Lavender Orpington Thread

[Faraday40]

Lavs will be 6 weeks old this coming Saturday. Any guesses on what I have I am guessing 4 hens 1 rooster, or 4 roosters and 1 hen.

I can only see 3 of the heads. From this angle, all 3 still look like females. Examining them closely & noticing subtle changes is how you will be able to know for sure. Take pics as they grow so you can look back as a guide for any future orp chicks.

 

[Faraday40]

Gender tips:

With my orps, I can see some pink in the comb & the wattles begin to drop starting around 4 wks. By 6 weeks it's easy to guess. A female's comb & wattles stay the same pale color.
Here's an example of a 4.5 wk old male.



Here's a few more at 5 weeks old. Pics were taken on a hot day.

Male blk/Lav split


Male blk/Lav split


female lav


female lav


female blk/lav split


By 8.5 weeks........




With some orps, the males feather in slower. Males still have bald, prickly backs while their sisters look fluffy & fully feathered. (This is not the case with my line. Mine all seem to feather out the same, so I must rely on the combs. Thankfully, mine grow their combs quickly.)

Here's an example of 3 orps given to me by a friend.
The 3 chicks in front are the orps, Their comb development was more subtle, but their feather growth was obvious.
Left: female choc orp
Mid: male choc double barred cuckoo orp
Right: male choc orp

 

[jerryse]

I have 2 lavender Orp pullets that have started to lay . Very poor layers so far . I get a few eggs then nothing for a week or so . Hope warmer weather and longer days help .

 

[Faraday40]

I have 2 lavender Orp pullets that have started to lay . Very poor layers so far . I get a few eggs then nothing for a week or so . Hope warmer weather and longer days help .

It should. Weather is a big factor. My English Orps are not the best layers. Anytime there's a change - like a new flock member, weather change, death of a flock member, change of rooster, & once even when I added a new feeder - the orps go through a period of less eggs. One particular blk lav is so sensitive that she stops laying every time another hen goes broody. When her BFF/buddy/sister died, she stopped laying for 4 months. About a week after she started laying, we rehomed a roo, which made her stop again. Of course that was last August, so 2 months later she began to molt & hasn't started up for the year yet. Darth Layer is my daughter's favorite, so she's pretty much a pet until the day she dies.

We keep a few high production chickens to fill our egg needs. Orps make great pets, eye candy, and lay a mediocre amount of eggs year round. They're still my favorite breed, though, because of their wonderful personalities.

 

[jerryse]

It should. Weather is a big factor. My English Orps are not the best layers. Anytime there's a change - like a new flock member, weather change, death of a flock member, change of rooster, & once even when I added a new feeder - the orps go through a period of less eggs. One particular blk lav is so sensitive that she stops laying every time another hen goes broody. When her BFF/buddy/sister died, she stopped laying for 4 months. About a week after she started laying, we rehomed a roo, which made her stop again. Of course that was last August, so 2 months later she began to molt & hasn't started up for the year yet. Darth Layer is my daughter's favorite, so she's pretty much a pet until the day she dies.

We keep a few high production chickens to fill our egg needs. Orps make great pets, eye candy, and lay a mediocre amount of eggs year round. They're still my favorite breed, though, because of their wonderful personalities.

Sounds like I need to add Australop to improve egg production . That is if I keep raising some of these .

 

[chick22]

Newbie here!! Our first shipment of chickens are arriving tomorrow. The kids and I are so excited, its like Christmas!! I was able to get a picture of the chicks before they headed to the post office. These are straight run so i hope we have at least one hen in the group. The seller made a few positive comments about the chick with the black beak has the best coloring out of the hatch. Im thinking its a male! I would love any helpful information you have about the breed and raising chicks in general. Look forward to talking to everyone and sharing lots of pictures

 

[Faraday40]

Sounds like I need to add Australop to improve egg production . That is if I keep raising some of these .

It's definitely a good idea, but they're not too bad.

 

[purplechicken7]

My beautiful boy, Periwinkle. He will be a year old this year. I also have 21 Lavender Orp eggs in my incubator that are due to hatch 3/21/17.

 

[RobG7aChattTN]

I have 2 lavender Orp pullets that have started to lay . Very poor layers so far . I get a few eggs then nothing for a week or so . Hope warmer weather and longer days help .

I've got Hinks-JC Line Lavender Orpingtons. They are American Standard, not English and lay a ton more eggs with much better fertility than my English Jubilees.

 

[keepsmilen29]

My beautiful Lavender Orpingtons, I ordered the eggs from eBay and was lucky enough to wind up with 1 male and 1 female. However, I am having such a hard time incubating their eggs . Is there anything special about incubating them that I should know. I incubate eggs a few times a year and no problems with other breeds including buff Orpington. But the lavenders are just not working out. These Two are a little over a year old. any help would be greatly appreciated.