You are perfectly fine to inbreed your chickens, particularly if you are only doing it in the short-term. In fact, in animal husbandry, this practice is actually widely used and positively regarded.
There are quite a few genetic problems that can arise from repeated or one-time inbreeding, especially as the two relatives that are breeding become closer in genetics. However, in livestock like chickens, the problems are reduced. You are perfectly fine to inbreed your chickens, particularly if you are only doing it in the short-term.
Are chickens morally offended by inbreeding?
As you’ve noticed, chickens are not morally offended by inbreeding and neither are most animals, in fact for some animals it’s absolutely the norm. In either case, in or out breeding, you should not allow poor quality birds (whatever *you* rate quality on) to continue their line.
Inbred offspring is better for the species than no offspring at all, but its hardly ideal. If there are any deformities in the chicks they don’t survive the harrassment of their fellow chicks. Chickens it seems believe in euthanasia, survival of the fittest, etc.
What is inbreeding in chickens?
Inbreeding is how the different chicken breeds were developed. It is how champion show birds are developed. It’s not as bad as you might think. Some people will say don’t breed brothers to sisters but it is OK to breed fathers to daughters.
While reading we ran into the inquiry “What is the effect of inbreeding on hatchability in chickens?”.
Viability of hens showed substantial inbreeding effects, with Japanese quail again having the most pronounced depression of almost 20 percent, and chickens at least with about five percent. It should also be noted that maternal inbreeding was only important for hatchability, but relevant results are not shown for other traits.
How many hens to breed for inbreeding?
Inbreeding is generally not utilized unless you are working with quality stock.
Does it matter if livestock inbreed?
The short answer is no, it doesn’t matter if they inbreed. As you’re about to see, this is not something to worry about it. The only time you should start worrying is after 5 or 6 generations of continuous inbreeding. What is Inbreeding as it Refers to Livestock?