I absolutely Love my EE! Great temperaments and pretty blue and green eggs! Every flock should have at least one!
I absolutely love my easter egger chickens. Their beautifully colored eggs add variety to my mostly-brown eggs. These birds are friendly to all of their peers and are very friendly to humans as well. I will always have easter eggers in my flock if possible. Currently I have three easter eggers and two easter egger mixes. All are lovely!
My EE, Hope, is bullied by her flockmates, unfortunately (although she is also the only one in the small flock with a beard and muffs, but I like that about her) and I believe she also has a slipped Achille's tendon.. But even though she limps/hobbles or hops around everywhere, she still gets around pretty good. She doesn't like being held or petted, unfortunately--since I like friendly pets--but I didn't include that as a con because when I catch her, she is super patient and pretty still in my arms (which I can't say for the other birds after a couple of seconds, lol). Also, I don't know if she's started laying yet. :\ I liked this article on EEs, and I like my sweet Easter Egger, too, but overall, she's not my favorite bird (she's just my first/preferred pick to carry around the yard). (The article gets five stars, but Hope gets an overall 3 stars). She's quite young and pretty small in this picture, but she is sunbathing.
I have several Easter Eggers: baby chicks, adult hens, and one Roo... The babies are easily my sweetest, most attention craving little fluffies (of the variety of babies I have currently). The hens curiously follow me around 'chatting' with me. And the rooster respects my space and the hens. I love all of by EE birds, and highly recommend EEs, especially for new chicken keepers.
Pros - Very good layers of eggs of many colors, medium sized and fairly thrifty eaters, most are non-setters, lots of different plumage colors, hardy, good foragers and healthier than most.
Cons - Noisier and not as calm as some of the heavier breeds. Not accepted by the Standard of Perfection, so cannot be shown at poultry shows.
This is similar to land races of chickens such as Icelandic and Swedish Flower hens in that they have no breed standards but often have certain traits, such as beards and muffs, green legs, and mixed, wild type coloring, but they don't always have these traits. Nor do they always lay blue eggs. Brown, pale brown, pinkish brown, tinted and any shade of green are also possible. And that is part of Easter eggers' charm-- you can get a rainbow of shades in both the eggs and the plumage, and you never know what you will get until the birds have grown and lay eggs. It's like the lottery, with no real losers. They are very good layers. Perhaps not quite up there with sex links or Leghorns, but not too far off from that, and they have more personality, in my opinion. Because they are of mixed blood they seem to have some hybrid vigor, and mine suffer less from disease and ailments than most of the pure breeds I have raised. They are also pretty quick and good at eluding predators. For anyone wanting a colorful flock that lays colorful eggs but isn't interested in showing or raising pure breeds, these are a really excellent choice.
Pros - Sweet, fun, pretty, quiet, very calm, not very skittish, curious, loves to play, loves to dust bathe, don't fight much amongst themselves, cuddles, beautiful, loving
I have had 19 Easter eggers for 5 months now and I'm so glad I got them! They aren't very skittish like my orpingtons are which makes them fun and probably why they say they are great for kids. They are curious, love to jump up high for perching, dust bathe a lot, they will jump up and sit for cuddles and they do not fight much amongst themselves. They have been laying eggs for 1 month and they are mostly green from mint to darker green. They have fluffy feathers framing their faces and tiny feather eyelashes large eyes, and are multi colored I have one rooster in them who is super colorful with tons of Green/black shiny feathers. They are pretty brave and easy going for chickens and I hate the fact some people concentrate on the fact they are mixed breed, because they are beautiful birds that are fun to be around
Pros - -unique appearance with diverse feather coloration -lays colored eggs -comical -overall docile, easy-going nature - wide gene pool with very little health problems
Cons - -inherent crook beak est. 1 in every 100 chicks. -personalities and egg production may vary drastically, due to wide gene pool
OVERALL: The easter egg chicken is a great beginner fowl-bird, with very few health problems, and an overall easy-going nature. They have beards, they lay colored eggs, and are relatively docile. what's not to love? TEMPERAMENT: the hens are usually easy-going and docile. They have a tendency to be quite comical and inquisitive in nature. Be careful, though. that curiosity can get them into some strange places. Because of their wide genetics, expect the individual personality to vary from bird to bird. some may be outgoing and brave, others shy and flighty. The personality of the roosters are very unpredictable. Some will be docile, others will be aggressive. Typically, they stick to their environment and heavily enjoy the safety & company of their own flock. While they CAN fly, they rarely are the "leader of escapes." However, it's not beyond them to be the first to follow another chicken who's already hopped the fence. They have the ability to become broody, therefore usually will tolerate new generations better than a breed that rarely (or never) goes broody. They are agile and quick, making them suitable for free-range. HEALTH: Due to their wide genetics, one rarely comes across any severe health issue with easter egg chickens. They have good joints, hearts, & lungs. They live long lives & are naturally robust, fairly muscular, strong-boned chickens. The most common health concern is a non-lethal genetic trait called Cross-beak. ( Cross-beak is where the upper jaw grows crooked or malformed, causing the upper and lower jaw to fail to align properly. Most cases will worsen with age. the most severe cases leave the upper jaw useless, therefore forcing the chicken to scoop up food with their lower jaw and tongue. severe crook-beaks require extra care, a "mushy" food or food propped up at head-height, to accommodate feeding. ) this deformity is estimated 1 in every 100 chicks, but is usually present far less than in ameraucanas. APPEARANCE: A unique bird with unique, endless feather patterns & coloration, to match their relatively endless egg colors. They have both beards and tufts. Looking at one head-on, it appears to walk around with a permanent smile. EGG PRODUCTION: This varies depending the line you get, and on what your breeder or hatchery breeds for. Some places will breed for high egg production, others will focus more on appearance. They can lay green, blue, or even pinkish-brown eggs. AS USED FOR MEAT: this bird is also used for meat, due to a moderately fast growth rate & an insatiable taste resembling quail. The bird is not a heavy-weight, but by far isn't the smallest, either. To my best of knowledge, they are considered standards. GENETIC HISTORY: The easter egger's genetics stem from many breeds, with a large history linked to ameraucanas. They are also related to araucanas. However, many people will tell you quite frankly, that's not the only two in the genepool. in fact, most say it's so diverse they don't know for sure all the breeds that were used create the easter egger, therefore leaving the rest a mystery. Because they are not recognized as an actual "breed," It took many years to convince anyone that the easter egg chicken was worthy for show. That being said, the easter egg chicken could be considered one of the most beautiful "Mutt" creations. Today, they are accepted in show as misc., but remain widely known as not belonging to any certain breed, and rather are named cross-breeds, or mixed breed, etc. PRICE: most places will sell easter eggers for a very affordable fraction of the other colored egg layers. they are usually the cheapest colored egg layer available on market.
Easter Eggers are great chickens. People should get themselves Easter Eggers if they want a chicken. They have pretty eggs, ranging from pink to blue to olive green. They only lay one color in their life though, but it is different from the normal brown or white egg. You can't forget their puffy cheeks though, they always look like they have a bubble in their mouth.
