pure breed maturity

[chix88]

i have two hens ive incubated and hand reared one blue Orpington and a wyandotte now 6 months old but not got fully developed combs or wattles yet where as my 3 hybrids were laying at 18 weeks

do pure breeds take significantly longer to mature ?

 

[HighStreetCoop]

No, but some heritage breeds (and this def includes Orps) take longer to come to POL because they haven't been selectively bred for early laying like hatchery birds.

 

[chix88]

thanks didn't realise how much longer but loving watching them grow