mutt chickens?

[jwilson48]

okay first off i have a black australorp rooster. i have barred rock hens, isa browns, australorps, and a couple mystery hens. im pretty sure the barred rocks will make a black sex link. my main question is with the isa browns. i know they will be mutts, but will they be good layers? the australorps are good layers, as are the isa browns, but if they won't be good layers i will just breed the barred rocks and nothing else. i am referring to breeding the australorp roo to the isa brown hens. thank you

 

[donrae]

First, you're correct that your barred rock hens under your aussie roo will make sex link babies.

I'd think the isa hen crosses would make great layers, also. At least on a par with the barred rock and other aussie babies. Maybe not quite as many as the mother hen, but for most of us if a hen lays 5 eggs a week we're thrilled, we don't need 6 or 7 from each hen consistently like the commercial places do.

 

[jwilson48]

thank you for your input! yes 5 eggs a week would be perfectly fine to me! i hope the mutt babies have the same temperament as the parents. all my chickens are sweeties but especially the isa browns. i purchased them from a guy who was buying them from a commercial farm after their first season of laying was over with. they were cheap and have been great layers. but i know they won't lay forever like this, hence why the commercial farms get rid of them so young. hopefully their mutt babies will inherit most of their good qualities!!

 

[donrae]

You might look for Fred's Hens' thread on breeding the isa down to the third generation. He had some beautiful, productive birds!