Can they be pretty and still be great layers?

[CasualT]

I was wondering if anyone knew of any breeds that were very pretty but also laid large eggs through out the year? I've been doing some research and like the looks of the lavender and lemon orpingtons so far.

 

[Winisk]

Have you looked at Wyandottes?

 

[CasualT]

I have actually, my mother has a silver laced and a gold laced hen. Very pretty but in all the times I have been in the coop I pretty much never see them in a nesting box. Maybe they are hiding their eggs? How often do they usually lay?

 

[AinaWGSD]

It depends on the stock your birds are from to some extent. I have a silver laced wyandotte from a hatchery and she lays nearly every day. Big round eggs too, very nice. She's a bit "ugly" as far as the breed standard goes (body type is all wrong, pinched tail, lacing isn't great, she has the wrong comb type, and some weird thing up with one of her eyes that causes the pupil to be constantly constricted) but most people who see her think she's "pretty." And while I don't think she's nearly as stunning as a wyandotte with proper lacing and body type I hardly think she's hideous as a chicken (just as a wyandotte according to the breed description in the SOP). Birds from a breeder that breeds to the standard I think generally tend to lay fewer eggs, but from my understanding their egg production isn't awful either. They also tend to lay eggs consistently for a longer period of time, instead of laying lots of eggs for the first 2-3 years and then tapering off to laying very few eggs in the years after that.

 

[NYREDS]

I have Golden Campines from one of the best show lines in the country & they are fantastl layers. I kept 4 hens to breed from this year & get 4 veggs almost evry day, never less than 3. In my opinion Golden Campines are one of the most beautiful birds there are.