We have EAST AND WEST GERMAN PHOENIX, KUROGASHIWA,
SHAMO & OHIKI lines at CASA ROCCA.
But where to put them all? Our main coop is a
rather small house with 3 voliere, each divided. In the breeding season,
almost up until placing the rings on the birds, it gets a bit crowded. Chicken
housing can be rather simple, as long as they have fresh air without drafts,
lot of light and, if they are to be housed, enough moving room. This is
an extremely important factor if one wants to have birds in show condition.
If the strain of Phoenix or Yokohama has exceptionally long tails, one should
consider having a stall per rooster! My personal preference is a tail at
about 3 - 3.5 feet (100 - 120 cm), and feathers a little harder than many
Phoenix and OnagadoriXPhoenix lines. The harder the feather, the more resistant
it has been to wear and tear - because I like to have my birds roaming free
through the fields, woods and small pastures around our house.
The beginning - an old pig stall.
This is my little 7 year-old - an Ohiki enthusiast!
- helping out with the construction of a chicken coop. (See next pic below.)
We added height and a new roof, placing 200 year-old
tiles that we dug up on the porperty, on top of new corregated eternite
sheets. Three large cages were constructed around it. It is on the north
side of the house, so protection and some heating in winter is necessary.
A crowded moment in the breeding season. In my
work with the Black Phoenix (see below), I have crossed different white
Phoenix lines with my Blacks in order to improve the sickles and, most importantly,
the saddles. To me, a top-class Phoenix MUST have saddle that touch the
ground - or miss it by millimetres! Here one can see the effect of dominant
white (as in Leghorn) when crossed with black. The splashed and dirty white
birds in this shot are from such crosses.
