Mixing Chicken Breeds

Mixing Chicken Breeds in Your Flock

by Poultry farmer – Miriam Rolling| Last Updated– 09 January 2021

Keeping chickens is a wonderful experience inscribed with a flap of activity, a collection of clucky discussions and an egg basket overflowing with fresh bounty. Currently, while you might begin with just a triad of downy buddies– all look-a-likes and gifts from a passionate good friend or neighbor, chicken keeping is so addicting that you’ll quickly find yourself becoming an increasing number of inquisitive. Curiosity types of rate of interest in various other hen breeds. So, can you mix new chicken breeds into your flock? Yes. Un-egg-equivocally!

A Mixed Breed Flock Mixes Well

Raising as well as maintaining a group of chickens need not be limited to a solitary type. Range is the spice that develops a tasty vivid flock. Many chicken types, so little time. In fact, there are greater than 400 different breeds in existence. Feeling just a little bewildered? Include into the mix all the mixed-breeds that occur by happenstance. When love is in the air, predictability flaps gone. So, in some cases there’s no telling what’s mosting likely to hatch out of your eggs. Enter a remarkable new hen type for your humble little backyard flock.

Seriously however, a varied backyard poultry flock is not only a delight, yet is fairly beneficial in numerous means. So, let’s take an eat the appeal and also practicality of this unique flap-happy flock:

A beautiful sight to witness with vibrant and also varied feathers and plume patterns, feathery legs as well as tidy legs, a myriad of in different ways shaped combs, bearded chins as well as large hair crests, fluffy round breeds and also taller slim types. Yes, a mixed-up group is a unique and also gorgeous view!
A unique egg basket overflowing with eggs of varying colors and also tones.
Personality differs amongst breeds but likewise varies from bird to bird within a certain breed. This is both useful as well as wonderful. A flock loaded with fascinating as well as unique temperaments equates to an effectively operating pecking order. Every chook fits and there’s a location for every chook. Can you visualize a group of all Noisy Nellies? All Shy Sadies?
As well as, your hen’s specific individualities assist encourage others to see that chickens are caring creatures capable of sensation, discovering and also understanding and also not just egg generating devices or meat for your table. And also, it’s just fantastic fun to engage with a flock chock loaded with character!

That’s Who having the ability to identify one chook from another is vital to elevating a happy healthy and balanced poultry flock. By recognizing who’s who you can much more quickly keep track of habits as well as an ailment, you can keep an eye on egg production which aids in identifying as well as identifying prospective wellness concerns and you can assist to develop a bond with specific birds by calling them by name when you visit the chicken cage daily. Likewise, this aids you to understand how to come close to each chook whether they be shy or more friendly and social.
Egg production via the period’s different breeds lay better throughout different periods.

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Bantams + Large Fowl Breeds = A Fabulous Flock

When raising a flock of mixed breed chickens, one would have to question the significance of blending smaller sized bantam dimension chooks with larger chicken birds. As a result of the truth that bantam poultry is substantially smaller sized than larger types, weighing in at concerning one 4th or one 5th the dimension of huge fowl birds, you might be worried. Will they all get along well with each other? Will there be an increase in tiffs in between siblings? Will the bigger birds rule and peck on the smaller birds? All legitimate inquiries, yes. And the answer is … all chooks, no matter what their body dimension ought to manage flappingly with each other.

That’s not to say that you will not ever before encounter some downy brother or sister competition. All siblings, feathery or otherwise, squabble from time to time. That’s natural. As a matter of fact, one of your smaller sized chooks might very well be the top chook in the pecking order. Have plumes, can be tough.

Integrating New Chooks

Ideally, it’s ideal to raise a flock of chickens all together from the first day. As hatchlings or even pullets at Point of Lay, your birds will grow up with each other as well as bond as siblings and as a group overall. Nonetheless, that’s not to state that you can not add new birds periodically. At any time is the right time to include a brand-new type or 2. As long as you follow correct integration standards, any type of new chooks need to be happily clucking along with their older as well as wiser downy brother or sisters in the flap of a wing.

Despite having exceptional treatment and routine tracking of your group, hens do die. Unfortunately, chickens can get diseases that show no overt signs until the condition has actually proceeded to the point where it’s too late to treat the bird or there merely is no therapy. So, you might select to add some new birds or types to your existing flock.

One of the most vital point to remember when integrating new birds right into an existing group is this:

Constantly isolate or quarantine all brand-new birds for at least 1 month. This provides you ample time to observe all new birds for signs and symptoms of condition and/or indications of external bloodsuckers as well as to treat them if necessary. After that when the thirty days seclusion duration is finished, introduce brand-new hens.

And also, keep in mind to constantly check the communications between old and brand-new chooks up close as well as individual till you’re sure that all is well. When you feel comfy that your feathery brother or sisters are getting along agreeably, a straightforward daily examination will certainly do fine. Permitting all poultries to free-range and also socialize with each other helps them to get accustomed.

A Recipe for Success

Developing a happy healthy and balanced mixed breed poultry group is like adhering to a recipe. So, what is the dish? Easy … add a mix of types– bantam and large fowl if it tickles your downy fancy– right into a large chicken cage, mix well until all are happily interacting with one another as well as delight in.

Naturally, there are several factors to think about when putting together your mixed breed group:

Environment– some types endure extreme warmth or cold temperature levels better than others
Amount of Chickens/Size of Coop– generally a solitary huge fowl bird needs around 1.5 square meters of space as well as bantam poultry will certainly need around 1 square meter of area. This enables your chooks to stroll openly and also not feel too “cooped” up which can cause stress. If; nonetheless, your chooks will be confined to their coop and also compete for the majority of the time, please permit about 3 square meters per chicken.
Life Span– Bantams live for approximately 4-8 years; Big Fowl live for around 8-15 years.
Character and Compatibility– some breeds are simply more energetic and flighty as well as some are a lot more accommodating as well as tranquil. Theoretically, all need to blend well with each other, communicating as well as wandering about; nevertheless, constantly make sure to monitor your flock daily as it’s constantly far better to err on the side of caution.
Eggshell color– you can literally create a rainbow of eggshells for your egg basket.
Your personal choices
There can be some teething problems when presenting new poultries to your group. With different breeds having different qualities and personalities, there may be tensions and clashes! Some practices are charming quirks for a type and also others might be a reason for concern! Like all pet dogs, chickens can be trained to stop bad practices as well as enhance favorable ones.

Cluckily, our pals over at Chickenpedia have developed an outstanding Hen Etiquette Course. This extensive online program shares valuable suggestions on a selection of chicken practices. The well-structured training course will likewise assist you deal with poor behavior as well as urge positive practices. Maintain the neighbors happy – their only issue will be that they wish they likewise had chickens!

Discover exactly how to have the best-behaved chickens around and a harmonious group with this beginner-friendly training course. This is why I extremely advise Chickenpedia’s courses to every one of my visitors! They are loaded with crucial information that helps you increase a happy, healthy and balanced group.

The Mixed Breed Chicken Flock – A Success Story

The mixed breed flock that clucks together stays together! We’ve constantly had a mixed breed chicken group. It’s such a treat to see their coop daily as well as watch the colourful program– black glossy plumes flap-happily dusting the mid-day away, intense white feathers leaping awkwardly in an effort to capture a flying insect, brown pheasant tipped feathers wandering as well as puttering … Uh oh, Phoebe’s gone to my song bird yard once again, yellow golden plumes maintaining a motherly eye open for prospective risks and also reddish chestnut coloured plumes sprawled out in the cozy sunshine. Ahhhh, life is good!

The very best aspect of a mixed breed hen flock is that it is distinctly your own homemade group for your chicken home. Enjoy!

And also, the most effective place to house your varied yard hen group remains in one of our ingenious and also trendy coops: The best Penthouse, the excellent Taj Mahal, and the magnificent Mansion coops are anxiously awaiting a suitable ISA Brown, an amazing Australorp, an Oh so motherly Orpington, a frankly beautiful Prevented Plymouth Rock, a robust red-headed Rhode Island Red as well as even more to transform them from coop to coop wonderful cage.

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