Leghorns

[CHICKEN CRAZY1]

Leghorns are good layers,but I have heard they are flighty and hard to keep behind fences. Is this true?

 

[jenifry]

I believe it is all in how they are raised. Our chickens were handled from the day we bought them. I have recently aquired leghorns, they were raised by someone else who was very hands on. They were very docile when I got them, and they aren't any more flighty than the reds I raised. They are lighter bodied than a red or australorp and can fly higher. I would recommend trimming their wing feathers. I did so the second night I had mine, and they haven't ever gone over my 6' fence.

 

[NJchixs]

I have two exchequer leghorns and I think they are friendlier than described. They don't mind me picking them up at all. Keeping them in my yard, well I agree they are not that easy. The head right to my fence to squeeze through and parade around my neighbors yard annoying his dog. They are also the first two I've seen perch on top of the fence.

 

[CHICKEN CRAZY1]

Thank you so much for the uplifting input.

 

[CHICKEN CRAZY1]

Are they good around children?

 

[jenifry]

My kids do well with mine, and my children are 10, 9, and 6. Again I say, if you are going to raise them from chicks, be very hands on. I hear the roosters can be heck, but i have no experience with one. My kids have held almost every one of my chickens every day since the day we had them, and it does wonders for their temprament.

 

[NJchixs]

Agree, need to be hands on. My two young boys, 4 & 3, put our chickens on the playset with them and down the slide. They follow them up. Just look at my avatar, they expect someone to pick them up.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

I am head-over-heals in love with my white leghorn and plan to get a bunch when I move to a bigger place. I also have a brown leghorn but the white lay much larger eggs. The difference in size was bigger than I was expecting. The white's are HUGE and she lays one every single day unless she is molting - every 3 months or so she will lay 2 in 1 day.

The leghorns can fly really well; even with a clipped wing mine can get over a 5 foot fence or onto the roof of the coop. At first I just let them free range in the yard and my white leghorn would go visit the neighbors over the fence. I then fenced everyone into one part of the yard. She could still get over the chicken fence but none of my heavier large fowl can. Since then, she still flies out of her designated chicken area but will not leave that general part of the yard. She stays within sight distance of the flock and has not visited the neighbors in 2 years. Before she could still see them through the gate when she went and as soon as she couldn't, she stopped.

She was really skittish when we got her as a point of lay pullet (She is 3 year now) but I worked with her everyday with mealworms and now she is friendly and greets me, eats from my hand and squats for me. Not the overall friendliest but she has a lot of personality and is the most productive chicken I have ever had by far.