Norwegian Jaerhon

The Norwegian Jaerhon is the only chicken breed that is considered truly Norwegian in origin. It was developed around 1920 near the town of Stavanger on the Southern Atlantic coast of Norway from a single pair of birds and imported to the U.S. in 1996.

The hens lay large white to tinted eggs and are considered very good layers. They are active and good foragers and fly very well. Their temperaments are very good, to the point of being friendly with their handlers.

Chicks are auto-sexing, which means they can be sexed at hatch. In the Dark variety, male chicks have a large white patch covering their heads while female chicks have a smaller white dot. In the Light variety, male chicks are nearly all yellow while female chicks have darker striped down their backs.

While a small breed, with the hens only around 3.5 pounds, it is a good layer and the hens lay medium to large white eggs. They are an active and hardy breed, that is rather reactive in temperament and good at avoiding hawks. They are excellent foragers, good and persistent flyers bordering on escape artists, and will roam widely if given the chance.

They are single combed and clean legged. They come in three usual colors, with their feather pattern looking like they have bad barring in dark brown, light yellow, and another color called Flame that was developed by Sandhill Preservation Center.

Jaerhons have single combs and white earlobes. Coloring on the Dark variety is primarily brown with uneven barring, on the Light variety the colors are creamy yellow with darker uneven barring. On both types the color is light near the head and gradually becomes darker going down toward the tail.


Norwegian Jaerhon Egg


Norwegian Jaerhon Chicks


Norwegian Jaerhon Juvenile


Norwegian Jaerhon Hen


Norwegian Jaerhon Rooster

For more information on this breed and their owners' and breeders' experiences with them, see our breed discussion here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chicken-breed-focus-norwegian-jaerhon.1124478/