Hello everyone! So, are you looking into buying yourself your first chooks? Or are you just wanting to try some different breeds? Well today we will discuss…
• Should I hatch my eggs?
• Are chicks the best to start?
•Hybrids or heritage, which ones are worth it?
•Please note• Most if not all of this information is from trial and error rather than google search’s, this means that it will be from my experience not necessarily yours but the information will be tailored to different circumstances such as climate and expenses.
*Should I hatch my eggs*
*Are chicks worth it*
Hatching your eggs is great enjoyment for the Whole family! However it does come at a price…
Incubators I would recommend a Brinsea incubator for a multiple of reasons, such as temperature and relative humidity control. By buying an EX model it will control the humidity itself which is crucial when hatching eggs! I’ve never had an issue with mine not reading the correct humidity or temps, they are very reliable. However they will set you back around 300-400 pounds 378-505. USD. Which can is expensive.
Also when hatching you eggs you should be mindful that you will end up with cockerels! Which if you don’t want/cannot have can be tricky to re-home and often have to be culled. You tell roosters apart by about the age of 12weeks as their combs will be larger than the pullets and they’ll develop saddle feathers.
Another downside to hatching eggs would be that they require different food for a while. As well as different housing, such as a brooder and heat plate until that are fully feathered by which point they can go outside
Starter food: I usually feed for about 12 weeks, it has a high protein content for the chicks to develop
Grower food:I feed this from 12 weeks to 19 weeks
Layers pellets: 19weeks for whole life- I highly recommend the layers not the mash as when they eat the pellet they get everything they need whereas when fed a mash the birds are likely to pick through it and not get what they need to make eggs(which is what we all want)
So in conclusion that’s a quick overview of hatching eggs and chicks they are a great way to get the family involved but can be expensive if your only going to do it once.
*Hybrid or heritage, which ones worth it*
Yes infact, I was young at one point
. When I first started keeping chickens I started with a couple of hybrids, they were laying within two weeks of us buying them it was brilliant! They were lovely hens and very friendly, as they were a hybrid they are on the larger side.I had an egg every day off them for about 2years and then one of them prolapsed which is a very common issue with hybrids as they often exhaust themselves by laying so many eggs. Also unfortunately hybrids have a very short life at only around 3 years old from my experience whereas heritage breeds from experience live up to about 8 however I did have one that’s lived up to 11 and was perfectly healthy.
Heritage breed are a good option for those who want to keep pets that will live and adapt with you they have a shorter laying season but will lay the same amount of eggs as the hybrids, over the course of their life, the main difference between the two is that heritage breeds give themselves a natural break over winter whereas hybrids don’t which is why problems are more common with hybrids.
Furthermore heritage breeds can go broody meaning they will sit on a clutch of eggs and hatch them!
Note:not all hens will do this hybrid or heritage, it just depends on that particular bird, and the eggs will not hatch if you don’t have a rooster.
So what breeds would I recommend well:
Cream Legbar: lovely hens lay vibrant blue eggs- Online they are described as flighty- I’m my experience they are not they are just very excitable little hens and can take off easily as they are lighter. Have a distinctive salmon pink/hazel chest and a large head tufts. They often lay 250-200 eggs a year and do not often go broody. Hardy chooks good for hot and cold weather.
Buff Orpington’s:Huge chickens that love to be cuddled they lay pale brown eggs and make great brood mothers. Can lay up to 280 to 200 eggs a year. I would only ever get the old English breed not the American strain as the American strain often has characteristics that do not fit the OEO. Also well suited to cold and don’t do well in hot weather due to lots of feathering.
Now some hybrids/mixed breeds
Easter eggers: stunning looking hens can come in a range of feather colours from beatle black to baby blue, from hazel brown to mottled white and brown. (Many more available) some even have head tufts and depending on what they are crossed with some can have ear muffs. They lay up to 320 to 280 eggs a year that are often green but can be pink brown or blue.
Olive eggers: I’ve never owned one myself but my friends do and they are striking hens with black and brown feathering they lay Olive green eggs which occur when you cross a blue layer x dark brown layer
This is what my friends olive eggers look like, and this is one of their second generation eggs look like the higher the generation the darker the egg
Sorry about the white spots (lighting issue) but these are some of their gorgeous eggs!
Such as Cream Legbar x Marans =olive eggers
Fun fact even when talking about one marans you always say the s as it is derived from the French!
So there you have it folks an article on what breeds id recommended really go with your gut, chickens are hardy creatures and are resilient.
Happy chicken keeping everyone Spring is on the way! So don’t get those feathers in a ruffle
Many thanks
Kind regards
@6-Hens-and-Me
(Please do not hesitate to contact me if you ever need any help
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