How I Made My Family And Maintain Them

How I Made My Family And Maintain Them

After many years of breeding the Sweaters I came up with the desired characteristics I was looking for. Most of the Sweaters I got would not breed uniform and could not be inbreed. It is almost impossible to breed fowl that have a lot of different genes in them. Of the first mating I chose the best brother and sister and bred them . I did this for four generations, Each year selecting the most perfect in every way. Why did I do this? The genes in you that have any effect in your looks and performance usually go back at least 4 generation, some times more but mostly 4 generation. So I bred 4 generation, each year discarding any thing I did not like and breeding the ones with what I was looking for. This is the way I (locked ) the genes. After the genes have been locked they are all the same. If you breed mother to son they are still the same, if you breed father to daughter they are all still the same. So when you line breed from here all the genes are still the same. So you fowl will all look the same and perform the same. Each year you still look for the very best to carry own the family. By now you should have many brood pens and a larger selection to make your choices from. If you do not lock the genes this is what will happen. When you breed mother to son you will have 3/4 of her blood, when you breed father to daughter you will have 3/4 his blood. And you still have two different families. What I mean is they will not perform the same and each time you breed them it will change.

To give you my reason for locking the genes, is in the knowledge of genetics. With out getting to technical, a hen will pass mitochondrial genes to her son that he can not pass on. She will also not pass any genes on her sex link side to her daughter. The mitochondrial gene is where most mutation, diseases and genetics disorders take place, so it is important to know where they came from if you should have any problems in this area. So the mating of brother to sister will give the pullet the sex link genes she did not get from her mother. So now you should have as close a blend of genes of the host fowl that can be obtained. I breed this way so I will not have to wonder how my birds will look and perform each year. When you add outside blood to your fowl their genetic makeup will never be the same. There is no such thing as breeding back to pure. You can only breed back to a standard and this is usually appearance. If you get fowl from one breeder and breed it to fowl from another you are starting out with about a six way cross. If they come out OK that is great but try to keep them coming year after year. The next year when you breed the same pair you are likely to get entirely different fowl. Because their genes were never locked and you are getting traits from their ancestors.

This is how I have improved my fowl. By now you should have 50 or so hens and stags. It is to your advantage to have as many fowl as you can afford to chose the ones to keep the family going. By intense observation of your young fowl you will in time see those that seem to be smarter, stronger, better station and etc. These are the ones you choose to breed back. Without a lot of mixed up genes to deal with you will see these good characteristics passed on to the next generation. In time it will become difficult to choose because all your fowl will be identical. These fowl are not only brood fowl but should be excellent battle fowl. If you can not fight your fowl pure why do you keep them. Most families are ruined my adding new blood or by making a bad choice in the ones you select to breed back. INTELLIGENT SELECTION is the name of the game. I can not over emphasize the importance of having as many fowl as possible to make your selection from.

Some will say that inbreeding makes a smaller gene pool. I would rather have a small gene pool with all quality genes as a large one with a lot of good and bad genes. Environment plays a big role in the out come of your breeding. As a matter of fact it is 50%. You can send your fowl to a friend as far away as possible and later bring this blood back to infuse again with your family. A different location can some time improve you birds , but it might also change them for the worst. This is the way I breed and it has worked for me. It may sound controversial but I will leave it to your discretion. I have maintained my Sweaters in this manner for the last 10 years with out any adverse affects or with out any out side infusion. After a couple years you will have enough brood pens so you can breed for several years without breeding the same birds. Birds that have not been breed to each other for several generation is like adding new blood. I am certain that my fowl are better than the first I obtained. I do believe this is the best way to make and maintain a family of fowl for generations to come. I hope this has been of some interest and entertaining to you. The best of luck to you in your breeding.

RAY BOLES