Centuries-Old Rare Chicken Breeds

Centuries-Old Rare Chicken Breeds LIVESTOCK Poultry Good foraging is one of the features Glenn Drowns likes about his two rare breeds of chickens American Dumpies and Dorkings Drowns a heritage chicken breeder from Iowa see Vol 33 No 5 raises about 140 chicken breeds but says the Dumpies and Dorkings are especially unique “American Dumpies are not a recognized breed but a result from off-types of Cuckoo Scotts we obtained ” explains Drowns “We were culling the yellow-legged birds in an attempt to stay true to the white-legged Scotts However when we kept some we noticed they were much more vigorous and thrifty than the Scotts and also lay well ” A genetic preservationist Drowns produces all his own eggs for hatches and tends his own flocks While that usually means keeping flocks pure to type he also experiments with selective crossbreeding or variants like the American Dumpies He has been selecting for them for 8 years Like their Scotts’ ancestors they are a dwarf breed known for their short legs This gives them a waddling gait Adult bodies are less than 2 in off the ground The short legs and waddle are thought to have made them easy to catch The characteristics also suggest a breed less likely to range far from home Lack of movement would also produce more tender meat The downside to the short legs is a lethal gene that can show up when 2 short-legged birds are bred to each other Birds born without the lethal gene can have long legs and can be bred back to short legged birds with less chance of the lethal gene occurring American Dumpies are available in groups of up to 15 at $5 per chick Drowns also raised the Cuckoo Scotts Dumpies but is sold out for 2018 “We are most concerned that more flocks of this breed get established ” he says “They are a unique stocky bird While we will continue to maintain the breed the lack of genetic diversity has bottlenecked and we produce very few chicks ” The Scotts Dumpies are an old breed standardized from Landraces in the 1800’s Although written descriptions of short-legged birds go back for centuries Dorkings have been around even longer “Dorkings were described by Julius Caesar ” says Drowns “They are slow growing but constant and thrifty foragers They make wonderful dual purpose birds for eggs and meat ” The birds reach 6 to 8 lbs and are famous for flavor Eggs are a tinted white and run from medium to large in size They are also plentiful in the winter when other breeds often produce fewer eggs “I have seen them lay quite well in 25 degree below zero weather ” says Drowns Dorkings have white skin and leg color Feathers are multi-hued from black to gray red or white Lines within the breed are designated by their color Drowns sells chicks for $6 50 each and maximum orders of 5 to 15 Drowns and his wife Linda run the center as a hobby/business In addition to poultry breeding they also produce and offer a broad range of seed and root crops including a list of more than 225 sweet potato varieties He has a full-time job off the farm and they respond to emails and phone calls on a limited basis “Please don’t expect an immediate answer ” warns Drowns “We also don’t take orders by email ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Sand Hill Preservation Center 1878 230th St Calamus Iowa 52729 ph 563 246-2299; sandhill@fbcom net; www sandhillpreservation com

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