Icelandic Chickens

[OilyChick]

My next batch of chickens are definitely going to be Icies! Gorgeous birds and I like that they are so hardy and forage for most of their food!

 

[NotAFarm]

Sorry I've been absent....life is happening.

All three of my broody hens have now weaned their chicks and I have them in a separate coop until they form a bond with each other and give up trying to find their moms....dangerous for them and their moms since they run around desperately peeping and the hens are trying to dodge them by staying away from the flock and coop. I lost a hen to a hawk when she was trying to wean her chicks and was out away from everyone by herself.

Hæla is sitting on her two fertile eggs and they will be due this weekend.

I hope all is well with you and your flocks!

 

[arconfederate]

Good morning good people. I've been reading but not anything else. Work hasn't been fun lately. My two Icelandics are doing fine. I find that they are quite flighty around me. I'm certain that one of the pair is a rooster and the other is a pullet. My problem dog is still curious but pretty much avoids the run, especially if I'm outside. I beefed up the run security and have one or two other things to do. I let the chickens out of the run when the dogs are put up but they don't go far and are quick to run back to the coop. All in all, they are doing pretty good.

I have enjoyed seeing and reading about everyone else's flock. Keep 'em coming!

 

[nordahlbunch]

Does anyone live near northern California, have pure lines? I'm specifically looking for some more Behl eggs, chicks or chickens. I had a very low hatch of shipped eggs and will need some genetic diversity. Willing to travel to Oregon or possibly Washington at some point this summer.
I also should mention I have hatching eggs available from my grote birds. They are from all 4 imports. I've been getting very colorful hatches from this flock!

 

[IcyLady]

@NotAFarm
You were right with my grey chick!! It started making this rather crazy sound two days ago, and this morning I caught him in the act and managed to film it! I am assuming "he" is now practicing to crow. Is that about normal age for a possible crowing sound?
My youngest out of the bunch, turned 6 weeks old yesterday and the other three were 6 weeks on Monday.

Here's the one making all the sound (are feathers on their feet a common trait? it's the only one with them) what type of comb is this?:



The other one you said was probably a rooster (this bird is beautiful!), edit 6/9- made first crowing sounds this morning:



The pullet. Any idea what type of comb this is?



The other one which you said may be pullet..

 

[arconfederate]

Does anyone use a pedigree program to keep up with the lineage, genetics, etc? If so, which one? Thanks.

 

[snhchick]

Hi All,

I've started reading this thread, but it may take me a while. I stumbled across Icelandic chickens as I was trawling Craigslist for some interesting chicks. I bought 4, which will be three weeks tomorrow. The only other chickens I have had were a few Silkies, one of which was eaten by a fox and the other 2 rehomed when my roo went after my son. The Icelandics are certainly entertaining. I just put a stick in their brooder to roost on and they attacked the end that had been in the ground. No fear of a new object, just excitement about the smell of the ground and the possibility of insects. Can the chicks be introduced to the outdoors soon? I have a chick safe enclosure in a fenced yard. They are incredibly active and I would love to them them out of the brooder. For daytime outings do I just need to put them out on a warm day or should I wait until they are a bit older? Can't wait to see what colors I get!

 

[Icies]

I received an email from a local icelandic breeder about someone near me that wants to sell their entire flock. It's tempting to add some more girls but I don't have the space right now to get them properly introduced & frankly I don't have the time or mental capacity for any more issues. Not to mention, I need another rooster like I need a hole in the head! The post mentioned rooster tread on 1 of the hens. I have never heard that term so I googled it & it had to do with what I expected... Anyway, the website I read mentioned a courtship dance. The way they described it sounds an awful lot like what I see going on in the rooster pen w the new head roo. I really don't think there is a hen in there that anyone would be dancing for. I assumed it was some sort of dominance thing, albeit a strange one. I'm just curious if anyone has experienced something similar when its not courtship related.

 

[NotAFarm]

Does anyone use a pedigree program to keep up with the lineage, genetics, etc? If so, which one? Thanks.

No formal pedigree program for me. I have a small flock and so not so hard for me to keep track of the few I raise.

 

[NotAFarm]

@NotAFarm

I will definitely start doing some more research and reading.
Do you know if there are any "beginners" books on Icelandics available?

Here are a few more photos of my four. Boy was it a pain to get side views of them. I did my best and some aren't side view, but will share them anyway. (I threw in the names of them just for fun.. names are still subject to change except for Rey since we all kind of agreed so far that it's a pullet)


Mörgæs:

Your question about a "beginner's book" is a tough one. I wish such a book existed. Since your husband is an Icelander (you don't mention whether you are or not), you may be able to get some information directly from here:
http://www.hlesey.is/page2/page2.html
There is a contact me at the bottom of the page.

@NotAFarm
You were right with my grey chick!! It started making this rather crazy sound two days ago, and this morning I caught him in the act and managed to film it! I am assuming "he" is now practicing to crow. Is that about normal age for a possible crowing sound?
My youngest out of the bunch, turned 6 weeks old yesterday and the other three were 6 weeks on Monday.

Here's the one making all the sound (are feathers on their feet a common trait? it's the only one with them) what type of comb is this?:



The pullet. Any idea what type of comb this is?

Feathered Legs:
If you are sure that you got pure Icelandics, from a breeder there that confirms they have never had other breeds that could have resulted in crossbreeding, then you may have gotten an Icelandic with feathers his legs. I am not part of the group here in the U.S. that states that feathers on legs disqualifies a bird as a pure Icelandic. If there has been no crossbreeding and no genes have been "eliminated" by culling, the possibility exists that some Icelandics could have genes present for feathers on their legs (assuming that Vikings brought feathered legged birds back to Iceland from their travels and I believe that possibility exists). I have never had a feathered legged bird. I had one that had a couple of "stubs" (meaning the start/shaft of a feather) but I did not keep him.

Combs:
Because Icelandics have not been bred to any standard, the combs can be very different and may not be a "recognizable standard comb". A breed that has been bred toward a small, tight rose comb will have a very different look than the one that an Icelandic may have. The fact that the diverse genes have been "allowed to remain" means that our birds will carry multiple comb types within their genes. The presence of many different genes will give the combs a "messy" look to those accustomed to seeing birds with diverse genes removed by years of culling those that don't meet the desirable look. In general, a rose comb is dominant to a single comb. Here a couple of charts (drawing page from tbnranch.com) showing some of the different comb types that a breeder of birds that was trying to meet the Standard of Perfection (the American Poultry Association's book describing how approved breeds should look) would be breeding toward and some drawings of the many different types of combs you may be seeing.