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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

LalahCatlady
I have three silver lace and you are absolutely right - they are mouthy. None of my other birds make such a production about laying an egg. And worse, they bully the other chickens. They are beautiful little prima donnas, and when they go to the great coop in the sky they will not be replaced with Wyandottes.
 
cgmaster
I have one blue wyandotte i got from a neighbor she isnt that noisy and is my most reliable egg layer but she is a bully
 
sayga
I agree with lalahCatLady... Mine are little bullies and are such jerks, that when they're gone I probably won't get another Wyandotte. I named one Cruella Deville. Gave her a neon yellow ziptie leg band to identify her, and sure enough, last night she was the one who refused to go in the coop and made me chase her and catch her. She screamed like I was pulling her legs off, just because I touched her. I get a lot of pleasure out of calling her Cruella.
 
sayga
We decided to go with villian names for our Silver Laced Wyandottes. I named mine Cruella, Ursula and Dexter (the one I thought was a roo; if it's female it will be Maleficient).
 
Sylvester017
LOVE the names! We could never have those gorgeous SLW around our gentle Silkies. It's been an interesting 3 years trying to get a compatible backyard flock. Now I throroughly research under 5-lb breeds looking for consistent reviews about gentle temperaments with good egg production. Then I speak with several different owners of a breed asking all sorts of questions before committing to it. Once burned, I look twice now!

We are planning to see the pretty Angelina Jolie as Maleficent when it's in the theatres! I'll be thinking about your girls while watching the movie lol.
 
sayga
Mine are shy too. I am hand-feeding treats to tame them up, and Cruella actually ate from my hand today! Ursula and Maleficent are a bit more tame, but not by much. When I came to let the chickens out this morning, Cruella was out in the run, which means she hid in the bushes last night instead of going to bed with the others, and was out all night. Naughty girl! They are improving with age and time, though, and getting more and more confident in coming near to me every day. They're growing on me, I guess.
 
Dawna
I have three SLW. They are really bossy, but I would call them friendly, too. They are second in command after my lonely one Barred Plymouth Rock. They are pretty birds. The one pictured here died , but the three that are left all lay an egg about every other day. I get at least one egg a day from the three.
 
Linnies ladies
I love them too. I have two gold laced, and searching for red laced blue. They have the wseetest personalities as wel.
 
hollyannlamb
We have 10 ten week old silver laced youngsters. So far, I love these little ones. They are calm and friendly. They are coming in to their color now and a very pretty.
 
Demidog
I'm new to chickens and exploring the different breeds. I think these are stunning birds. I want to have a mixed flock, primarily for eggs but also birds that are attractive and friendly. How many eggs do these lay?
 
makrands
Dissing? I don't MAUL mine but I do frequently health check them to make sure girls are OK. It's not very enjoyable chasing down a Wyandotte to do a health check.
 
redcowgirl2009
I have mostly Wyandottes in my flock and all are great. I have two Blue Laced Reds mine integrate well but are not exactly friendly to me. One we have named Rory is shy but will eat out of my hand. The other went broody this year and screams like a banshee when approached. We have no Rooster so no need for a broody right now. I tried to break her of the broodyness but to no avail. She is now at the neighbors house setting on 11 eggs. She is a great brooder and would take on a mountain lion for her eggs. The other color variations are nice can be handled and live with others well. I had a Colombian Roo when I was a kid that would sit in your lap to be held and petted. I love the breed.
 

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Category
Chicken Breeds
Added by
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Views
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Watchers
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Comments
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Reviews
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Rating
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