Friday, September 7, 2012

The Intriguing World Of Rare Breed Chickens

By Kerri Turner


By rearing rare breed chickens, you will be helping save heritage chicken varieties from extinction. Whether you raise chickens to supply eggs or to eat, there will be a rare breed which will be suitable for your purposes. There are also varieties which have only their beautiful plumage to attract potential owners.

Unfortunately the value of the Sebright bantam lies almost entirely in its beauty. It is a very small, true bantam. There is no full-size equivalent. There are two types. The Golden Sebright has a base color of dark gold while the Silver has a base color of silvery white. Both have every feather finely and evenly edged with black.

The bird is named for its creator, Sir John Sebright, who, in 1810, set out to breed a very small chicken with laced plumage. It has a rose comb and weighs between 20 and 22 ounces depending on the sex. They do not lay well, nor do they make good table birds. The hens do not go broody very often. Their sole attraction is the beautiful plumage.

The Black Orpington is a dual purpose bird which lays well through the winter and produces a tasty white meat when killed for the table. It is a large bird with an attractive curved shaped and soft, fluffy plumage which almost hides the legs. It has a small head and single comb. They are friendly birds. They go broody easily and are excellent mothers. They also cope well with being confined. They are docile and ideal for families with small children. As chickens go, they are quite intelligent.

The Naked Neck chicken has no feathers on the neck, legs or vent. It is not particularly attractive but is quite common in the eastern European countries. It is also popular in France and Germany. The bare skin continues from the neck to the crop. The upper thighs and parts of the abdomen may also be devoid of plumage. Any feathers that it does possess are sparse and short.

Because there is less plucking, the Naked Neck chicken has become quite popular as a table bird. They cope very well with very hot weather and surprisingly well with cold weather considering their lack of feathers. When exposed to the sun, the head and neck turns bright red.

A gene is believed to cause the lack of feathering. The same gene results in increased breast size, better conversion of feed and lower body temperatures. The shoulders are wide and the breast well rounded. Both single and rose combs are found in this breed. They lay a good number of light brown eggs. The cocks weigh 7 to 8 pounds and the hens are several pounds lighter. They have good resistance to disease.

The wattles are large and there is a cap of feathers on the top of the head. It is a good-natured chicken and is easy to tame. Because of the shortage of feathers, it can usually only cover a few eggs when brooding. The chicks are born with bare necks. By choosing rare breed chickens you will be helping save heritage varieties from extinction.




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