Considering Bielefelder

[Eggscoozme]

Eggscoozme

How do you know if you have good Bielefleders? I bought 7 Biels (6 pullets and 1 cockerel) in mid May. I have one laying , 3 others look close and 2 still have a ways to go. I do not supplement with light, so I don't know if it's timing our if they are later bloomers as you described. They all are large and plump (not as plump as my Orp but they probably weigh more). They are very affectionate birds , calm and confident. They have red earlobes. Some have darker faces than others. Their conbs are fairly small. Some otheir hackle feathers are a lighter yellowish versus a darker mahogany. The one that is laying (every other day) is laying a large egg medium orange / brown egg that started fairly average medium. She has been laying for about 3 weeks (right at 6 months). The Cockerel is much better than my Orp cockerel. Very alert to predators , tells the girls where good eats are and is not aggressive towards us.

My Biels all roost together , separate from my Orps.

Thank you

 

[Eggscoozme]

Their posture - many of my hens had a more vertical slope down their back, white earlobes, skittish.....quite frankly, I could have dealt with all that, if that wouldn't have laid a much smaller egg. The egg size was more like 55g-60g.

My original stock laid eggs that weighed about 75g-84g on average. Yes, they were super jumbo, regularly. Not just one hen, but all my original hens. Color was medium brown NOT light tan like the tainted stock.

 

[PattyNH]

Did you weigh them?

The last 2 eggs were 2.36oz and 2.39oz

ETA This hen is 2.5y now. I never weighed her eggs previously so not sure if this is representative of size prior to a few month break she took.

 

[Eggscoozme]

If those eggs came from.your 2.5yr old hen, then they are small. If they came from a newly laying hen, then that's hopeful!
The weights you sent me mean they are about 66-67g. That would be small for a full grown established layer Biel

 

[PattyNH]

If those eggs came from.your 2.5yr old hen, then they are small. If they came from a newly laying hen, then that's hopeful!
The weights you sent me mean they are about 66-67g. That would be small for a full grown established layer Biel

According to?...

 

[Eggscoozme]

According to?...

According to Greenfire Farms, my experience, and my experience of buying hatching eggs across the USA from people who had 2011 stock/strain. The "defects" were beginning to be noticed in 2013.
Its a bit amusing to see people selling eggs on ebay from "show quality" biels, and the Biels have white earlobes, the eggs are much smaller and more of a light tan. The judges from their area obviously did not know what a Biel should look like. There was also probably no competition.

 

[adtillma1]

I am considering Bielefelder chickens. Anywho, I have been doing a little research on Bielefelders. I love autosexing chickens so that is a point in their favor. Are they broody? Not fond of broody at all. What is the meat like? How do they do in the heat? Any info pros and cons would be great.

We have bielefelders and they do better in heat than I thought they would do. I live in south eastern NC where it is humid and hot most summer long and ours have done well but we also starting acclimating ours to the heat early in the spring. We haven't processed any of ours yet so I can't speak to the meat quality. I can say that the cockerels and roosters are the nicest roosters we have ever had. They are the only roosters that will let my 10 year old pick up and "tote around". The roosters are very gentle with the hens yet at the same time very protective. We have just set 21 pure bielefelder eggs and 28 bielefelder cross eggs in the incubator this past weekend.