are treated before we go and then are in isolation pens for at least 2 weeks until I am sure that some mite somewhere at the show didn't land on them like heat seeking missles LOL. .

Heather

Heather, this is interesting that your longer legged, hard feathered breeds are not the mite-magnets the Cornish are. My thoughts are that the mite issue has to do with the shorter leg on the Cornish. They are always closer to the bedding and often prefer to snuggle in to the straw instead of perching on a smooth perch. The mites have a warmer, more protected area to live.

Hi Someone had mentioned to me that bantam cornish would be a good breed for me because I live alone and don't have to cook a big bird. They said they would cook 2 and share a bird and have the other bird for another meal. Now all I need are some birds.

Sue, don't thing that's it as all my Cornish roost. I have also noticed that when I had the Silver Spangled Hamburgs for at least 8 years that I never ever had one that got a mite, while I have other breeds and colors within breeds that are magnets. I have yet to figure it out, but do find it interesting.

Heather

I am quite happy with my hatchery cornish. Good dual purpose bird. Mellow and healthy. Lay well, eggs could be bigger. Great meat birds. I am crossing them with some white wyandottes and light brahmas to see what I get for a meat bird. I am very pleased with the roosters I kept back for breeding, thick and heavy. I find they handle the winter very well and I don't heat my coop.

I picked up 2 bantam dark cornish hens at the auction this spring. They have given me quite a few eggs so far, but not fertile, as I don't have a rooster for them. They are so beautiful and look just like the best pictures I've seen online of dark cornish. Very squat and wide and very gentle birds. I really like them. Which of my breeds would be best to cross them with for meat chicks?

Oh I got so overwhelmed with excitement reading the new comments on this thread I had to go and do something else, now I am back, reading more and some stuff over again, smiling. I am an odd duck. Anyone that knows me will know that, smiling. I have more stuff to read in this thread, again, (ya sometimes I read things several times, things take me a very long time sometimes ). Have a most awesome day, CynthiaM.

TripleJ, thanks for the pictures of the eggs, the dark cornish eggs look to be of a good enough size for surely. And Tara, when are you ever gonna stop teasing me , just kidding, I love how you love me . I do like the look of the cornish, especially those eyes and brow, but no cross breeding, smiling.

viczoe wrote: I will have Jayme post some pictures of mine under this thread and just for Cynthia a picture of a beetle browed Ko- Shamo.
Heather

Thank you for the attention, but where are the pictures? Send them to me, I could post them for you if Jayme can't. Heather, I remember you said you raised Malay, this was some long time ago you said that, do you have any pictures of them too? I would love to see that breed, I could put those pictures in there too, if Jayme is busy and she can't....

Heather, you still have large fowl dark cornish? For some reason, thought that you did not have them anymore, just the bantam. One time when I come over, can I please look at them? That would thrill me half to death. And you are incubating some dark cornish chicks, oh oh.....have a most wonderful day, CynthiaM.

I love my cornish , stumpy little things which have a great personality as well as curiosity ...LOL...The Roosters are like little roman soldiers , they stand guard over the hens and aren't as aggressive towards the hens as some other breeds ,a more gentle bird if that makes sense ? I need to find another supplier for a dozen eggs ( Hint Hint ) so that I can introduce a different blood line into the ones that I have ( anyone want to step up to the plate and offer me some eggs ? I'd pay of course ) I have yet to butcher one ( not that many yet ) but when you pick them up they are a tight little package and for there size they do have a lot of weight

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Tara,
You can hijack anytime. I always learn so much from you.

Everyone else thank you for the info.

Spring has sprung

I have addeed some pictures to my orginal response to Foal0069. Looking back at the hatchery stock pictures the thing that sticks out to me the most is the tail on the females as well as the lack of that Cornish thickness in the bodies and heads. It is a very interesting comparision and I wonder how the hatchery birds came to have that body type. As I cannot see even if I picked and bred from the worst of my stock they would not have that body type, they would be poor Cornish but would not have that type of tail etc.

I applaud everyone working with exhibition(breeder) type Cornish as there is a huge differance in type. They are a difficult breed but rewarding when you get them near where you want they. I love mine and they are really cute chicks, so thick right from the beginning. Good luck.

Heather

Thank you Heather.
Is anyone able to tell me how you started working on your exhibition quality birds? I don't want to do exhibition quality but wouldn't mind a little more meat on them which seems to be showing with your exhibition birds. Thanks again all.
Woohoo, spring was here day before yesterday, summer today and get this 1st of May winter is back, suppose to get 10 cm of snow. Are we sure it isn't April fools day tomorrow.

Awesome Heather, I do remember actually seeing these pictures before, smiling. Sometimes I have a good memory for some things. I clearly recall that bird that had the funny looking eye, from how the picture was taken, it made me smile. Beautiful birds, girl. Eye candy and love the look of said parts of those birds. The Ko-Shamo, too very nice, but just something about the stance of upright birds , teasin' ya. I love, love, love, the look of those beetle brows. Wondering what size egg the bantam hens lay? Smaller than large fowl? That would differentiate eggs for surely, should I enter the breed of dark Cornish, bantam...you know I am a large fowl girl, but bantam would differentiate eggs from the large fowl, so no mistaken eggs . Might have to get some bantam for that eye candy of heads and stumpy legs. Geeeze, does the yearning ever stop? Do the bantam have the same body type and leg type as the large fowl dark Cornish? I LOVE those stumpy legs! Have a beautiful day, CynthiaM.

Cynthia, there would be no mistaking eggs for sure. But not by size, by shape!

The Cornish eggs are round, like the bird. It is often hard to tell which end is up! But as far as size goes, the eggs are virtually the same!