In this episode of Bred to Perfection, we are discussing Genetic Drift, and the effect it can have on our strains. Genetic drift is a force of nature that contributes to the evolution of species, but can also have an effect on the evolution of our strains. In fact, it can change the direction of your strain with a blink of an eye through a sudden change in the number of birds within that strain, and change the frequency of their alleles over time. Your ability as a breeder, will and can determine what that strain will become. One thing can be certain, that strain will be different than they were before. There’s a lot of great nuggets of information that I know you will not want to miss.
Ep96 – Infectious Laryngotracheitis with Dr. Rodrigo Gallardo
In this episode of Bred to Perfection, we are talking with Dr. Gallardo about Infectious Laryngotracheitis, otherwise known as ILT. This is an extremely contagious virus that affects chickens and other poultry. The virus attacks the cells of the trachea (windpipe), leading to bleeding and difficulty breathing, and ultimately death. This is maybe one of the Worst and most Devastating diseases known to backyard chickens. It can destroy your whole strain, in a matter of days, and the sad part is, most don’t take proper precautions. We are going to talk about the causes and symptoms of this disease, and how to prevent exposure. There’s a lot of great nuggets of information that I know you will not want to miss.
Ep95 – The Power of Sublines
In this episode of Bred to Perfection, we are talking sublines, and why they are so important for the creation and improvement of your strain. We have mentioned sublines in our podcasts many times, but we still get questions about sublines and why they are so important. Let’s see if we can shed some light on this very important practice.
Ep94 – The Most Common Mistakes of Backyard Breeders with Peter Brown – Part 2
In this episode of Bred to Perfection, we are talking with Peter Brown, also known as the Chicken Doctor, about the most common mistakes made by backyard breeders. We cover a great number of topics that are aimed at helping our struggling beginners. It is our hope that by listening to this episode, you can keep from making these same mistakes. These include worming too often, over medicating, unnecessary vaccinations, poor biosecurity practices, poor feeding and nutrition habits, and much more. There’s a lot of great nuggets of information that I know you will not want to miss.
Ep93 – Coaching Call with Dr. Rachel Potter
In this episode of Bred to Perfection, we are talking with Dr. Rachel Potter, who is a member of the Breeders Academy. Rachel is a breeder of Modern Game Bantams, and breeds a number of varieties, such as Birchens, Silver Blues, and Splash, and she’s looking to create strain with each variety. We talk about where in the Founders Program she is with each strain, what are the next steps she should take, and the future of her fowl. We address many topics concerning breeding and creating a strain that I know you will learn from, including which traits are dominant and recessive, and which traits are polygenic, and what that means to the breeder. We also talk about breeding methods, such as inbreeding, line-breeding and whether or not double mating is the right choice. There’s a lot of great nuggets of information that I know you will not want to miss.