In this episode of Bred to Perfection, Kenny Troiano, along with his wife Nancy and co-host Frank Bradley, discuss the topic of outcrossing in breeding programs. They discuss what outcrossing entails, the common misconceptions associated with it, and why it’s not always the ideal method for breeders. Although outcrossing can offer benefits like hybrid vigor, faster growth rates, improved fertility, and disease resistance, these are often short-lived and cannot be passed on to future generations. They also discussed the problems with crossbreeding, issues of hybridization and mongrelization, and the importance of having two pure inbred families for maximum hybrid vigor. They answer audience questions about chick behavior, feeding, and specific breeding challenges like egg size and consistency. The episode underscores the importance of careful selection in maintaining the integrity and health of a breed.
Ep284 – Misinformation vs. Education – Building Better Bloodlines Through Truth and Accurate Knowledge
In this episode of Bred to Perfection, host Kenny Troiano welcomes Douglas Bruce to the show. This episode features a discussion among gamefowl educators about breeding, conditioning, nutrition, and the responsibility of teaching accurate, usable information. They recount how they connected through inbreeding content, discuss writing articles and books, building memberships, and the difficulty of mentoring everyone amid constant messages. They criticize social media for spreading bad information, illegal exposure, fraud, plagiarism, and the “name” and “percentage” games that replace trait-based selection, plus practices like constantly adding new blood, breeding unproven stags, and maintaining too many bloodlines. They stress focusing on selection, maintaining true families, working together as educators, and explain that “refreshing blood” changes a family via genetic recombination rather than restoring it.
Ep283 – When Good Strains Go Bad: How to Fix Hidden Flaws in Your Bloodline
Welcome to another episode of Bred to Perfection! In this Monday edition, join founder Kenny Troiano and his wife Nancy from the Breeders Academy as they talk about the intricacies of when good strains go bad. Learn how to manage unexpected and unwanted traits that suddenly appear in your strains. Kenny and Nancy discuss the importance of purity of blood, the significance of the Founder’s program, and how to handle defects effectively, without starting over. They also answer audience questions on breeding, landrace projects, hybrid vigor, Spangled breeds, and more. Whether you’re new to breeding or an experienced poultry enthusiast, this episode is packed with valuable insights to help you maintain and improve your strains.
Ep282 – Breeding Terms Explained
Kenny Troiano and Nancy host the Bred to Perfection podcast, simplify breeding terms and concepts: exaggerating selection for polygenic traits to reach a goal, recognizing true inbreeding depression (often before maturity) versus poor selection and management, and the importance of selecting vigorous hens due to maternally inherited mitochondrial DNA. They discuss how defects, lethal genes, and recessives can be hidden or eliminated through test mating and culling, and warn that frequent outcrossing can introduce deleterious genes and disrupt progress. Kenny distinguishes seed fowl (“Adam and Eve”) from foundation fowl (uniform, predictable strain), critiques the trio method, explains the blanket theory/correlation-of-traits myth, and answers questions on color changes in molt, selecting for size and feather quality, and breeding age timelines.
Ep281 – The War on Common Sense Breeding: Dispelling Myths and Misconceptions
In this episode of ‘Bred to Perfection,’ Kenny Troiano, founder of the Breeders Academy, alongside his wife Nancy and co-host Frank Bradleys, discuss the intricacies of breeding chickens. The conversation starts with topics, such as the critical aspects of selective breeding, including the importance of confirmation, common misconceptions about inbreeding and outcrossing, and the significance of identifying and eliminating defects. They emphasize the importance of maintaining a single or a few well-bred families rather than attempting to manage multiple strains. They also stress the role of proper selection and breeding practices in achieving uniformity, consistency, and predictability in chicken breeds. The dialogue further touches upon the impact of epigenetics, the dangers of hybrid vigor, and the common but misleading ‘throwback’ theory. The episode concludes with a Q&A session addressing audience questions about breeding, defect management, and family maintenance.