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Wyandotte

The Wyandotte originated in the U.S. in the 1870's. Wyandottes were made in Massachusetts,...
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General Information

Breed Purpose
Dual Purpose
Comb
Rose
Broodiness
Frequent
Climate Tolerance
Cold
Egg Productivity
Medium
Egg Size
Large
Egg Color
Brown
Breed Temperament
Friendly, easily handled, calm, bears confinement well, quiet and docile
Breed Colors/Varieties
Golden laced, silver laced, colubian, buff, partrige, silver penciled, blue, and blue laced red
Breed Size
Large Fowl
APA/ABA Class
American
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The Wyandotte aka American Sebright, were developed in the United states in the 1870’s, in and around the New York area. The first color developed was the Silver Laced variety and they were originally called American Sebrights. The name was changed to Wyandotte (after the indigenous Wyandot people), when they were admitted into the APA in 1883. They were exported to Europe around the same time.

Wyandottes are a calm breed in general and have very nice temperaments. They are good with people and generally get along well in a mixed flock. They are decent foragers, though they do not tend to wander far and are not good flyers. They are extremely cold hardy. The hens are good layers of light brown eggs, good winter layers, will set, and are good mothers. The cockerels make a good table bird. Today they are an extremely popular dual purpose breed and very popular among small flock owners looking for a colorful winter layer.

They have a flat rose comb and bright red face. Today they come in many feather colors and patterns, with over thirty found in Europe, the beautiful Blue Laced Red and Silver Laced are probably the two most popular colors in general. They are very popular as exhibition birds. Many breeds have been used to produce the Wyandotte we know today, including Brahma, Cochin, Hamburg, and Plymouth Rocks. They are also found in bantam size.

It was removed from The Livestock Conservancy's Priority list in 2016 and is no longer considered endangered.

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Wyandotte egg

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Wyandotte chick

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Wyandotte juvenile

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Wyandotte rooster and hens

For more info on Wyandottes and their owners' and breeders' experiences, see our breed discussion here:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chicken-breed-focus-wyandotte.1135563/
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Latest reviews

Fluster Cluck Acres
Fiesty, fun, & noisy
Pros: spunky personality
they keep maturing cockerels in line
healthy
intelligent
eggs have a pinkish bloom
Cons: hens are noisy
they can be bullies to more submissive birds
hard to handle
cute fluffy bums get messy
This review is based off of my 5 Wyandottes compared to other breeds that I have had more than one of (Barnevelders, Marans, Orpingtons, Hybrids, RIRs, & Bielefelders). There does seem to be some variance amongst color varieties. My silver & gold laced birds are most similiar in personality. My blue laced red had some commonalities with them, but my lavender has NOTHING in common with the other 4.

My wyandottes are spunky birds who are always around seeing what you're up to. They are personable, inquisitive, and enjoy being around people. However, they are harder to touch/handle than other breeds.

The hens are LOUD when they are displeased with something (another hen in the nest box or getting fed nonpreffered treats). They make a distinct sound that is different from other breeds I've had. Even the mix-breed offspring of my SLWs make this noise. I find it amusing, but in a residential setting it might be problematic. Interestingly, there egg song is not that loud. It's mostly just when they're complaining.

They are a dominate breed and don't back down in a fight. They can be bullies and are less tolerant of submissive or easily victimized birds (young birds, birds in recovery, molting, etc...). They are a good flock fit if you don't have any particularly "needy" birds in your flock. They also really keep young cockerels in line. They do not put up with hormone driven antics and will defend the other hens from these cockerels. In these situations I find the wyandotte hens to be more protective of the flock than the mature roosters.

My Wynadottes have not had health problems compared to my other breeds. I also believe they are more intelligent than my other breeds. They are intuitive and seem to figure things out that the other birds can't. They are resilient and adaptable birds. Their personalities are so strong that I see it come through in mixed breed birds that are only 1/2 and 1/4 wyandotte.

Lastly, I find the eggs of wyandotte (and mixes) to have the richest yolks. I don't know if this is a breed thing or an indication that they're better foragers, but their yolks are delicous.

*MY BLRW was less personable than the Silver & Gold. She was only loud when singing her egg song. She was such a bully that she is no longer with us. My lavender wyandotte I'm pretty sure is just a lavendar orpington with a shaved down comb, lol. She's 100% different from the laced varieties.*
Purchase Price
$4-$18 as chicks
Purchase Date
I've gotten a few over the years, 2019-2023.
talkinboutchickens
Pros: very sweet, great personality, fantastic with other chickens
Cons: none
My little hen Vicky was so sweet, she had a special bond with my black sexlink Winnie. They did everything together. Vicky had a lot of personality. She was kinda overweight either that or her legs were just far apart at birth.
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I'm not really sure how many eggs she laid because the color of her eggs were the same color as all the rest of the eggs.
Purchase Price
$4.00 at a local breeder
Purchase Date
March 2019
avjudge
Least favorite of my small flock
Pros: Decent enough layer
Cons: Prone to lay outside nest box (dropped from roost or in run)
Strong membrane makes cracking eggs messy
Not particularly friendly (esp. compared to Golden Comet)
Two of our six chickens - our first batch, now reduced to five by a sudden death - are silver-laced Wyandottes. I much prefer our Golden Comets and our Olive Egger. The Wyandottes are “OK” but I only use their eggs when I don’t care about unbroken yolks as they’re likely to break getting the egg out of the shell. I’m also getting tired of checking the run to make sure I didn’t miss an egg there. When we replenish our flock we’ll be getting something else.
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Comments

gg706
Thank You for the info! I had been considering just getting some hatchery birds. Glad I read your review! Thanks!
 
chloezoebob101
my wyandotte is exactly the opposite. she used to be loud but now she is quiet and she does not run away when i get close to her, only when i bend down to pick her up she nonchalantly walks away
 
riverpilot69
That is a good to know. Come to think of it, I have never seen any of my Wynnies peck either. My BSL's are the same way. My bullies are my red production pullets.
 
chookhead
is there really a difference or is that just maybe a coincidence ??? because i want more eggs and more broodiness
 
minichic
I had a similar thing happen with one of my four SLW's from Meyer. She is sort of marked like a Columbian but with black dots on the end of her feathers. I must have your pullet's sister! My other three girls have the normal lacing. None are what you'd call super friendly; at least when compared with my Buff Orpingtons.
 
Chicks Galore3
I got them for the exact same reason! But to find they're sweet and sensitive is what i was hoping for! (i got them for eggs, but hoped for a few pet ones as well)
 
Chickiee
So nice to hear this... we getting our first chicks in March and one is a Silver-laced Wyandotte. I was looking for gentle breeds that would be good with our pre-schooler. So excited! :)
 
LAChickens
Mine are docile, and never try to peck, the Cochin and Brahmas are as well. The Cornish are my brats and probably wouldn't be great with little kids. Our Barred Rocks are a little pecky but mostly inquisitive. A friend of mine raises Silkies and Seramas; his daughter is about 4 years old and ALWAYS seems to be carrying around one of their chickens, it may just be a matter of the birds adapting. What other breeds are you getting?
 
NovaAman
I LOVE LOVE LOVE my SLW and GLWs. Yes, they are quieter birds. They are also nice heavy dual purpose, so the roosters are never bad. They are always good, whether in the yard or on the table. My hens lay lovely large brown eggs. They free range, so food consumption for me is about 100# a month for them and the ducks. They ducks waste more. But I w would recommend these fine birds to anyone who needs a quieter flock. And they are lovely to look at.
 
La Casa de Pollo
I like mine as far as laying but she picks the feathers out of several of my others and has ruined their feathers and tails....so I am not sure if I will get this kind again (SLW).
 
Dawna
I just bought 5 SLW pullet chicks. I already have 2 Barred Plymouth Rocks ( 1 is a rooster), 1 Rhode Island Red and 2 Ameracaunas. I sure hope they don't pick on each other when I get them all together. I really like the BPR, but decided to try to SLW instead.
 
Chickgirl201040
we got 5 pullets and 2 roos and we had them in a babygate pen and all but 2 pullets and 2 roos ( looking for a home for both roos) lived and the hen is really sweet
 

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Category
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