Does any body knows what are the parents for HY-LINE BROWN Chickens?

[Olekushka123]

Does any body knows what breeds are used to produce this one? Tried to find on internet but no luck so far.

 

[Michael OShay]

Thanks Michael for info. Also I heard that Hy-Lines are cross between RIR Rooster and White Leg Horn Hen or Australorp Rooster and White Leg Horn Hen. Which one is correct? Looks like there is no right recipe for how to create Hy-Line hybrids?

Hy-Line is a company brand name, not the name of a specific cross. Hy-Line produces a number of different strains and crosses for commercial egg laying purposes. They call their specific Red Sex Link, which is produced by crossing a RIR roo X LS hen a "Hy-Line Brown." They also produce an RIR roo X WL hen, which they call a "Hy-Line Sonia." The Black Australorp rooster X White Leghorn hen cross is sold by many hatcheries, and is usually called an "Austra White." Hy"Line also markets a strain of pure White Leghorn which they call a "Hy-Line W-36." It is Hy-Line's equivalent of the "Pearl White Leghorn."

 

[Michael OShay]

Ok, in order to get Hy-Line Brown Hens, what do I really mix with what? This is my first year having chickens and I have few different pure bloods. Also, since you are so knowledgeable in this area, what is the difference between Golden Comets and Cinnamon Queens? Cherry Eggers and Red Productions? Thanks.

Dear Michael, do you know what other breed I can mix Rhode Island White Rooster with besides its own kind? I have 3 of them, so would like to use them for something good besides chicken soup

To get Hy-Line Browns, you need to cross a Rhode Island Red with a Light Sussex hen. Golden Comets and Cinnamon Queens are almost an identical cross. To get Cinnamon Queens you need to cross a pure Rhode Island Red rooster with a Rhode Island White hen. To get Golden Comets you need to cross a Production Red rooster with a Rhode Island White hen. Cherry Eggers and Production Reds are labels used by different hatcheries for the same red gene rooster cross X red gene hen cross. You can get Cherry Eggers/Production Reds by crossing any combination of Rhode Island Red, New Hampshire Red, or Cherry Egger/Production Red. Cherry Eggers/Production Reds are not sex linked; the chicks are all reddish (both male and female), and cannot be sexed by color at hatching. Cherry Eggers/Production Reds are excellent layers but not usually quite the egg laying machines that sex links are. Other labels under which some hatcheries (depending on which silver gene hens are used) market their Red Sex Links are Red Star, Gold Star, Brown Sex Link, Gold Sex Link, Golden Buff, Bovans Brown, Hubbard Golden Comet, Isa Brown, , Shaver Brown, Babcock Brown, Warrens, Gold Lines, Lohmans, Lohmans Brown, Brown Shaver, Red Shaver, Bovans Goldline, etc. Black Sex Links are also marketed by hatcheries under the labels Black Star and Bovans Nera.

 

[Michael OShay]

Thanks Michael, very informative. I just was reading the reviews on hybrids and came across Hy-line Brown chicken. It was rated no.1 for laying eggs. So it is why I started searching what that was. Spent couple of days doing that and didn't find any thing. Wanted to try cross but didn't know what exactly
What LS hen and WL hen stands for? Thanks again for information. How do you know about all of this?

You're welcome. LS is Light Sussex and WL is White Leghorn. I've raised Red Sex Links with various silver gene hens over the years (Rhode Island White, White Rock, Delaware, Silver Laced Wyandotte, and Light Sussex) as well as Black Sex Links (RIR rooster X Barred Rock hen) and they all are no. 1. The Red and Black Sex Links have been my best layers, consistently churning out more than 300 eggs per hen per year. I actually prefer the Black Sex Links to the Red Sex Links as my Blacks have been somewhat friendlier, and a slightly better layers in really cold winter weather, but either way you can't go wrong.

 

[Michael OShay]

I also asked you about White Rhode Island Roosters. What are they good for? Can I mix them with other breed? What are your top 5 hybrids? Do you keep roosters with hens or separately?

Hello Michael, I hope I didn't offend you with my late email. If I did in any way, I'm sorry.

No, you didn't offend me in any way. I though I had answered your question, but I see you were asking about Rhode Island White roosters, not hens. RIW roosters can be crossed with any breed, but doing so will not give you Red Sex Links, just a mixed breed. It has to be the RIW hen crossed with a red gene rooster to get Red Sex Links. My top 5 hybrids are Black Sex Links, Red Sex Links, Austra Whites, California Whites, and Easter Eggers. If you consider Production Reds as a hybrid (not everyone does), I would put them in the list just ahead of EEs. When I've kept roosters over the years, I've kept them in with the hens (1 rooster for every 10-12 hens), however I've not had a rooster in a while. For some time now, whenever I've needed new birds, I've just ordered pullets from one of several hatcheries.

 

[Michael OShay]

I recently bought 26 hyline brown hens what rooster is the best cross on them

You can cross them with a rooster of any good laying breed and probably have good laying offspring, however the offspring will likely not be the egg laying machines their Red Sex Link (Hyline Brown) mothers are.

 

[Michael OShay]

Thanks if I breed them to a hiline brown roo what would I get

If you breed Red Sex Links under any label (Hyline Brown, Bovans Goldline, Red Star, Golden Comet, Cinnamon Queen, Golden Buff, Isa Brown, etc., you will just get mixed breeds (barnyard mutts) as Red Sex Links are hybrids that will not breed true. The offspring will probably be good layers, but will likely not be the egg laying machines that their mothers are and you will not be able to sex them by color at hatching.

 

[Michael OShay]

Does any body knows what breeds are used to produce this one? Tried to find on internet but no luck so far.

Hy-Line Browns are a Red Sex Link produced by crossing Rhode Island Reds rooster with Light Sussex hens.

 

[Michael OShay]

Hy-Line Browns are a Red Sex Link produced by crossing Rhode Island Reds rooster with Light Sussex hens.

I meant to say, "Rhode Island Red roosters with Light Sussex hens." Sorry for the typo. )

 

[Olekushka123]

Thanks Michael for info. Also I heard that Hy-Lines are cross between RIR Rooster and White Leg Horn Hen or Australorp Rooster and White Leg Horn Hen. Which one is correct? Looks like there is no right recipe for how to create Hy-Line hybrids?