Red Cuckoo - NEW COLOUR 

Welcome to my website devoted to my Orpington poultry.

I hope you enjoy looking through all the pages on the site and if you have any questions please

 don't hesitate to contact me.

Located in Bracknell in Berkshire, with easy access from the M3, M4 and M25 you will always receive a warm welcome should you wish to visit.

 

Many thanks

Keith Gibbons

  

MY ORPINGTONS AT TREETOPS

                                                                              

( Lavender, Delaware and Mottled large fowl )

 My Orpingtons enjoy as much of a free range life as is practical to keep them safe.

They are housed in small breeding groups in 25 metre by 10 metre grass runs so they have access to fresh air, fresh grass and this way have plenty of exercise to keep them fit and active.

They are friendly, well handled and treated as part of the family. They are fed on breeders pellets with an afternoon treat of mixed corn.

They are cleaned out every day, regularly wormed, have a weekly addition of poultry spice and cider vinegar and love nothing better than a treat of fresh greens, apples and meal worms.

KEITHSORPS BREEDING PROGRAMME

My love of Orpington’s has grown and developed over the years and I would describe my flock as an obsessive indulgence. My aim at Keithsorps is to bring together the best Orpington bloodlines available and continue to selectively breed quality stock in both bantam and large fowl.

GUIDE TO USING THE WEBSITE

The site is changing and growing all the time. To the left of the page I have given each colour that I keep its own tab and I have tried to include as much detail about the birds as possible and every photo on the site is of my own birds that either I have bred or purchased. At the bottom of each colour page are sub pages that contain relevant information for that colour.There is also an information tab with a few interesting Orpington facts.

 

STOCK AND HATCHING EGGS FOR SALE

There are tabs at the top of the page detailing stock and hatching eggs availability. Hatching eggs are for sale during the season but individual colour availability varies from week to week.

I normally have stock for sale throughout the year of both bantam and large fowl but individual colours can be very popular so once again availability varies.

VISITING KEITHSORPS

 You will always receive a warm welcome at Treetops  and I am very proud of my birds and love nothing more than showing them off but visiting is by appointment only .

  

NEW ORPINGTON COLOURS FOR 2012

As well as the standard colours Keithsorps now keeps one of the largest collections of rare Orpington colours in the UK.

At the forefront of establishing new colours and bringing together some of the best bloodlines available.

 

CHOCOLATE CUCKOO LARGE FOWL

 

CHOCOLATE SILVER BIRCHEN ORPINGTON BANTAM

 

BLUE SALMON ORPINGTON BANTAM

CHOCOLATE LACED WITH WHITE ORPINGTON BANTAM

  

BLUE JUBILEE ORPINGTON BANTAM

  

WILL ORPINGTONS SUIT YOU ? 

Orpingtons are a majestic and proud bird with a grace and beauty that fits their stature. In a group of poultry they stand out as the knobility of fowl.

They have a placid nature and are not easily spooked and are easily hand tamed so make great pets or an impressive addition to any flock.

They lay between 120 to 160 medium sized eggs per year and are reasonably hardy so can cope with the British winters although due to their pofuse feathering they do not like getting wet.

They are a large soft feathered breed so the best way to look at it is one Orpington is equal to two normal sized hens when working out space.

Being on the placid side plenty of room for exercise is important , low entrance ramps and perches and a large enough entrance hole to the poultry house are all things that should be considered before purchasing your orps.

Although they are supposed to be a non flying breed i would suggest trimming their wing feathers as mine treat their runs like a run way and with a good bounce can clear a 3 foot fence.

  

 

ORPINGTON THOUGHTS !

 The Orpington has been progressing and changing for well over 100 years and as with all domestic creatures man continues to try to alter and manipulate certain traits to reach a desired goal. Every breeder has an idea of what they feel is the perfect specimen and depending on who has influence at the time, this tends to set the standards as to what people decide to breed. The poultry show world is no different to any other group of collective opinions and subtle changes to a birds characteristics are decided by the collective as desirable and this then becomes the norm. 

In my opinion variety is the spice of life, is improvement of a colour variety that has been around for over 100 years possible or is it only possible to try to emulate certain traits that are deemed desirable at the time. William Cook created the Orpington as the ultimate all round utility bird but the modern Orpington bears no resemblance to the birds Cook first introduced in the 1800’s.

But the modern Orpington is truly a thing of beauty, by careful selection the creation of a bird of such flowing contours with substance and grace has developed into  what is known as “ The Orpington shape “. The aim of the Orpington enthusiasts to maintain this desired look is a continual struggle but this enthusiasm for perfection has kept the Orpington at the forefront of the poultry world.  The Orpington continues to be the most popular breed of choice for both the showman and the garden poultry keeper.

 Apart from the standard Orpington colours that many dedicated breeders and showmen have spent many years preserving and perfecting for us to marvel at, enjoy and possibly purchase there are an endless list of new and rare colours that await enthusiastic breeders to take on and perfect. These non standard varieties are many many generations away from reaching the ideal type but hey Rome wasn’t built in a day.

I have travelled the country to purchase different birds, have blood lines from Bob Follows, Pricilla Middleton, David Pownell, Will Burdett and many others. I have spoken to breeders who have spent years developing a strain and would never out cross and other breeders who constantly introduce new blood, Showmen that scorn the non standard colours and visionaries that look to the untried colours and see the future.

  

BOB FOLLOWS AND MYSELF - AUGUST 2011

But above all I have met many wonderful people that all share a great love and fascination for the truly beautiful Orpington Fowl.

Details of all the Oroingtons I keep are listed under their colours on the left hand side tabs and with over 1000 chicks hatched each year I always have a large selection of both Large and Bantam Orpingtons available to purchase.

Hatching eggs are available during the breeding season and are priced individualy enabling you to mix and match a variety of colours in one hatch.