Best Brood Hen

[Gatekeeper]

I am not sure if this is the correct thread, I apologize ahead of time if I have misposted this entry.

What is your opinion on which is the best breed for setting eggs under. Which breed is the worse?

What is the average amount of eggs a hen should lay under normal conditions, per year?

If a chicken and a half, lays an egg and a half - in a day and a half - how much does a pound of butter weigh?

HINT - one of these is a trick question. I would still like to hear your answes

I remain,
Gate

 

[arlee453]

1) Silkies are well known for their tendency to go broody on you. You still can't 'make' them go broody, but they tend to brood their eggs if given a chance. Worst broodies are your production breeds - the tendency to brood has been bred out of them in order to ensure maximum egg production.

2) Egg production varies widely from breed to breed. Your white leghorns and proprietary hatchery 'production' breeds are going to be your best egg producers - 6-7 eggs per week. Other breeds are less likely to lay steadily (like cornish, for example). Also, many factors influence the rate of production - feed quality, # daylight hours, temperatures, molting, parasite load, etc.

3) 16 oz, dry weight.

Two great links for helping figure out the traits of the various breeds:

www.mypetchicken.com has a breed finder wizard

For a great chart on the various breeds try:

http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html