breeding

BREEDING BELGIAN BANTAMS

By Paul Williams

(an extract from the "Handbook of the Belgian Bantam Club of Australia")

Breeders of exhibition poultry are all striving for that elusive creature, the perfect bird. Whether we would recognise it when, or if, we did breed such a thing is debatable. The Standard of Perfection gives a pretty clear indication of what we should be aiming for, but there can be variations in how the Standard is interpreted. You only have to listen to breeders at shows discussing the vices and virtues of their various breeds to realise that it is not all that simple. However, when you begin your breeding program, you should have a good idea of what you are trying to achieve.

First and foremost is the type and conformation. No matter what colour you are working on it must look like a Belgian. Breeding systems are covered elsewhere in full, but it is generally accepted that line breeding and inbreeding are extensively practiced.

As a general rule of thumb we mate "best with best" on the understanding that "like begets like's All sounds very simple, we just sit back and wait for a flock of wonderful birds. unfortunately nature has her own ideas, and it doesn't always turn out that way. It is, however, the best path to follow. You can, of course, fluke good birds with chance matings, but that is good luck, not good management.

If you have the space, single matings are preferred. That way you can easily monitor the performance of each bird. If you are producing good or bad birds, you want to know exactly where they are coming from. If you have a bird that is exceptionally good you should utilise that bird as much as possible. Line and inbreeding will lock in those traits that make that bird stand out. It must be said here that there are times when a particularly good one will not throw its like, and that can be very frustrating.

Inbreed all you like, though there may come a time when you will need some new blood. Lines vary in how they stand up to being closely bred. Poor hatchability is one problem that can result from inbreeding. By keeping a wide enough gene pool you can go on indefinitely. I know a Leghorn breeder who has not introduced any new blood for over forty years, and his birds are showing no ill effects.

You can move a cock bird between a number of hens, either daily or every two days. Using this method does cut down on your need to carry extra cock birds. For example, a good Quail cock can be used with Quail, Blue Quail and Lavender Quail very successfully. You must keep good records and toe punch all the offspring so as to know to what they are to be mated when the time comes. This is also very important when you come to sell birds as you may have people who, having purchased a pair of normal Quail, wonder why they are throwing "funny colours.

Mating of birds is pretty much a balancing act. The likelihood of always having two really good birds to mate is fairly remote, so you try balancing one fault against another. Never mate birds with the same fault. The same applies to colour. Examine your birds closely. Try drawing or painting one of your birds. You will be amazed at how many points you notice at fault on what you considered a pretty good specimen.

A Silver Millefleur d'Uccle hen (left) and a Millefleur d'Uccle cock (right)

In many countries, breeders of Belgians generally breed late in the season in order to get smaller birds. This practice seems pretty well accepted. Here in Australia where our winters are, for the most part, much milder than Europe, the same practice is promoted. Certainly in northern Australia I can't see it being of any advantage. A well known breeder of large light Sussex in my area breeds his birds early because he says if they are not hatched by September they do not grow to their full potential. In this case it is the summer heat that stops the growth. I'm not sure where that leaves us, but suggest you experiment, for in Australia we can experience just about any climate you can think of.

I do find that my late hatched birds take longer to develop, and are slightly smaller, but our winter conditions here are quite cold. We do have a problem with the size of our Belgians. Many are far too big, and this is something we should all keep a strict eye on.

On this point, egg size is said to play a big part. I would not dispute this, but have found in my own birds certain strains lay a large egg for their size and others are rather small. The size of the egg does not seem to have a big effect on the size of the bird. In the past, I've had large fowl, which were given to laying rather small eggs for their size, but their offspring grew to match the parents.

The d'Anvers in particular, seem to lay a good sized egg for their size. Do not set eggs that are ill formed. The hatching of smaller pullet eggs is usually touted as being a way of keeping the size down. By all means try these methods to get the size down, and whatever works, stick to it! Write the pen number on both ends of the eggs. You will find it a big advantage when identifying after hatching.

I use an incubator for hatching, but with certain strains the hen is best. The majority of people seem to have some problems with incubators, the most common being "dead in shell", where the chick dies at the point of hatching. I have heard of numerous reasons for this, but have not come to a conclusion, and have found it is better to set difficult eggs under a hen. Because I vaccinate for Marek's disease the eggs are removed at about 18 days and, after washing, are put in the incubator to hatch. My Millefleur d'Uccle would rarely hatch in the incubator, but by using this method a good success rate has been achieved.

Left: Pair of Quail d'Anvers Right: Quail d'Uccle male

You will notice that eggs from out-crossed birds usually have very little trouble hatching. Crossbred birds usually have a very high rate of fecundity. The fresher the egg the better, the usual cut-off time is around two weeks. I have set eggs up to three weeks, but only if they have been kept cool.

Washing of eggs is a subject that causes quite a bit of comment. I always wash mine in warm water with a little bleach or other disinfectant, and fumigate them when they are first put into the incubator. This is done with formaldehyde and potassium permanganate, which is pretty vicious so care must be taken not to inhale any of the fumes.

If your incubator is working well you should get reasonable results, but don't expect miracles, especially with pure bred poultry. Of course you must make sure your incubator is running correctly. Apart from the obvious importance of temperature, correct humidity levels are vital, and at all times, remember, cleanliness! Always follow the manufacturer's instructions.

Nutrition and general health of the birds also play a part. An increase in protein level at breeding time is recommended. There are very good commercial feeds available these days and a "Breeder" pellet or crumble will suffice at breeding time. Free-range is the ultimate but not always possible. I have had great success free ranging birds that were poor layers and hard to breed. They respond favourably to the freedom and extra tit-bits that they find. This can also help with infertile birds. Once the chicks are hatched they are, after selection, vaccinated and toe punched.

I have given up using toe punches (usually lost them) and instead use a darning needle, which is heated by means of a candle and works very well. The tiny foot is placed on a cork base and the hot needle passed through the appropriate web or webs. The needle must be hot otherwise the hole will soon grow over. The d'Uccle chickens pose more of a problem. Their inner web is easy to punch, but the outer one, covered by feathers, is somewhat more difficult.

Lavender Quail d'Anvers Trio of Blue d'Uccle

The brooder should be prepared in advance, and be warm when the chicks are moved in. My brooders have a sawdust floor with an enclosed section that is heated by a light globe. As long as the chickens are warm and have easy access to food and water, there should be no problems. If it is early in the season, be aware of sudden drops in temperature, as chilling cannot be tolerated. Make sure the brooder is always free from draughts.

A commercial medicated feed (Chicken Starter) is fed for the first 6-8 weeks, then a Grower Crumble. These starter feeds are medicated at a fairly low level and there is no guarantee that coccidiosis will not strike. I have had cases where this has happened, even though the chicks were not in contact with other birds. After having coccidiosis confirmed, I now automatically put the chicks on a course of low level amprolium at about four weeks and find this works well. If you wait until the signs appear it is usually too late to save a percentage of the birds. There are many coccidiostats available, with amprolium the active ingredient in a number of them. However, they are all effective when used correctly.

Culling is a process that goes on continually as faults show themselves. Do not overcrowd your chickens, and keep an eye out for feather picking, which can occur as the chicks feather up. Once picked, a feather will bleed and the sight of blood will cause the further picking, usually with dire consequences. It can be very difficult to stop once it gets started. Always make sure the brooder is kept dry and replace the litter as required.

Millefleur d'Uccle cock and Porcelaine hen Cuckoo d'Anvers hen

Web design, graphic art and manufacture by
Stephen Miller.

Said the first little chick, with a wiggle and a squirm,

I wish I had a nice fat worm.

Said the second little chick, with a giggle and a squeal.

I wish I had some fine yellow meal.

Said the old mother hen, from the green cabbage patch,

If you really want it, then get out and scratch!

Please direct enquiries to the Secretary: (Mrs) Irene Hannan
"Mountain View", 930 Caparra Road,
Caparra, via Wingham, NSW 2429
Telephone: (02) 65507295
Email: channan@tpgi.com.au

The contents of these pages will always remain the property of the Belgian Bantam Club of Australia. The material may be used for the purposes of private study, research, or to further pass on this information as
permitted under copyright legislation, but only if the source is fully credited at all times. No part may be reproduced or re-used for any commercial purpose without the written permission of the Belgian Bantam Club of Australia. Further no modification to any of the information may be made without prior written consent.

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