Are Easter Eggers Weak/Fragile?

[ClareScifi]

I've been researching EEs and came across this link that claims EEs are weak and not heat tolerant? Is this true?:

http://www.phoenixpermaculture.org/...&xg_source=activity&groupId=2008067:Group:762

I came across a second link in which the poster said EEs are the only type of "fragile" chicken she has raised and she went on to list all the maladies they had succumbed of and how several had died while she was away on vacation.

I have a little EE guy, and as a chick he survived a day with temps of 112. He was just tiny, but he had few feathers, so maybe that's why he made it?

I am thinking now I had better not plan to go on vacation this summer so I can stay at home and make sure he stays in the deep shade and gets plenty of watermelon on hot summer days, if this is true about them lacking heat tolerance and being weak/fragile.

Clare

 

[ClareScifi]

Also, I was wondering whether the "lethal gene" I've been reading so much about refers to this tendency to be weak and fragile and die young?

Thanks for your help.

 

[CapricornFarm]

I have EE, we had a super hot summer. I lost 4 birds due to heat, despite all my efforts . None of them were EE. I would not say they are weak or fragile birds. I had more problems with the silkies not tolerating heat.

 

[BANTAMWYANDOTTE]

Try ordering a few EE's from a hatchery and then crossing them into a more hardy breed like the Jersey Giant. This Combo worked well for me and I still have EE's that lay Green Eggs and are more hardy than their parents. Remember EE's are mutts so crossing them will still produce an EE

 

[ClareScifi]

Thanks for the replies.

My little EE guy had an EE mother and a white leghorn father. The way the article was worded it makes me wonder whether chicken crosses are more weak and fragile than purebred chickens?

Do you think my guy's white leghorn parentage will help make him more heat tolerant and less weak, or less heat tolerant and more weak?

Clare

 

[jessicadawn]

I have a friend here who started with Ameraucanas and now breeds EE's from them because she firmly believes the latter are hardier. We don't live in a hot climate though. Hottest it gets is approx. 95 degrees farenheit for a few days at a time only.

 

[ClareScifi]

I am pretty scared now. I lost my beloved Barred Rock Hen, Merry Easter, last summer on August 25, when the temperature was 98 F. I was away on vacation. I'm sure she'd be alive if I had been home to get her into the deep shade and give her watermelon. She hated the heat and panted all summer. But I didn't think it was going to be that hot that day.

 

[Lesalynn]

Hi Clare! I live in Louisiana where it gets pretty hot. We have several breeds of chickens, including EEs. We keep plenty water available with ample shade. In the 3+ years we have had chickens I have lost only one during extreme heat, a Cokumbian Wyandotte. But I think his death was most likely due to old age. Every one of my EEs seem to be just as hardy as the rest of my flocks. They are very easy keepers and consistent layers. Also, they are quite sociable and very sweet. Good luck with yours, I believe you will enjoy it very much.

 

[1muttsfan]

My EE's have always been hardy, sturdy good layers that tolerate both cold and heat without issues.

 

[ClareScifi]

This is encouraging news. My little guy is so cute. I gave him mixed spring greens this morning and he ate every type! It is so nice to have a non-picky eater in the household, for a change! Do your EEs have great appetites, too?

Clare