Dwarf chickens are becoming more common in our courtyards. What caused such a growing popularity? Among these babies there are decorative, and productive egg-laying, and meat breeds, which are small copies of large species.
Their advantage is that small areas are required for maintenance, and such hens do not eat much. On average, egg breeds consume one third less feed than large ones to produce 1 kg of egg mass.
Amateurs are attracted by their bright color, interesting behavior and unusual appearance. Such birds can be a wonderful decoration of the yard. For poultry farmers who do not have a large room, dwarf chickens are also suitable.
Content
Small chickens are thermophilic, therefore it is better to choose a tree for flooring in the chicken coop. The room should be warm, without drafts, with good lighting and ventilation. The preferred temperature is 15-25 ° C. For protection against parasites of birds it is necessary to provide a bathtub for bathing with sand or dry clay. Even such a small bird needs a walking area. The site must be sown with grass and put a vat with river sand or shell rock to improve digestion.
Dwarf chickens feed in the same way as ordinary ones - with grain mixtures, vegetables, fruits, grass, earthworms and other small insects. Chicks can be carried around at the age of 7-8 months, some breeds earlier. Their weight by this age is about half a kilogram.
Breeding
Dwarf chickens are caring parents. To get offspring, layers need to be provided with strong shallow wooden crates with straw. The breeding instinct is so well developed in many breeds of small chickens that they are often used as adoptive parents for large breeds of hens.
During hatching, the chicken must be provided with fresh water and good food. The masonry bird cannot be disturbed at the very beginning and end of the incubation period, and the rest of the time it needs a short-term walk. The masonry during the walk can be covered with a cloth.
Immediately after birth, chickens begin to eat actively. Starting feed is the foundation for the health of the chicks, and in the early days, young birds should receive all the best: boiled yolk, fresh water, finely chopped greens. In water, you can add a weak solution of potassium permanganate.
Young growth should be separated from the rest of the livestock for at least 5-6 weeks. At this age, birds can switch to a common diet.
How much are dwarf chickens? The price of small breed chickens is on average from 100 rubles per bird. Let us consider in more detail different breeds of dwarf chickens and their characteristics.
Bentham
Bentham is one of the small breeds, also known as Kings. These birds were bred to decorate parks, gardens, bird yards. For breeding, they need dry, clean and warm rooms. Coloring bentamok can be the most diverse: white, black, yellow, blue, striped, three-colored.
Bentamki are the most common dwarf chickens. Layers of this breed are known as perfect hens. They are often used to breed chickens of another breed. The weight of an adult cockerel is 0.6 kg, the hens are 0.5 kg. As for the egg production of these birds, it is not high - about 80 eggs per year. The eggs have a white shell and a mass of about 25 grams.
Brahma dwarf
This breed was bred in England and Germany from large breeds, leggy and silk dwarf chickens. Dark, light, partridge-yellow and partridge-blue shrimps with rich plumage can decorate any yard. Due to the plumage on their feet, sandy soil or trimmed grass is suitable for these birds during walking.
Dwarf bream meat chickens are quite high and strong, tolerate low temperatures well, although it is not recommended to let them out in the snow. A chicken weighs an average of 1.1 kg, a cock - 1.3 kg. Egg production is 80-100 eggs per year, the eggs have a light brown shell and a mass of about 35 grams.
Oryol dwarf
This breed looks like large Oryol hens with a dense constitution. The head of these birds resembles the head of fighting cocks. The chest is wide, the body is muscular, legs are high and strong. By color, they are snow-white, dark, brown, chintz. These birds are active and mobile, like all dwarf breeds.
Chickens are unpretentious. The weight of the chicken is 0.6 kg, the cock 0.8 kg. The egg production of the breed is 80-100 eggs per year. One egg weighs more than 37 grams.
Dutch white-crested
This breed of chickens arose long ago with the improvement of the chickens of the Polish crested. A distinctive feature of these birds is a white lush crest on the head. Coloring can be white, black or blue. These beauties can be not only decoration, performing decorative functions, but also give a sufficient number of eggs and meat.
The egg production of Dutch white-crested chickens exceeds the average and amounts to 100-140 eggs per year. The eggs are quite large - 50 gr. The shell is white. But the mass of these birds is rather big - hens weigh 1.5-2 kg, roosters - 2-2.5 kg.
Shabot
This is an attractive breed native to the Land of the Rising Sun. A neat torso with short legs and a lush high tail give these birds a special charm. To preserve the beauty of the plumage, the area for walking should be clean and well-groomed.
Chickens can be with a smooth, silky or curly feather. They can have the following colors: white, yellow, blue, black, white black-tailed, black-white speckled, yellow with a black tail, golden, partridge, wheat, with a golden neck, porcelain, silver, birch.
The birds are small, the weight of the chicken is 0.5 kg, the cockerel is 0.6 kg. Egg production is small - 80 eggs per year with a mass of eggs with a white shell of 30 g.
Little galoshke
Chickens dwarf breeds small galosheyka are famous for good egg production, but not aesthetic appeal. A distinctive feature of the breed is barefoot. Chicks hatch already without a gun on their neck. Over time, the skin coarsens and turns red. Hens are very hardy, tolerate heat and can withstand frosts. Coloring of birds can be very diverse.
The chicken weighs about 0.7 kg, the cock - 0.8 kg. The reason for the breed's popularity is its excellent egg production with such a small size - from 120 eggs per year, with an egg mass with a white shell of 30 grams.
Seabright
These miniature English hens attract many poultry farmers. Their body is neat, rounded. Bordered plumage gives these birds a special charm. Their character is also noteworthy: funny, fighting, perky, these birds are gullible and perfectly tamed. Color - silver and gold.
Seabright hens weigh only 450 grams, and cockerels weigh 500 grams. The eggshell is yellowish, the average egg mass is 30 g. Egg production is 80 eggs per year.
Kokhinhin dwarfish
The kokhinkhin dwarf chicken breed is also known under the names Peking Bentamka and Kokhinkhin Bentamsky. This independent decorative breed was bred for the imperial gardens. The plumage is soft, plentiful. Because of this, the hens seem more massive, rounded. Dwarf cochinchins are quickly tamed, they are good hens. Their color can be white, black, striped, fawn, blue, birch, partridge, brown with a horseshoe-shaped border. There is a curly variety.
The mass of laying hens is 0.7 kg, cockerels 0.8 kg. The egg production is small - up to 80 eggs weighing about 30 grams. The color of the shell is delicate, from light brown to cream.
Dwarf Leghorn
Dwarf leghorn chickens are highly egg-laying. The color of the birds is white, the size is small. The weight of an adult rooster is 1.7 kg, chicken 1.4 kg. They are a miniature copy of a large breed. Birds are hardy, strong, mobile. Egg fertility and chick survival are high, but the brood hens are poor. For breeding, an incubator is used.
Dwarf leghorns are found not only on small farmsteads, but also on farms and poultry farms. The egg production of these babies is simply amazing - up to 260 large 60-gram eggs per year. Chickens begin to rush from the age of four months.
Dwarf Wyandotte
Dwarf Wyandotte chickens are a form of regular Wyandotte. Today, the smaller form is so popular that its livestock far exceeds that of the normal form. There are many color options: black, white, yellow, blue, golden, partridge, silver, golden and silver, white-gold, blue-gold, multi-colored.
The weight of the cockerels is 1 kg, the chickens 0.8 kg. Egg production is 100 eggs weighing 45 grams. in year. The eggs have a tan shell.
For many domestic breeders, the benefits of small breed chickens are becoming increasingly apparent. Gradually small motley birds appear even in the most conservative poultry farmers, because their maintenance is more economically profitable.