Has anyone done landrace chickens, as mentioned in the book?
I think it sounds great, but I have a dilemma. I recently hatched chicks. I figured it would be a fun way to get a little bit more money from my eggs. Problem is, apparently no one wants mutt chickens. They all want the purebreds. Obviously that wouldn’t work with landrace chickens.
My initial thought is that “easter eggers” are essentially mutt chickens, just ones that lay colorful eggs. So maybe if I focus on these, I could have the best of both worlds.
But then that brings up other questions. In my limited research of colored egg layers, there are several genetic factors that influence colored eggs. Say, if I breed an Ameracauna with a Cream Legbar, would that guarantee the offspring have colored eggs? If I throw an Olive Egger in there, would that guarantee the eggs would be green or blue?
Also, how do you keep track of which chickens are which age (and aging out of the program)? I’ve seen leg bands, but curious if people use this successfully or have another method.
I’m no expert on chickens, or the marketing thereof, but I will just note that some of us who are trying to raise chickens are also broke as a glass shovel. You may just have to shift targets a little and trade with those (like myself) who have no spare cash whatsoever, but want to build community, or have/can make something you find useful. Every one of our animals (6 hens, 1 rooster, 2 geese, 3 goslings [and counting], a duck and a very troublesome goat) came to us from other families who, for one reason or another, had animals to spare. We paid nothing, and we got started. When you have very little, you tend not to be too picky. And you find yourself thankful for good traits, like resilience, rather than being hung up on things like aesthetics or pedigree.
We call it farmyard mix chickens. People here like them as they are know to be hardier, vigorous and often broodier. Though I have noticed people prefer the flashier colored ones as opposed to say plain white or black.
I suspect a couple of things are at play. I don’t have experience with chickens, but I am working with a mixed flock of coturnix quail with effectively landracing goals, and we’ve got friends with rabbits so, other small livestock
For kids raising birds for FFA/4H projects, participating in the public side (which in the best county fairs includes demonstrating their learning about breeding and/or caring for the animals) often requires showing their birds, which involves declaring a breed and demonstrating conformance to the breed standard as part of the package. Adding an option to talk about your own breeding goals would be good, but isn’t currently in place in many counties.
There are substantial benefits to genetic diversity and local adaptation, but there is also some risk: for every bird that combines the best of its parents, there’s another than combines the worst. Just like landracing plants, you have to be willing to cull along the way. Some poultry owners would rather have a reliably OK bird than take a risk on a chick that could be really good and could be sub-par.
Marketing. What traits are you selecting for? Heat tolerance? Cold tolerance? Egg size? The ability to take on a bear in a fight and come out alive? I’m not interested in “mutt” quail eggs, but if you tell me that you’ve been selecting for at least two of good disposition, eggs at least 14 grams, and heat tolerance, we’ll be talking. In the meat rabbit world, there’s a named “breed” TAMUK (Texas A&M U Kingsville) that is genetically diverse, with a variety of coat patterns, that has been selected for improved heat tolerance with large ears and short fur along with good meat production.
Creating an animal landrace takes a larger flock/herd than many of us have capacity for on our own. There’s great potential for a community to collaborate.