Poultry
Wolf Ridge Heritage Farm ... currently we are raising geese, chickens, turkey and ducks.
Chickens were perhaps the first species of birds ever domesticated. There are 4 distinct wild fowls in the Indian sub-continent. These are the Red Jungle Fowl, Grey Jungle Fowl, Ceylonese Jungle Fowl and the Java Jungle Fowl. It is generally believed that all our present-day breeds of chickens are descendants of the first of these, the Red Jungle Fowl that was first domesticated as long ago as 3-4000 BC.
By 1400 BC, the Chinese had already invented crude incubators to hatch large numbers of chickens and the Egyptians also developed incubators which were capable of hatching thousands of eggs, with men actually living inside to regulate the incubating and hatching conditions. Chickens were reported in Babylon by the year 700 BC, being brought home by soldiers of the Persian armies which had conquered India. Europe saw chickens with the return of the conquering armies of Alexander the Great around 500 BC. The Greeks became fascinated with cock-fighting and the sport was so popular it became a sport of the early Olympic Games. The Romans continued the spread of chickens across the globe. Cock fighting was being practiced in Britain at the time of the invasion by Julius Caesar around 55 BC. The fighting cock was proudly accepted as a symbol of courage and was frequently used on military standards.
During the Middle Ages, important races of chickens were beginning to develop in three widely different regions. These were Mediterranean, Asian Soft feather and Asian Game fowls. Each had specific characteristics depending on the requirements of the area. Mediterranean fowls seldom go broody, lay large numbers of pure white eggs, have white ear lobes and large combs. Breeds such as Leghorns, Minorcas and Spanish descended from these. The Asian Soft feather fowls developed in the mountainous regions of Asia and were characterised by gigantic size, looser and softer feathers and feathered legs. From these came the Langshans, Brahmas and Cochin breeds. The Asian Game fowls were hard and tight in feather, very aggressive, laid brown eggs and went broody easily.
Columbus carried fowls to the New World where they were eagerly taken by the various Indians and further evolved to the conditions. The greatest period of chicken breeding came during the 1800's and was spurred by three major events. The theory of selective breeding, put forward by Robert Blakewell, the works of Charles Darwin which brought forward the theory of genetic transmission and the fashion of the Victorian era where it became trendy to create new varieties of animals. This was known as "The Golden Age of Pure Breed Poultry". In 1865, the Poultry Club of Great Britain drew up the World's first Standards of Excellence, due to the ever-increasing number of breeds that were springing forth. Exhibition poultry became enormously popular and many famous names emerged during this period. Sir John Sebright (originator of the Sebright bantam), William Tegetmeier (editor of the first Standard of Excellence in Exhibition Poultry), William Cook (originator of the Orpington breed) and Lewis Wright (Brahma breeder and author of The Illustrated Book of Poultry, which has become a classic tome on poultry).
Photo of Pomeranian Geese | photo (c) albc-usa.org
Pomeranian
In their native
Germany, the term Pomeranian refers to a utilitarian
goose breed. German Pomeranians are colored white, gray, saddleback
buff, or saddleback gray. Only the Saddleback Pomeranian exists in
North America. The head, back, and flanks of a saddleback are either
buff or gray. All colored feathers of the back and flank are edged in
near-white. The rest of the bird is white. A Pomeranian should have a
pinkish red bill, reddish orange legs, and blue eyes (Holderread, 1981).
The Pomeranian is a good all-around breed for a colorful home flock!
Photo of Cayuga Duck via
http://www.poultrypages.com
Cayuga
The Cayuga, to this day, is recognized as one of the hardiest of the domestic ducks and are easily tamed if hand-raised. They tolerate the harsh winters of the northeast and can produce many offspring.
The Cayuga averages 7-8 lbs. and has the ability to obtain much of its diet from foraging, when given appropriate areas to explore for food. The meat of the Cayuga is reputed to be of excellent taste and fine quality but the carcass can be difficult to clean because of their dark feathering. Some resolve this problem by skinning the ducks rather than plucking.
They are prolific ducks and can lay 100-150 eggs per year that can be used for general eating and baking purposes. Eggs are initially black in color, but as the season progresses egg color lightens to white by the end of the season. The plumage of the Cayuga is uniformly greenish black and may become mottled with white as they mature.
Photo of Buckeye Rooster and Hens. |
http://crainsrunranch.com/
Buckeye
The Buckeye Chicken is a dual-purpose breed which comes in a deep red color plumage, yellow legs and skin and are a very cold weather hearty breed. While they are very adaptive to their living arrangements, they do best in free-range conditions or with room to move around due to their active nature. The Buckeye hen averages six and a half pounds; roosters weigh approximately nine pounds. Eggs are medium in size and brown in color.
This breed was developed by Mrs. Nettie Metcalf from Ohio, hence the name Buckeye for the Buckeye State. and is the only breed created entirely by a woman. It is important to note that this breed's creation predates the Rhode Island Red's introduction into the midwest.
Photo of Narragansett (Tom) Turkeys. |
(c) Terry Rune
Narragansett
Named for the location of its development, the Narragansett Bay, this variety of turkey comes down from a cross of native Eastern Wild Turkeys and a domestic turkey (thought to probably have been the Norfolk Black) and brought to American by European and English colonists in the 1600s.
Average weight for a young tom is 23 pounds and a young hen is 14 pounds. They are known for their calm disposition, good maternal abilities, early maturing, egg production and excellent meat quality with superior flavor.
