Characteristics of productive dual-purpose poultry breeds and breed groups

Dual-purpose breeds of poultry are the optimal choice for farms that combine egg and meat production. Poultry of this type is distinguished by its hardiness, good adaptability to local conditions, and stable productivity. Proper selection of a breed and the use of interbreed crossing allow for a significant increase in the overall profitability of a poultry house.

• Egg production of Moscow breed hybrids — over 300 eggs per year
• Weight of Pantsirevskaya breed roosters — 3.8—4.0 kg
• Egg weight of Moscow hens — 60—62 g
• Live weight of New Hampshire hens — 2.7 kg

New Hampshires are valued for their high early maturity, rapid feathering, and stable egg production. This poultry has a long body, a deep, broad head with an upright leaf-shaped comb, a convex chest, and light brown plumage with darker flight feathers. In breeding practice, they are used for crossing with Leghorns, which produces highly productive egg-laying hybrids.

Yerevan hens were bred specifically for regions with a hot and dry climate by crossing local poultry with Rhode Island Reds and Australorps. The majority of individuals have red-fawn plumage; black hens or black ones with a yellow mane are encountered less frequently. On the basis of this breed, lines with increased productivity have been created and are used in hybridization.

Kyrgyz hens are a hardy breed group with barred plumage and a yellow mane, obtained by crossing Plymouth Rocks, New Hampshires, and Leghorns. When creating the group, breeders carried out selection and pairing of crossbreeds to obtain a distinct dual-purpose type. Currently, breeding work with this poultry is focused on further improving its productive qualities.

Efficiency of crossing and productivity of breed groups

Moscow hens possess an elongated body, a convex chest, and black plumage (roosters also have yellow-brown feathers on the shoulders and lower back). The breed shows excellent viability under various housing conditions. Individual breeding lines yield 220 eggs or more, and upon interline crossing with Leghorns or the Russian White breed, the productivity of the hybrids increases up to 240 eggs, reaching over 300 eggs per year in the best layers.

Pantsirevskaya hens are large birds with white or black plumage, obtained from crossing Leghorns, New Hampshires, and Rhode Island Reds. The breed combines high live weight with good egg production. This poultry is actively used in crossing for the production of broilers.

Poltava Clay hens are distinguished by high viability in temperate climate conditions. The poultry has an elongated, medium-sized body and a fawn (clay) color of plumage with dark ends of the flight and tail feathers. At experimental stations, constant breeding work is underway to improve the productivity of egg lines of this breed.

Local hens, raised in various climatic zones, are maximally adapted to local housing conditions. They are distinguished by good vitality, lay large eggs, and possess valuable meat qualities. Upon transitioning to improved feeding rations and directed selection of productive individuals, local poultry is capable of sharply increasing indicators of egg production, total weight, and egg weight.

As a result of the study of local hens in the Voronezh region, conducted under the guidance of Prof. V. V. Ferdinandov, it was shown that in the central black-soil regions, there are large groups of hens that differ by having higher live weight and egg weight compared to the main poultry population. Nizhnedevitsk hens, bred by peasants in the Voronezh region, weighed 2.5 kg, roosters — 3 kg or more. Egg production in improved conditions constitutes 150 eggs per year. In Ukraine, "ushanka" (earmuffed) hens were widespread, named due to a peculiarity of their exterior — tufts of feathers covering their ear holes. From the best of them, 160—180 eggs weighing 57—59 g are obtained per year.

The Yurlovskaya breed of hens was developed by peasants in the Kursk and Oryol regions, possibly using the crossing of local hens with game fowl and others. Selection and pairing were aimed at breeding poultry of great mass that lays large eggs.

Yurlovskaya poultry is large, with a fairly massive body and a broad chest that juts forward, especially in roosters. The muscles of the chest, legs, and neck are very developed. The head is broad and deep with prominent brow ridges; the beak is short and curved downwards; the comb is small. The neck is fairly thick; the back is broad; the wings are small. The plumage is dense and varies in color: silver, red, white, variegated, etc. Yurlovskaya hens are perfectly adapted to housing in local conditions. The hens weigh 2.5—3 kg, roosters — 3.5—4 kg. Egg production without directed selection is 120—150, in the best hens — 230 eggs.

Livny chickens were developed by improving the local poultry that had long been raised in the Livny and adjacent districts of the Oryol Region. The Livny district had long been known for the high quality of its poultry products. Hens weigh 2.5—3 kg, and cocks weigh 3.5—4 kg. Egg production is 150 eggs or more, with an egg weight of 60—70 g or more. The best hen at the TSKhA experimental station laid 301 eggs per year.

Yurlov, Livny, and Nizhnedevitsk chickens have been displaced by other breeds, but their significance is great in the development of domestic poultry breeds. Using Yurlov and Livny chickens in crosses with highly productive breeds served as the basis for developing Moscow, Kuchin, Jubilee, Zagorsk, and other breed groups. The new breed groups inherited good weight, robust health, and disease resistance from the Yurlov and Livny chickens.

Our local chickens have not been sufficiently studied. Undoubtedly, in a number of regions, there is poultry possessing valuable productive qualities that can be developed in the process of breeding work. In other countries, there are also many local chickens with valuable economic traits. For example, in experiments, crosses were conducted with productive breeds of chickens such as the Bulgarian Shumen, Hungarian Yellow, Polish Green-legged, and others. The hybrids are characterized by high viability and good egg or meat productivity. Old French, English, German, Italian, and other national chicken breeds, which now survive only in small numbers, were also famous for their valuable qualities. The study and improvement of the most productive national breeds and local poultry, currently being conducted in various countries, are necessary to maintain the required diversity of the gene pool in poultry farming.

North Caucasian Bronze and White turkey breeds. Turkeys have long been raised by the population of the North Caucasus. They were well adapted to pasture conditions, but their average weight did not exceed 3—4.5 kg, and egg production was 20—30 eggs per year. By crossing local turkeys with Broad-breasted turkeys on collective farms in the Stavropol Territory, a new breed was obtained — the North Caucasian Bronze. The birds were crossed until hybrids of the [[generation were obtained. Subsequently, the hybrid turkeys were bred "in-and-in" under conditions of improved feeding and management, with selection and pairing of producers that combined high meat qualities and good egg production with adaptation to local conditions.

North Caucasian turkeys are a large (compared to local ones) poultry with a more pronounced meat type. They have a long body; a small head; a broad and convex chest; and well-developed muscles. They generally have black plumage with a bronze sheen or white plumage.

Adult turkeys weigh 6—7 kg, and toms weigh 12—14 kg. Turkey poults grow rapidly and possess high viability. Egg production is over 90 eggs per year; the best layers yield over 150 eggs. Highly productive lines of North Caucasian turkeys have been developed by the State Breeding Center and the North Caucasian Poultry Experimental Station in the Georgievsk District of the Stavropol Territory.

The North Caucasian Bronze turkey breed served as the basis for the development of the new North Caucasian White breed in further breeding work when crossing with White Broad-breasted turkeys.

Turkeys of the North Caucasian White breed are widely used for meat production; at 120 days of age, crosses of the lines produce birds that weigh about 3.8 kg (females) and 5.5—6 kg (males) with meat

of high quality and white-pink skin with no traces of black feathers on the carcass. The feed consumption per 1 kg of live weight is 3.6—3.8 kg.

Further breeding work with turkeys is aimed at improving meat qualities and egg production while maintaining high fertility and viability. North Caucasian turkeys are one of the most common breeds in our country.

Bronze breed. The homeland of these turkeys is the USA. The poultry is large with a broad, convex chest; a long, wide, and flat back; a long keel of the breastbone; and high, fairly thick legs. The head and neck have skin growths of changing color — from red to bluish-white. Their plumage is black with a copper-bronze sheen. On the flight feathers of the wing, there are white or grayish-white transverse stripes; the tail coverts are black with brown transverse stripes and bronze marks at the ends; the tips of the feathers are white.

Turkeys weigh 9 kg, and toms weigh 16 kg. After fattening, carcasses are obtained with a large amount of tender, white, juicy meat. The egg production of turkeys raised on our farms is 80—90 eggs. The best layers produce over 100 eggs per year. Turkeys are good sitters, but the manifestation of the brooding instinct reduces egg production.

In the USA, Broad-breasted Bronze turkeys were developed, which are distinguished by their large weight: females weigh 9—11 kg, and males weigh 17—20 kg. The poultry is called broad-breasted due to the very good development of the pectoral muscles. This breed was used in crosses during the development of the North Caucasian Bronze breed and is significant for broiler production.

The Moscow White breed group was developed by crossing local white Dutch and American Beltsville Small White turkeys at the Berezki state farm in the Moscow region. Meat qualities are well-defined; the breast is broad, and the leg muscles are well-developed. Males weigh about 12 kg, females — 6 kg. At 110–120 days of age, turkey poults weigh 3.5–4 kg. Egg production is 100 eggs or more. Turkeys of this group are bred and used for industrial meat production at the Starinskaya poultry farm in the Kiev region and in some other farms.

Tikhoretsk Black turkeys were developed through the selection and breeding of local turkeys at the Tikhoretsk State Breeding Center in the Krasnodar Territory. Meat conformation is well-defined; males weigh an average of 9 kg, females 4–7 kg, with egg production of 70–80 eggs or more. They are bred in the Krasnodar Territory.