75adcf56_StudlyDudly.jpeg
75adcf56_StudlyDudly.jpeg

Java

The Java is a critically endangered American breed. The breed comes from unknown Asian origins...
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General Information

Breed Purpose
Dual Purpose
Comb
Single
Broodiness
Frequent
Climate Tolerance
All Climates
Egg Productivity
Medium
Egg Size
Large
Egg Color
Brown
Breed Temperament
Friendly, Calm, Quiet, Docile
Breed Colors/Varieties
The Java can be found in black, white and mottled. Pictures courtesy of Chickndaddy.
Breed Size
Large Fowl
75adcf56_StudlyDudly.jpeg

The Java breed, which shares a name with the island of Java, was developed in the U.S. from chickens of unknown Asian extraction. It is one of the oldest American chickens, forming the basis for many other breeds, but is critically endangered today. The Java breed is the second oldest American breed, after the Dominique. The breed was first mentioned in print in 1835, but it is thought to have been present well before this time.

The Java breed was first recognized officially by acceptance into the APA's Standard of Perfection in 1883. The white, black, and mottled varieties were all originally described in the Standard, but the white was removed in 1910, because it was thought to be too similar to the White Plymouth Rock. The white variety eventually disappeared in the 1950s. There was also an Auburn variety, which was the basis for the Rhode Island Red, but it disappeared by1870.

With its dual purpose, great foraging, great laying, friendly and docile temperament, the Java is perfect for the small backyard flock.

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Java chicks

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Java juvenile

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Java hen

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Java rooster

For more information on this breed and their owners' and breeders' experiences with them, see our breed discussion here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chicken-breed-focus-java.1096818/
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Latest reviews

WindyLookout
Pros: Friendly. Will greet u at the door to get picked up. Loves to chill on your lap and get pet.
Cons: Slow growing. Medium sized
Aji Dulce
Pros: Nice disposition, quiet birds
Cons: Haven't found any cons yet
For the same effort of keeping chickens, I wanted to make a difference with an endangered variety. Mottled Javas are my first chickens and I love them already. They are calm and beautiful.
Purchase Price
$7
Purchase Date
March 6, 2018
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Swiftbow
Pros: Docile, easy to catch, good layer, large eggs, good brooder
Cons: Couldn't be dissuaded from brooding when she wanted to do it!
We bought our Mottled Java (Goose, because she has a long neck and squawks like one) as an adult hen, and she's been a great flock addition! A good layer and a very good mother after she went broody. Her kids are 6 weeks old now and she started laying again, but she still lets them hang out with her when they want and they continue to roost together.

She also was persistent (and very docile) in making friends with our Dominique alpha (Lady Cluck) who lost her own broodmates and wasn't keen on meeting new chickens at first. But she came around.
Goose&ChicksRoost.jpg

(Goose, right, with her chicks, just learning to roost. At left are the two mix breed pullets (left to right, Sparra and Slush (who isn't loving having a chick on her back)) who we got at the same time as her.)
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Comments

laura877
I got 10 chicks last year from my daughter....6 roos and 4 hens. I lost a few and ended up with 2 hens and 2 roos as breed quality keepers. The last roo I butchered at 22 weeks and he was over 6 lbs dressed out. They were June 2011 babies and both hens started laying at 5 mos. I found them to be very quiet hens. I very seldon hear a peek out of them all day. They also lay late in the day.s
 
tripleG
I have 2 Java chicks. They are moltted. They do seem very sweet and get handle a lot..very excited to have them
 
Sylvester017
I have free-ranged in our yard a Marans, a couple Leghorns, an Ameraucana (my avatar) and a couple Silkies and we have a chicken hawk (Cooper's Hawk) and Red-tailed Hawk that come around the neighborhood. In 3 years we haven't lost one chicken, even the so-called predator-bait breeds (Silkies). What we've done to predator-proof from aerial stalkers is to set up several low-to-the-ground shelters like plywood planks on cinderblocks, benches, a couple large recycled doghouses, a pop-up canopy, an old wheelbarrow, and some stickery evergreen, rose, and berry bushes for the chickens to dive/snooze under so they aren't in a very open yard for a predator to swoop down on them. Open areas are where the predators want to hunt the running chickens so we've set up these scattered shelters so there are no really open areas to invite aerial attacks. We and all our neighbors have chopped down our old trees so the hawks can't sit in them to watch the poultry. People say certain breeds are predator bait but you can't get more gentle than our Silkies but they are savvy enough to sound barnyard alerts and dive for the nearest shelters. I once saw 4 hens dive into a doghouse after a hawk alert! Hawks prefer aerial swooping and won't go after a hiding hen even if she's only 5 feet away hiding in a bush or doghouse - darnedest thing I ever saw.
 
Life is Good!
UPDATE:
These original hens are now 5yrs old and still laying very well - daily in fact. They proved to be excellent mothers, with nearly every hen going broody at some point during the spring and early summer. While molting, their lay rate decreases greatly - but that is to be expected.

The flock has expanded to where I'm getting a dozen eggs a day from more or less 20 layers (layers - broodies - molting hens = number of active layers).

We're on Roaster #5, as we switch out roasters annually so that no hen is related to any particular cockerel. I return to Garfield Farm Museum to their Rare Breed Show to obtain new chicks - chicks are now a bit more expensive, as their breeding program gets better and better.

I am still awed by these terrific hens. Mostly friendly (some bashful) but no mean hen around...unless she's broody and being picked on by other hens. Roasters have proven to be easy-going and typically not hard on the hens, although their favorites still show signs of feather-wear. I HIGHLY recommend these hens!
 
Aji Dulce
laura877 said:
I got 10 chicks last year from my daughter....6 roos and 4 hens. I lost a few and ended up with 2 hens and 2 roos as breed quality keepers. The last roo I butchered at 22 weeks and he was over 6 lbs dressed out. They were June 2011 babies and both hens started laying at 5 mos. I found them to be very quiet hens. I very seldon hear a peek out of them all day. They also lay late in the day.s
Click to expand...
Good to know that they lay late in the day... I'm new to chickens anyway so it lets me know what to expect.
 
rlhagan56
I love my Mottled Java so much I'm thinking of getting more and selling my lavender Ameraucana. Beautiful, calm, large birds with excellent laying!
 
Pete Yo
I have a mottled java. Sweet bird and a good layer. She is finishing her winter molt and looks different than last year. She has way more white in her plumage than before. She gets along well with the others and never starts any arguments with the other misfits.
 

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Category
Chicken Breeds
Added by
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Views
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Comments
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Reviews
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Last update
Rating
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