Bred to Perfection

In this episode, I will show you how I learned these 3 very important laws. Selective Breeding and Systematic Breeding Programs Evolutionary Biology And Genetic Inheritance As you will see, there is more to breeding than just putting two birds together. And, there's more to breeding than just breeding "Best to the Best". That's why I created the Breeder's Academy, to show new and established breeders a different way of breeding. Like Math, there are many ways to solve a math problem, just like there are many ways to breed chickens. But, in the Breeders Academy I show them how to put many different methods of breeding together and how and when to apply each method. This episode is packed with great information, and one you do not want to miss. I know you will enjoy this episode, and learn a lot too.

This is going to be a great episode. Today we are talking with Peter Brown, known as the Chicken Doctor. We are going to discuss the Most Common Diseases most backyard breeders face. There are many pathogens, viral and bacterial that threaten our fowl. I thought it would be a good idea to quickly address as many of them as possible, so that the backyard breeder can recognize them and hopefully prevent exposure to these diseases.

Join us for a very special conversation with Matt Hemmer, who is a breeder of the Erminettes. This is a very unique breed, both in a historical sense and as a genetic phenomenon. In fact, the Erminettes are the only breed of chicken where the color of plumage is based on a co-dominant factor. No other breed of chicken has this trait. Matt is going to discuss the history of the breed, the characteristics and genetics of the breed, and the future of the breed. After the show, make sure to click the links below to find out more about this amazing breed. https://theamericanerminette.weebly.com https://www.smokybuttesranch.com/chickens/erminettes/ This episode is packed with great information, and one you do not want to miss. I know you will enjoy this episode, and learn a lot too.

In this episode, we are talking with Dr. Rodrigo Gallardo from UC Davis. He will talk about their new Gamefowl Wellness Program, which is designed to help backyard breeder, specially, breeders of American Games, to raise and breed heather birds, and to protect their birds from future outbreaks of Newcastle's Disease. There's a lot of good information packed into this episode that I know you will not want to miss.

There is a lot of confusion in this area of breeding. So much so, that many breeders are not able to produce high quality strains. They purchase birds from a reputable breeder, and are confused when the fowl they produce are not like the original breeder's fowl. We've all seen it, strains change when they're moved to different locations. The question is, are these changes temporary or permanent? And, what can we do about it? The environment can have a direct effect on the phenotype of your strain. For example, the weather can turn from hot to cold, or cold to hot, and go from dry to wet, and nutrition can affect growth and development, disease can weaken the strain and kill important individuals, and poor management can cause disease and stress. But, none of these factors will have a direct effect on the strains genotype. This is an important concept, and has an effect on your selection and the improvement of your strains. For example, if we are not seeing their true value and potential, due to a poor environment, this prevents us from selecting properly. They may appear "better or worse" than their true genetic value, depending on whether they receive a favorable or unfavorable environment. This is especially true when it comes to their form, function or beauty. This episode is packed with great information, and one you do not want to miss. I know you will enjoy this episode, and learn a lot too.

Here's a few tips that will help you to get through the Summer Months in great shape. Join Kenny Troiano and Peter Brown as they discuss ways to beat the heat, and help you and your chickens get through the hot Summer months. As you know, Summer is almost here, and the heat is on the way. This is a challenging time of year for us breeders. We're fighting the heat and humidity, the stress and disease, as well as the bugs and parasites. If you are looking for ways to deal with the heat of summer, this show is for you.

Old Wives' Tales and Superstitions that Hold us Back This episode is about "The Misconceptions about Breeding." These are popular misconceptions that tend to hold most breeders back. And can prevent you from creating anything special or superior or great. When I talk with the average breeder, I find that they are very reliant on "Old Wives Tales" and "Superstitions." Nothing is based on empirical evidence or scientific facts. I recently did a coaching call with one of my members of the Breeders Academy, and most of his questions were based on many of the misconceptions we see around breeding. I spent most of that call clearing up those misconceptions. And, he's not alone. These are misconceptions that are shared by a majority of breeders, beginners and veterans alike. After that call, I gave it some thought. And decided that we should do an episode of Bred to Perfection, and address them. So, it's my intention and hope that we can clear up many of these misconceptions, and change the way we understand breeding, and improve the way we breed and raise our fowl. I understand that this is going to be very controversial, and is going to rub many breeders the wrong way. It's going to challenge what you think you already know, and ask you to think differently, and hopefully we can change the way you breed your fowl. Special Note: Most of what we are going to talk about will be about American and Old English Games, but can be applied to other breeds as well.

In this episode, we are celebrating our 100th Episode of Bred to Perfection. When we asked our listeners their thoughts on how to make this episode special, the response we got was they wanted to hear more about us, Kenny and Nancy Troiano. Well, our 3 daughters, Megan, Samantha, and Tawny grabbed the mics and did it for us. They talked about our lives' and what it was like to be our daughters. I believe you will find this episode to be interesting, funny, and at times touching. You are going to learn many things about the Troiano's that you did not know before, and give you greater insight into our lives. So, sit back and enjoy the show.

In this episode of Bred to Perfection, we will talk about the 3 most dangerous breeders. These are breeders who use breeding practices that are detrimental to the breed as a whole. These include those who believe in combining the traits of two separate and distinct "breeds", such as American Games and Aseels, each having contrasting characteristics and traits. Those that think they can mix the traits of two separate strains, such as Hatch and Sweater, and produce offspring expressing the best of both strains. And those who believe that Performance overrides all other factors. This is a problem that concerns me very much, as it should concern you as well. Breeders who think and practice in this manner will never reach the statue of Master Breeder. Without the proper knowledge and knowhow to put these principles to practice, they will never reach the highest levels of success.

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.