is there such a thing as a bantam astraulorp?

[Sandrachx]

i know i spelled it wrong ... anyway, i really like that breed and wondered if there was a bantam size. also, if i get astraulorp chicks will they grow up and be kind to my silkies and cochins? i'm looking for kind, gentle, friendly chickens. any suggestions?

 

[fancyfowl4ever]

I know they have them in Europe, don't know about North America though.

To be Honest I like the Standard Sized Australorps a lot better then the bantams, but then again I like all my chickens as big as possible.

 

[EweSheep]

At one time I did see a Bantam Australorp hatching eggs on Eggbid about two years ago. The breeders were near the Canadian border but they live in US and had them imported from Canada a few years back. Now I dont see them anymore listed in Eggbid.

If you got the time and money, you can start making your own Australorp Bantams by crossing with Black Orpington Bantams with Black Australorps and keep the smallest chicks out of that year's lot and keep breeding smaller every year. might take you three to four generations to get down to that size.

Good luck!

 

[Sonia]

If I remember correctly My Pet Chicken has bantam australorps.

 

[EweSheep]

MPC has some Bantams but dont see any Bantam australorps. Perhaps Buff Orpington Bantams????????

 

[Sonia]

Your right...I'll keep looking. I Know I saw them for sale somewhere...

 

[Lobzi]

I have one....her pic is my avitar.

 

[Chickndaddy]

I had a breeding pair. I got them from a breeder in West Texas I believe. They were great little birds. Very sweet and friendly. The rooster was shown several times before I bought him and had a few titles under his name. The hen was very young when I got her. She was just as easy to handle, but she wasn't as relaxed in your hands as he was. Because they were from a show quality line they were gorgeous, but she didn't lay very well. And none of the hens layed an egg that looked alike. My friend got a quad from the same breeder. My hen layed a little dark brown, almost perfectly egg-shaped egg that leaned a little towards being round. One of her hens layed a really long pointy almost white egg. And all the other hens eggs were in between.

Ricky and Lucy

Edited to say: Excuse the grainy pics. I lost the originals and these are scanned from printed copies.