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Wyandotte

The Wyandotte originated in the U.S. in the 1870's. Wyandottes were made in Massachusetts,...
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General Information

Breed Purpose
Dual Purpose
Comb
Rose
Broodiness
Frequent
Climate Tolerance
Cold
Egg Productivity
Medium
Egg Size
Large
Egg Color
Brown
Breed Temperament
Friendly, easily handled, calm, bears confinement well, quiet and docile
Breed Colors/Varieties
Golden laced, silver laced, colubian, buff, partrige, silver penciled, blue, and blue laced red
Breed Size
Large Fowl
APA/ABA Class
American
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The Wyandotte aka American Sebright, were developed in the United states in the 1870’s, in and around the New York area. The first color developed was the Silver Laced variety and they were originally called American Sebrights. The name was changed to Wyandotte (after the indigenous Wyandot people), when they were admitted into the APA in 1883. They were exported to Europe around the same time.

Wyandottes are a calm breed in general and have very nice temperaments. They are good with people and generally get along well in a mixed flock. They are decent foragers, though they do not tend to wander far and are not good flyers. They are extremely cold hardy. The hens are good layers of light brown eggs, good winter layers, will set, and are good mothers. The cockerels make a good table bird. Today they are an extremely popular dual purpose breed and very popular among small flock owners looking for a colorful winter layer.

They have a flat rose comb and bright red face. Today they come in many feather colors and patterns, with over thirty found in Europe, the beautiful Blue Laced Red and Silver Laced are probably the two most popular colors in general. They are very popular as exhibition birds. Many breeds have been used to produce the Wyandotte we know today, including Brahma, Cochin, Hamburg, and Plymouth Rocks. They are also found in bantam size.

It was removed from The Livestock Conservancy's Priority list in 2016 and is no longer considered endangered.

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Wyandotte egg

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Wyandotte chick

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Wyandotte juvenile

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Wyandotte rooster and hens

For more info on Wyandottes and their owners' and breeders' experiences, see our breed discussion here:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chicken-breed-focus-wyandotte.1135563/
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Latest reviews

Fluster Cluck Acres
Fiesty, fun, & noisy
Pros: spunky personality
they keep maturing cockerels in line
healthy
intelligent
eggs have a pinkish bloom
Cons: hens are noisy
they can be bullies to more submissive birds
hard to handle
cute fluffy bums get messy
This review is based off of my 5 Wyandottes compared to other breeds that I have had more than one of (Barnevelders, Marans, Orpingtons, Hybrids, RIRs, & Bielefelders). There does seem to be some variance amongst color varieties. My silver & gold laced birds are most similiar in personality. My blue laced red had some commonalities with them, but my lavender has NOTHING in common with the other 4.

My wyandottes are spunky birds who are always around seeing what you're up to. They are personable, inquisitive, and enjoy being around people. However, they are harder to touch/handle than other breeds.

The hens are LOUD when they are displeased with something (another hen in the nest box or getting fed nonpreffered treats). They make a distinct sound that is different from other breeds I've had. Even the mix-breed offspring of my SLWs make this noise. I find it amusing, but in a residential setting it might be problematic. Interestingly, there egg song is not that loud. It's mostly just when they're complaining.

They are a dominate breed and don't back down in a fight. They can be bullies and are less tolerant of submissive or easily victimized birds (young birds, birds in recovery, molting, etc...). They are a good flock fit if you don't have any particularly "needy" birds in your flock. They also really keep young cockerels in line. They do not put up with hormone driven antics and will defend the other hens from these cockerels. In these situations I find the wyandotte hens to be more protective of the flock than the mature roosters.

My Wynadottes have not had health problems compared to my other breeds. I also believe they are more intelligent than my other breeds. They are intuitive and seem to figure things out that the other birds can't. They are resilient and adaptable birds. Their personalities are so strong that I see it come through in mixed breed birds that are only 1/2 and 1/4 wyandotte.

Lastly, I find the eggs of wyandotte (and mixes) to have the richest yolks. I don't know if this is a breed thing or an indication that they're better foragers, but their yolks are delicous.

*MY BLRW was less personable than the Silver & Gold. She was only loud when singing her egg song. She was such a bully that she is no longer with us. My lavender wyandotte I'm pretty sure is just a lavendar orpington with a shaved down comb, lol. She's 100% different from the laced varieties.*
Purchase Price
$4-$18 as chicks
Purchase Date
I've gotten a few over the years, 2019-2023.
talkinboutchickens
Pros: very sweet, great personality, fantastic with other chickens
Cons: none
My little hen Vicky was so sweet, she had a special bond with my black sexlink Winnie. They did everything together. Vicky had a lot of personality. She was kinda overweight either that or her legs were just far apart at birth.
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I'm not really sure how many eggs she laid because the color of her eggs were the same color as all the rest of the eggs.
Purchase Price
$4.00 at a local breeder
Purchase Date
March 2019
avjudge
Least favorite of my small flock
Pros: Decent enough layer
Cons: Prone to lay outside nest box (dropped from roost or in run)
Strong membrane makes cracking eggs messy
Not particularly friendly (esp. compared to Golden Comet)
Two of our six chickens - our first batch, now reduced to five by a sudden death - are silver-laced Wyandottes. I much prefer our Golden Comets and our Olive Egger. The Wyandottes are “OK” but I only use their eggs when I don’t care about unbroken yolks as they’re likely to break getting the egg out of the shell. I’m also getting tired of checking the run to make sure I didn’t miss an egg there. When we replenish our flock we’ll be getting something else.
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Comments

bruceha2000
I was going to suggest that you could be encouraging the bad behavior by holding and petting, up til the part where you said she doesn't like being held. :)
 
CochinBrahmaLover
Um, I have NEVER heard of a good laced wyandotte from hatceries.
What hatchery did you get them from? Depending where you get them from can depend how much they look and act like wyandottes. But, yeah, wyandottes like to be at the top of the pecking order so they do seem to be testy :p
Glad to see another wyandote lover (or liker) out there!! :p
 
canesisters
I got 2 from a swap meet - thinking that I was getting them from a breeder. I found out later that some folks load up on chicks from hatcheries just for selling at swaps, etc. One of mine has a nice pattern on her chest but is mostly black - the other looks more like a black and white version of a speckled sussex. They are at the top of the pecking order, and for right now, I have the 3 smallest seperated by a section of fence. Hoping that once they get to more even sizes, the pecking will ease up. I love my wynadotte girls and will be happy with the eggs (which is the reason they are here) - I just wish they were a bit more friendly.
 
FeistyPeepers
We bought 6 straight run SLW from our local Rural King (1st time children owners) and wound up with 3ea. As chicks they looked like pics we'd seen but at about 4 weeks they looked so goofy that I wondered how the hell they'd EVER look right! Their feathering looks very SLW now at 9 weeks. Hope everything turns out OK.
 
farmerlayne1
My silver laced wyandotte is the cutest little girl in the world. She loves my little 3 year old brother and lets him hold her how ever he wants.I love my Lucy!!
 
UllaBee
I am sorry you are having a bad experience! It must just be that individuals personality? We have two, and although they are only 4 weeks old, they have always been one of the first to run over to us and hop right into our open hand. We love them! Maybe you can try "tough love"? I read in couple different books, and was told by our local breeder, that when you have a "mean" rooster, you can pick them up, clamp them under one arm and "hug" them until they stop fighting, then let them down. After a few times of that, they usually stop pecking at you. Not that yours is a rooster, but if it worked for them, you could still give it a try?
 
write2caroline
I have had silver laced and golden laced wyandottes. My roo was mean but he was a great roo protecting his flock. The wyandottes are just different but I have had sweet ones and more aloof ones. I do actually enjoy one fact with aloof chickens and that is that I can observe them and enjoy them and not be hounded to give them treats. I have one left and I really like her but I enjoy her from afar.
Caroline
 
Birdgirl99
Sounds like good birds i want some but my parents want me to get red stars from my pet chicken MPC somegold and silver and columbian wynadottes but i have to get redstars 8 of them but i will like them to just won't be as pretty as the wynadottes
 
Dawna
I bought 5 SLW chicks in February. In June a snake tried to eat one, but found it too big, but it was too late and the chick suffocated. The other 4 are doing fine and all are beautiful birds. They are all laying but eggs are still small. They get along okay with my other three hens, 1 RIR, 1 BPR and 1 Ameraucauna. I haven't named them because I'm afraid of getting too attached to them and something happening.
 
Dawna
I bought 5 SLW chicks in February. In June, a snake tried to eat one, couldn't swallow her, but it suffocated the chick. The other four are all beautiful birds and are laying, still small eggs. They get along okay with my other three hens, 1 RIR, 1 BPR, and 1 Ameraucauna.
 
rosebuds
I HAVE A GOLDEN LACE WYANDOT AND SHE WAS SO FRIENDLY AND WANTED TO BE HELD SHE EVEN RODE WITH ME ON MY GOLF CART.SHE LOVED THE ATTENTION.BUT NOW SHE SEEMS TO BE INDEPENDANT AND HAS BETTER THINGS TO DO SHE IS STILL A SWEET HEART.ALSO SHE CAN STAND UP FOR HER SELF SHE SEEMS TO BE THE LEADER OF THE OTHER HENS.SHE HOLDS HER PECKING ORDER.
 
rosebuds
I have a golden laced wyandotte that is 15 weeks .I HOPE I SEE A EGG IN A FEW MORE WEEKS.I ALSO HAVE SOME BUFF OPHANTONS THAT ARE THE SAME AGE.AND 2 LEGHORNS 1 RHODE ISLAND RED AND PATRIDGE ROCKS 2 OF THEM. ALL THE SAME AGE SO THEY SHOULD BE LAYING SOON CAN NOT WAIT.
 
SuperChix
My SLW weren't hatchery stock, their lacing is lovely....my birds are very friendly...eat out of my hand and can be easily picked up...I have spent allot of time with them though...
 
rosebuds
i am new at chicks too. u maybe right.that is ok cause i have other chicks that will be laying soon i hope.
 

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Category
Chicken Breeds
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Views
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Reviews
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