Best recession/depression chicken breed(s)?

[Davaroo]

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Great point. I spoke about this not long ago with a man who lived through the original Depression. One thing was clear = chickens were not pampered pets back then. It was tough for them, too.

 

[BirchHatchery]

so how would one go about makin my leghorns broody?

 

[Blaineiac]

I did read all these posts and just want to add...If starting with hatchery birds, I would chose a breed you are interested in and get at least 25 of them. I don't think breed matters much unless pushed to the extreme. There are just as many differences with in a breed as there is between breeds. Let them free range as soon as they're out of the brooder. Keep them safe at night and let them fend for themselves all day. Hopefully you get a nice trio to breed with next year. These birds made it through the gauntlet and hopefully will go broody and teach the next generation. I do think a little American, or Oriental blood would be helpful for a sustainable flock. I'm wanting to use Sumatras, Australorps, and Shamo, keeping a pure line of each, but mixing yardbirds for personal use. Hopefully it doesn't happen but if worse gets worse, I can depend on my mutts to get me through.

 

[GhostRider65]

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I would most assuredly agree with you they are a wonderful dual purpose breed, ,y extras roos at 20 weeks weighed out at 6 or better, and my girls lay every day or skip maybe 1 day a week and its winter time............ I will never complain about them, my SS are also very good foragers and lay well too though they are not as big as my dels......Kim

 

[GhostRider65]

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Though we are having above average temps just now, my neighbor has single combs chickens and they are in her barn at night not insulated, just a pole barn no heat ever and it gets 50 below here normally, I have seen it get 80 below with the wind chill, though not in the past 10 years, and her chickens are fine 1 roo got a little frost bite last winter when we had that severe cold like 50 below but he is fine.......

 

[bairo]

Quote:
Though we are having above average temps just now, my neighbor has single combs chickens and they are in her barn at night not insulated, just a pole barn no heat ever and it gets 50 below here normally, I have seen it get 80 below with the wind chill, though not in the past 10 years, and her chickens are fine 1 roo got a little frost bite last winter when we had that severe cold like 50 below but he is fine.......

Good choice. I love my dells. My # 1 Rooster just has to look cross ways at the girls when they are out and they come running. Today he looked up and thought he saw something, I did not hear him (though he must have rumbled) and the girls 30 feet away hauled butt to the coop. He counted every one of them too.

 

[colby318]

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I have to agree on the buckeyes. I have wyandottes as my main breed and the raptors pick them off like candy in a dish. The buckeyes (including a BLIND one) had the common sense to keep an eye on the sky. They needed less bagged feed than the 'dottes and free ranged exceptionally well. I appreciate a dual purpose bird that has the common sense to be able to survive everyday issues that predators provide...

 

[bairo]

Talking about frost bite, etc. Dont let that effect your decission. If we are talking a serious depression and I think my birds will be harmed by frost bite...Every one of them gets dubbed. If we are that bad off I cant worry about antibiotics to treat an infection from frost bite. A dollar for alcohol to sterilize a sharp pair of scissors though makes all that worry go away

 

[BirchHatchery]

in that case one could just go out buy how ever many hatchery choice heavy chickens and get a bunch of diffrent kinds let them run together and interbreed you would have vairous cross breeds and could breed off them for very long time

 

[salunra]

There have been a lot of work done with landraces lately. I wonder if any of them would make a good "depression era" chicken.