Australorps breed Thread

[L2fly]

L2fly,
Even though I am a BA breeder, if you are just looking for egg production then nothing beats a good Leghorn Line period. Sex links are good producers for about 2 years then they taper off. BA's are just all around good birds for many reasons other than eggs compared to a Leghorn.
Kurt

Hi RRW... you've given me something to think about, maybe I'm weighing egg production too high... for example, I also need a non-flighty bird (I'd like to let them free-range occasionally and I'll need to trim flight feathers so they don't end up in neighbor's yard, over 6 ft fence!) and quiet would be a plus... And thanks for the info about Sex Links, I wasn't aware of the shorter laying period. What attracted me to those was you could select hens much more reliably, I'm only getting 3 to start (have a 20 sq ft run) and I can't have a rooster, for sure, in my neighborhood.

Thanks!

 

[ronott1]

Hello all, I had a hatchery recommend a Black Australop for my new, small (2-3 birds) backyard flock, as he said they were the best egg producers. Up to now I was considering White Leghorns, Road Island Reds, Plymouth Rocks, and the Black and Red Sex Link birds. Egg production is a priority for me, as well as easy keeping, because I'm new at this.

Now I'm curious about the Australops, and am wondering if they are heat tolerant? I live in the Central Valley, CA, and it can get triple digits for a few weeks at a time in the summer... TIA!

BAs do very well in the heat. They are winter layers and will lay a nice number of eggs, especially BAs from a hatchery.

Leghorns will usually lay more but they often need light in the winter.
Sexlinks from a hatchery will lay a bit less than a leghorn and a bit more than a BA

Temperament might be your deciding factor though. Leghorns will make more noise usually and have a tendency to wander in a city. They will go over fences which might not be good if the neighbors have dogs. BAs will usually stay home. and do not fly up too high into things.

One problem with both leghorns and sexlinks is actually egg laying problems. Sometimes they lay so many large egg that they will prolapse their vent or get an egg stuck.

 

[L2fly]

BAs do very well in the heat. They are winter layers and will lay a nice number of eggs, especially BAs from a hatchery.

Leghorns will usually lay more but they often need light in the winter.
Sexlinks from a hatchery will lay a bit less than a leghorn and a bit more than a BA

Temperament might be your deciding factor though. Leghorns will make more noise usually and have a tendency to wander in a city. They will go over fences which might not be good if the neighbors have dogs. BAs will usually stay home. and do not fly up too high into things.

One problem with both leghorns and sexlinks is actually egg laying problems. Sometimes they lay so many large egg that they will prolapse their vent or get an egg stuck.

Thank you, ronott1. BAs are now on my list... and Leghorns are off, I'm not in a good spot for adventurous, noisy birds!

 

[pioneerchick816]

@L2fly
My Leghorn is SUPER noisy when she finishes laying and she is able to fly so much higher than everyone else because she is so light. She is also super flighty, but I've grown to appreciate that because they freerange on my acreage and hawks are a BIG problem. She is a great warning system to all the other ladies

 

[BlueBaby]

Hi BlueBaby!

I'm still considering what ground cover to put on my coop's dirt floor, and I read that sand is nice because they can dig cool spots in it during summer heat, and you can wet it to make it even cooler... any thoughts about that? I'm not sure I'll be able to set up a misting system... although now that the drought is over, maybe! TIA!

My coop has a dirt floor. They still dig in it. It's not good to wet inside of the coop. If there is a run you can wet that, being careful not to wet inside of the coop.

 

[L2fly]

My coop has a dirt floor. They still dig in it. It's not good to wet inside of the coop. If there is a run you can wet that, being careful not to wet inside of the coop.

Whoops, my bad, I typed coop but meant run (I'm still working on the lingo!). I'll have pine shavings in coop, sand in run, and possibly wet the sand in the run on 100+ degree day, is what I was thinking!

 

[Cluckcluck1215]

Has anyone bred a BR roo to a BA hen?If so, what did it come out like?

 

[combatfuzzball]

Just got 6 brand new black Australorps. They're so tiny next to my 3 week old Easter Eggers. They are getting along great with the little ones following the bigger ones around. They're all straight run so going to be interesting to see what is what when they get bigger. Hoping for at least one rooster. Going to be a colorful egg basket when they all start laying. Any special tips about Australorps? I know all chicken breeds are different. HA! All chickens are different.

 

[Cluckcluck1215]

 Just got 6 brand new black Australorps. They're so tiny next to my 3 week old Easter Eggers. They are getting along great with the little ones following the bigger ones around. They're all straight run so going to be interesting to see what is what when they get bigger. Hoping for at least one rooster. Going to be a colorful egg basket when they all start laying. Any special tips about Australorps? I know all chicken breeds are different. HA! All chickens are different.

Hey hey hey neighbor!Were you in ME?I'm between Newport and Bangor!

 

[kingchickies]

Hi everyone! I have 4 Black Austrolorp babies that are now 6 weeks. Got them as day olds. They grow and change so fast! I was wondering if I could get opinions on sex.. I'm curious about 1 but think the others are girls..

And the curious one