Hamburg thread!

[Alaskan]

@naomi1431

The first photo I posted was taken July 28, so right at 3 months.

This one. I think the one on the ramp is a male. See how there are spots where the bars are being replaced with patches of solid color?

I see what you mean about your first photo and the neck feathers looking maybe male. But, since my male was getting patchy at 3 months, and yours is already 4 months......I would guess that means that yours is 100% female...right?

Looking at yours and mine.....they both look pretty good....and pretty similar. I want to buy more at some point, and am wondering where I should buy them from.

I think mine are more red, which I think is prettier...but out of my set, two of them have a crooked spine.

I don't see any other difference, do you? The feather patterns look the same, the leg color looks the same.

Did you have any deformities/issues with yours? Nicely spaced straight legs, good feet, etc.???

 

[naomi1431]

I did notice that splotchiness, and all of mine have much more uniform penciling than that, but I didn't realize that was the rooster's color coming in. Mine are a bit redder in real life than in my phone-photos, but I do think that yours are probably a little darker. As far as curved spines and leg spacing and foot issues--I haven't noticed any problems yet, but these are my first chickens and I'm not sure I'd know those problems if I saw them, so long as they weren't causing obvious mobility problem. (I will say that I had trouble in the beginning-- they sent 16 chicks and 5 died within 48 hours (two were dead on arrival--one was on death's doorstep, but two more I thought would make it didn't). They sat in the Atlanta post office Sunday mid-day until late Monday night, and arrived in Birmingham on Tuesday morning. I went to the post office once I got an email saying they were there (7:00ish), but my post office personel made an appearance only to tell me to go home and come back at 9:00. Murray McMurray refunded me for the losses, but I'd rather not order again if I can avoid it . . . ) Not sure if shipping to Alaska would be faster / better than shipping to Alabama--but surely it wouldn't be quite as hot.

 

[pinusresinosa]

I am looking for standard Hamburg hatching eggs for shipment or pick up in Minnesota. Color doesn't matter- I just want a hardy active bird that free ranges well and lays white shelled eggs!

 

[Alaskan]

I am looking for standard Hamburg hatching eggs for shipment or pick up in Minnesota. Color doesn't matter- I just want a hardy active bird that free ranges well and lays white shelled eggs!

Most of the hatcheries carry at least one color of Hamburg.

I wasn't able to find eggs from breeders when I was looking last year.... but then I only wanted Golden pencilled. There is a Hamburg breeder website somewhere (sorry, I didn't bookmark it), and it lists a bunch of breeders.

 

[whatsthedealio]

What kind of a Hamburg is my hen? Is it a pure bred?

 

[islandgirl82]

What kind of a Hamburg is my hen? Is it a pure bred?

That's a silver penciled cockerel not a hen.

 

[whatsthedealio]

That's a silver penciled cockerel not a hen.

But she lays, I've seen her nesting and she lays a smallish white egg?
I thought it looked like a rooster, but it lays, has never crowed, and doesn't fight with my GLWyandotte roo? Only displays hen behavior.

? Are you sure? Her comb is large, but she lays!

Whaaat?

 

[islandgirl82]

But she lays, I've seen her besting and she lays a smallish white egg?
I thought it looked like a rooster, but it lays, has never crowed, and doesn't fight with ny GLWyandotte roo?

Whaaat?

Yours definitely has sickle feathers and larger comb and wattles of a male. Do you have just the one hamburg?

Some roosters will go broody...there are threads and articles on here about them and though I don't have a Hamburg rooster, I've heard from several people that theirs will show their girls where to nest which would explain why he's spending time in there.

As for not fighting with your Wyandotte rooster...that doesn't surprise me. Wyandottes are considerably larger than Hamburgs and I have found my own Hamburg will do everything possible to avoid conflict.

 

[whatsthedealio]

Yours definitely has sickle feathers larger comb and wattles of a male. Do you have just the one hamburg?

Some roosters will go broody...there are threads and articles on here about them and though I don't have a Hamburg rooster, I've heard from several people that theirs will show their girls where to nest which would explain why he's spending time in there.

As for not fighting with your Wyandotte rooster...that doesn't surprise me. Wyandottes are considerably larger than Hamburgs and I have found my own Hamburg will do everything possible to avoid conflict.

Yes I just have one Hamburg, we have had many days when every hen has laid an egg, which I thought included her? Especially as she/or he was one of the first 8 we got. Do Hamburgs lay white eggs, very white? And smaller sized?

I have never seen it try to mount a hen, but now that I think about it, I've never seen my wyandotte try to mount it?

 

[islandgirl82]

Yes I just have one Hamburg, we have had many days when every hen has laid an egg, which I thought included her? Especially as she/or he was one of the first 8 considerably Hamburgs lay white eggs, very white? And smaller sized?

I have never seen it try to mount a hen, but now that I think about it, I've never seen my wyandotte try to mount it?

Yes, they lay a smallish white egg that has a pearly sheen to it. Mine lays eggs that are more of an off-white...not like a bright white grocery store egg; a friend describes them as "almond colored" which is quite accurate. Do you have any other white egg layers? The size of the eggs will increase as the girls age so if you do have any other white layers and they're still young and have just begun, that could explain the smaller size.