high egg producing EEs.

[Huskers lover]

Hey everybody I wanted to ask a question about EEs. I was going to buy some EEs from cackle hatchery and thought maybe I could cross them with a good egg layer breed to maintain the egg color but get more eggs. I thought maybe rirs but they offspring may lay more brown eggs than green or blue. I also thought white leghorns but they may lay really light greens and blues. Also let me know your thoughts on breeding my own EEs. Like crossing a good blue egg layer like Whitney true blues or azure blues (which I think are just mostly blue laying EEs) with a rirs, barred rock, or possibly even a chochlet egger. Also would it be wrong to cross a blue egg laying chicken with a isa brown or red star or even a hy-line. I know the plumage could literally be anything but the egg laying traits might be passed on and they might be really healthy because having genes from as much as four breeds.

 

[Huskers lover]

ps what would be the best roo over hen combinations for these crosses.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

I could be wrong but I think some of the “hybrid” Eggers hatcheries are selling now are exactly this—high production EEs. I’m thinking of Prairie Bluebell Eggers off the top of my head. Might be worth looking into those

 

[Huskers lover]

I have looked into those but a lot of times they have a specified egg color they are bred for like blue or green. I am hoping for a high producing chickens that lay multiple colors from dark green to light green, baby blue to powder blue, and sometimes pink. hatchery's do sell EEs like this but they tap out at 200 to 210 eggs a year I'm trying to get 300+ a year.

 

[Project Blue]

To get that high productivity you are going to have to start with heavy layers. It takes years with project chickens to get exactly what you want but very possible. I got what I wanted with Ameraucanas and early on had Jersey Giants and Black Copper Marans in the mix. I wanted a bigger chicken with Ameraucana traits that layed a bigger egg. and was sex linked. I did get what I wanted exactly but it took me 10 years and pit bull wiped out all my stock over night. I did have a eggs in the coop on the freezing night it happened. Out of those 1 hen and then got chicks from someone I gave chicks to earlier but she outcrossed with all kinds of hens but was using my bloodline rooster. It took me 10 years because I only raised small groups of chicks once a year or so. You could speed up your project considerably if you are more scientific and diligent keeping records.

 

[nuthatched]

I have looked into those but a lot of times they have a specified egg color they are bred for like blue or green. I am hoping for a high producing chickens that lay multiple colors from dark green to light green, baby blue to powder blue, and sometimes pink. hatchery's do sell EEs like this but they tap out at 200 to 210 eggs a year I'm trying to get 300+ a year.

That's a pretty high number, unnaturally high. Even production birds don't often maintain those numbers.
To maintain stock, you'll have to hatch pretty consistently through the year to cover the deaths of the hens since high production birds don't live long

 

[JedJackson]

Why not get a mix of different types of Easter eggers? Whiting True Blues, Whiting True Greens, olive eggers, a few of each.

Whiting True Blues and also Prairie Bluebell eggers are mixed with Leghorns already. They are the same thing under different brand names from different hatcheries, and should lay blue eggs.

Whiting True Greens come from Murray McMurray, and seem to be out crosses with red sex links. They lay a ton of eggs. I'm not sure if they lay 300 a year, but it is up there.

Olive eggers lay the dark green eggs. I wouldn't think they lay 300 a year, but they are good layers and generally larger birds than other Easter eggers.

If you are interested in breeding and experimenting, then yes, crossing blue egg layers with high production birds like red sex links, black sex links, and Leghorns might be a fun and worthwhile project.

But personally I would just take advantage of the work the hatcheries have already done along these lines. They offer many choices.