Brown Leghorns: Pics, Info, and Resources

[henaynei]

Mine are still running around like preschoolers - won’t be still enough for me to get pictures
Only time they’re still is when they sleep.

 

[Alaskan]

Do you have any pictures?

Let me search... these are pics from last summer, so still pullets. USUALLY white acts as an incomplete dominant ... so one white over whatever should give you a white bird with a few feathers here and there of the "whatever " color. That is what a few of them were... and what I expected. BUT a few ended up with a cream/orange colored wash at the neck, some bits almost lacing.

Mine are still running around like preschoolers - won’t be still enough for me to get pictures
Only time they’re still is when they sleep.

Dark browns never grow out of that.

 

[ShrekDawg]

My Browns lay about as well as my Whites. My Browns started laying at around 6 months where my Whites started around 4 months. In other respects, to me they are all rather flighty. They are escape artists, at least mine have been. One named Houdini (guess why?), was tough to keep in and one day just disappeared.

Thanks, that's helpful.

chickens are chickens as far as noise...

My whites calm down as they mature, especially my RC whites.

My RC dark brown are always flighty, but they are great birds... lay well, long lived, pretty.

Right now I only have 1 Cock, a dark brown. Because of that the pullets I raised last year.. some are mixed color... nice looking girls.

That's true. I was just wondering because on another thread someone said that they read that they were noisy.

And a couple of my birds are noisier than my other birds. So I wondered.

I have a Barred Rock, 2 Buff Orpingtons (used to be 3), 2 Black Australorps, and 2 Easter Eggers. The Australorps and one EE can be very loud and obnoxious when they want to be and once they get going lol

Do you have any pictures?

Mine are still running around like preschoolers - won’t be still enough for me to get pictures
Only time they’re still is when they sleep.

Lol

Let me search... these are pics from last summer, so still pullets. USUALLY white acts as an incomplete dominant ... so one white over whatever should give you a white bird with a few feathers here and there of the "whatever " color. That is what a few of them were... and what I expected. BUT a few ended up with a cream/orange colored wash at the neck, some bits almost lacing.

View attachment 1375227 View attachment 1375230 View attachment 1375231 View attachment 1375232





Dark browns never grow out of that.

Ooohhh pretty birds!

So which leghorn is the calmest and/or best layer?

 

[Alaskan]

I think the whites and browns lay about the same when you look at yearly average... but I am really only saying that because the breeder I bought the eggs from said that.


My browns and whites are almost always kept together... so no way to know which hens lay which eggs.

What I can tell you is the whites pink up crazy fast, OFTEN they have tricked me into thinking they were male because of their crazy early reddening of the face.

As I said before, my RC and SC whites are flighty as chicks but settle down and mellow as they mature.

The dark browns never settle. I would guess they would be great at free ranging... but I don't do that.

I have only had 1 or two of some of the other colors, so I cannot comment on personality, but I can say that the funkier or more rare the color the smaller the egg and the less of them.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Thanks for all the info Al! So you think the white omes are the calmer ones? I thought I saw someone saying their browns were calmer but I am sure it varies. Whites are more common though it seems so I might get those

 

[Alaskan]

Do note though, that the production white single comb leghorns are very different from breeder whites.

I have had both, both mature into calmer adults than the dark browns... BUT, the production whites, though they will outlay almost any breed out there, (even the other kinds of Leghorns), they are VERY prone to getting issues.... . especially after a year of age... big death rate at that point.

The other Leghorns haven't had any of those problems, and have good health and longevity.

The calm Brown Leghorns you heard about might have been Light Browns, or Production/Danish Browns. Those are not as flighty as the Dark Brown.

 

[cmom]

Let me search... these are pics from last summer, so still pullets. USUALLY white acts as an incomplete dominant ... so one white over whatever should give you a white bird with a few feathers here and there of the "whatever " color. That is what a few of them were... and what I expected. BUT a few ended up with a cream/orange colored wash at the neck, some bits almost lacing.

View attachment 1375227 View attachment 1375230 View attachment 1375231 View attachment 1375232

Dark browns never grow out of that.

I was experimenting with my Rhode Island Whites a few years ago and I got the same coloring.

 

[cmom]

Do note though, that the production white single comb leghorns are very different from breeder whites.

I have had both, both mature into calmer adults than the dark browns... BUT, the production whites, though they will outlay almost any breed out there, (even the other kinds of Leghorns), they are VERY prone to getting issues.... . especially after a year of age... big death rate at that point.

The other Leghorns haven't had any of those problems, and have good health and longevity.

The calm Brown Leghorns you heard about might have been Light Browns, or Production/Danish Browns. Those are not as flighty as the Dark Brown.

I haven't had any health issues with my birds but production and those from breeders are different. My Single Comb White cock recently got a reserve champion at a show.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Do note though, that the production white single comb leghorns are very different from breeder whites.

I have had both, both mature into calmer adults than the dark browns... BUT, the production whites, though they will outlay almost any breed out there, (even the other kinds of Leghorns), they are VERY prone to getting issues.... . especially after a year of age... big death rate at that point.

The other Leghorns haven't had any of those problems, and have good health and longevity.

The calm Brown Leghorns you heard about might have been Light Browns, or Production/Danish Browns. Those are not as flighty as the Dark Brown.

Thanks Al! You've been very helpful!

That's sad about the health issues. Mine are pets so I'm not sure I would like losing them, especially so soon. :/

I know the production reds and sexlinks can burn out and get a lot of reproductive issues at around 2 or sooner, like prolapses and such, because they lay so much. Is it the same with leghorns? Or worse?

I do like the egg laying abilities though and have been thinking of getting some really good layers so I can sell eggs cause mine are going to be 3 years old in October.

But at the same time, I don't like any animal suffering so if laying so much or such big eggs causes reproductive issues or if laying HUGE XL or Jumbo eggs hurts them, then I really don't want to do that or encourage the breeding of them.

Does it seem to hurt them to lay big eggs?

I was experimenting with my Rhode Island Whites a few years ago and I got the same coloring.View attachment 1375942

Pretty bird!

 

[ShrekDawg]

I haven't had any health issues with my birds but production and those from breeders are different. My Single Comb White cock recently got a reserve champion at a show.
View attachment 1375976

Beautiful rooster!!