Backyard Brahmas!!

[bumpercarr]

#4 just hatched and has very good lungs! I'll leave it in the bator for a few hours and then see about introducing it to it's brothers and sisters that hatched yesterday.

 

[Huntress78]

Quote:
Cute!
I need to get my stuff together to start hatching. Still well below zero here so it's kind of hard to collect good eggs for incubating but I'm hoping it will start to warm up in the next couple weeks.

How old is your non-Brahma rooster? Maybe fertility will improve with age.
As far as large hens/eggs...my Dark Brahma hens are a good size and lay large to xl eggs. They have been laying right through this cold weather which really helps me keep my customers in eggs.

 

[farmgirlsomeday]

Hello! I am a backyard chicken (and duckling) owner considering adding a Buff Brahma to my small flock. I love these gorgeous chickens. I do have a couple of questions that I'm hoping one of you can answer. First, what has your experience been with Buff Brahmas in particular and their egg production? How often do they lay, and do they take long laying breaks? How big and what color are their eggs? When did they start to lay? Also, what are your Buff Brahmas' like with children if you have any. Thanks!!

 

[Huntress78]

I don't have any Buff but just wanted to say WELCOME!

I think a lot of your questions depend on what 'line' the birds come from. Your best bet may be to find a breeder and ask them about the laying abilities and personalities of their birds. I have Lights that lay med/large eggs and are sweet but don't lay much in the winter. My Darks are the opposite...I wouldn't trust them with kids but they lay in the cold and their eggs are large/xl. Others here have Darks that have better personalities....they came from a different 'line' I'm sure.

Good luck...please let us know when you find some!

 

[CarolinaHen]

I don't have any Buff but just wanted to say WELCOME!

I think a lot of your questions depend on what 'line' the birds come from. Your best bet may be to find a breeder and ask them about the laying abilities and personalities of their birds. I have Lights that lay med/large eggs and are sweet but don't lay much in the winter. My Darks are the opposite...I wouldn't trust them with kids but they lay in the cold and their eggs are large/xl. Others here have Darks that have better personalities....they came from a different 'line' I'm sure.

Good luck...please let us know when you find some!

I only have darks, and they are the sweetest birds in my flock. They took FOREVER to start laying and only 2 of the 4 are laying now. They will be a year old in March, and the two that are laying started earlier this month in the middle of an ice storm. The other two are close to laying and should start any day now. I absolutely adore these girls

Look back through my posts on here and you will see "Chuck" my very favorite as she has grown. She still isn't laying, but she earns her keep by performing in plays and being the mascot for our Hobby Farmers Association.

 

[Sjisty]

I have one dark Brahma hen. She is almost 8 years old and comes in the house to lay. When she was young, she laid about 5 eggs a week, laying a little later each day until she would lay around 5:00 p.m. and then skip the next day. Then she would come in and lay just after daylight after skipping the day before. Now she's pretty old, but she will lay 4 eggs in a week and then take a couple of weeks off. She has always been very tame, although not a "lap chicken" like some of my others. She was broody once and was a good mother, but never has been broody since.

My one and only buff Brahma hen isn't really wild. I can catch her easily, but she doesn't go out of her way to come and get petted like the others. She still lays occasionally, and again is almost 8 years old. She's never been broody.

I have several lights, hens and a rooster, again pretty old (around 8 years old). The girls laid regularly when younger, now occasionally. The rooster, Rocky, had a stroke last year and limps a bit, but is a sweetheart.

I have other unusual colors of Brahmas including blues, partridges, and splash colors. They all are pretty friendly with a few that love to sit on my lap and get cuddled.

I think overall Brahmas are a pretty friendly and laid-back breed, but their level of friendliness depends on the one-on-one attention you give them. They lay a nice egg, pretty regularly, with varying shades of brown/tan. My girls lay summer and winter, although here in Florida it doesn't get below the mid-20s for long. They usually take a break in the fall when molting, but otherwise are pretty dependable layers. We have been very happy with the breed.

 

[bumpercarr]

Cute!
I need to get my stuff together to start hatching. Still well below zero here so it's kind of hard to collect good eggs for incubating but I'm hoping it will start to warm up in the next couple weeks.

How old is your non-Brahma rooster? Maybe fertility will improve with age.
As far as large hens/eggs...my Dark Brahma hens are a good size and lay large to xl eggs. They have been laying right through this cold weather which really helps me keep my customers in eggs.

He's only 1 1/2 years old. Last year, he was very fertile and I had a broody hatch his eggs. I don't think it is a matter of fertility, I just don't think he's covering all of the hens. One hen is really torn up from his attentions and the rest look like they haven't even been touched. Like I said, I never liked him a lot anyway for some reason. He won't go in the pot right away, I'm going to give him a little more time to do his job. But, if I lose any more hens out of his coop then I'll know that he's not stalwart enough to keep a good eye on them. They have so much protection from trees and bushes that there is really no reason for any of the hens to get taken by a predator unless he's not doing his job. He certainly lets them know to hide when I'm trying to catch one!

 

[bumpercarr]

Hello! I am a backyard chicken (and duckling) owner considering adding a Buff Brahma to my small flock. I love these gorgeous chickens. I do have a couple of questions that I'm hoping one of you can answer. First, what has your experience been with Buff Brahmas in particular and their egg production? How often do they lay, and do they take long laying breaks? How big and what color are their eggs? When did they start to lay? Also, what are your Buff Brahmas' like with children if you have any. Thanks!!

Mine lay about 4, sometimes 5 eggs a week. Compared to a laying breed like a Rhode Island Red or a Barred Rock, her eggs are smaller. I would say that they would be in between the medium and large eggs in the grocery store. My eggs are a rosy brown with little speckles in them and they started to lay around 5 months old. My pullets are wonderful with children, the cockerel is standoffish, but not mean. He tends to just watch what is going on. He'll let us catch him with some effort, but doesn't enjoy being held like the pullets do. Some people on here have different experiences with the cockerels and say that they love to cuddle, but mine doesn't. Mine are partridge and I've also read that the different colors and breeding lines have different personalities. Best thing in my opinion is Huntress78 x 2.

 

[Tikkijane]

Color? I got three with dotted heads; three without. No idea if it makes a difference. I'd love to have an idea on color, though.

 

[SD Bird Lady]

Hello! I am a backyard chicken (and duckling) owner considering adding a Buff Brahma to my small flock. I love these gorgeous chickens. I do have a couple of questions that I'm hoping one of you can answer. First, what has your experience been with Buff Brahmas in particular and their egg production? How often do they lay, and do they take long laying breaks? How big and what color are their eggs? When did they start to lay? Also, what are your Buff Brahmas' like with children if you have any. Thanks!!

I agree it really depends where you get them. I have yet to have a Brahma of any color that wasn't docile. mine aren't tame but they are definitely not flighty. My buffs laid smaller eggs but they were still medium sized. They laid about every other day but sadly were killed before I got to see what they did through winter. Good luck!!