sebrights,

[mikeevensen]

:Hello, ,I am a 1st timer on this site, well i kinda was given a hen and rooster, they are the golden sebrights, good looking birds for sure. My Granddaughter and her Mother brought them over seeing that I have the area to do the raising. I never have raised chickens and was wondering how these guys would interact with other chickens (what breeds) or should I just stick to the sebrights as I want to have more than just the 2 if i am going to convert part of a barn into a coup, how big of a coup would i need, and also what type of a base , straw, shavings ? type of feed, she is laying now,,I am not to smart when it comes to chickens and want to do this right, how many hens could i have to go along with the rooster, any suggestions would sure help make the Granddaughter happy as well as the chickens, thanks, mike

 

[ivan3]

Greetings, Mike! Hornswoggled into the fold, huh?

At this point the main concerns would be food/water and predator proof temporary digs (if your barn is shrink wrapped ignore the predator proofing). Sand for a base/wood chips and a bit of straw to kick around. Anything from a dresser drawer to five gallon bucket can be used for a nest.

Please check out the FAQ pages and thumb through the coop pages (lots of good stuff).

Again, welcome!

 

[ClairedeLune]

! You will soon be addicted to the world of fuzzy butts. Good luck on your "journey"!

 

[Wooden_Pony]

I have one Golden Sebright in a flock of standards and one other bantam. She does just fine.

Her coop mates are a standard Barred Rock, standard EE's, standard Salmon Faverolle, and the other bantam is our Mille Fleur d'Uccle.

Sebrights can be flighty things! Since she is so small she can get some good height when she takes off so watch out on that one. She does well on egg laying, I pretty much get one a day from her since she has started to lay. If I had more room I would add more to my flock.

Hopefully, someone else can help you on your other questions.

 

[andorraclaim]

From my experience Sebrights are some of the hardest birds to take care of. They are very flightly, can be a little on the mean side, and fight to the death. In my layer flock my main Roo is my almost 1 year old Sebright Chulo.

This bird fought a 2 year old RIR for dominance and got seriously injured. During his downtime he contracted pneumonia and at one point didn't eat for a few days. Well that little dude fought and got better. He became so well, that now he is the main roo of my full sized layers (which consists of EE's, Leghorn X's, Barred Rocks, a Naked Neck, and a golden laced Wyandotte.

Did I mention that he flies? Alot. And not just get a few feet off the ground like a chicken, I've watched my dude glide. They are almost un-chicken like. Point being, this breed is strong and very dominant. They are not necessarily aggressive, their flight and toughness just give them an advantage over some birds. Not to mention they were critical in the origin in Darwin's Theory of Evolution (they are named after Sir John Sebright, Dawin's homeboy).

Anyways they should cared for like any other bird, a coop is crucial. Design one with growth in mind, especially if you are just starting out. You will catch the fever in due time.

I prefer hay to straw, for economical and softness reasons. Don't ever use cedar shavings, pine only, as it is poisonous. If your girl is already laying purchase layer crumbles (pellets may be a little big for your small guys) and some scratch, with a 2/3 ratio of crumbles to scratch. Maybe even more crumbles. I like to give my guys Vital in every other watering, Sebrights have crazy plumage, gotta make it shiny! I would recommend putting Apple Cider Vinegar in your water as well, every time, as it limits potential bacteria growth (which is good if you are not changing the water everyday). If they don't free range during the day, give them a bath box - 1/2 sand, 1/4 Diatomaceous earth, 1/4 dirt. Chickens love bathing.

And you can make babies! But that's a whole other thread.

Enjoy some quality birds. And if you can master these guys, I wouldn't fear any other breed. These guys are higher level. Good luck!

 

[mikeevensen]

Wow ! thanks for the replys, i didn't know how flighty these little dudes were until i turned them out into there new home, OK, being the ignorant chicken owner i am i have a dumb ? the hen has already layed a egg, if i was to just leave it in the nest(she made one behind a pallett that is leaning again the wall) would it end up hatching on it's own, I believe i have the coup pretty well predator safe, it is L shaped and pretty large with 2 walls being the exterior barn slated walls and the front two walls are wired to the ceiling, could i get the rooster anymore friends and would they need to be the same breed, you all have been very helpfull, just want to make there life as nice as possible, anything else you can think of would sure help this new egg out, thanks, mike

 

[ranchhand]

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First,

Second, there are no dumb questions!

Most hens will lay one egg per day. When they start staying on the nest, only coming off to eat and poop, then they have gone broody, and want to hatch their eggs. If you collect the eggs daily to eat, then they never have a full clutch of eggs and likely won't go broody.

Notice I said likely- there are no guarantees in chicken behavior.

I have a bantam GS roo, and he is a nasty little dude! I never turn my back on him, and every now and then I corner him, pick him up and carry him around for a while- just so he remembers I'm the boss. He hates it!

 

[andorraclaim]

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I do the same, the look on his face is priceless. It's a "I will kill you the moment you put me down" look. Hilarious. Such a bad little dude.

I do not know how broody Sebrights get. In fact, I don't think I've ever seen a Sebright lady sit on her eggs.

 

[mikeevensen]

thanks for the reply, when you say add apple cider vinegerto the water, what is the ratio, vinegar to water,, thanks
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[mikeevensen]

well things seem to be working well for the guy and gal, they seem to like what they have so far, i want to build them a run, should this be always open for them to come in and out,,also the size, i have all the room i need for any size, also feeding them, had some people at the co-op give me there methods and was hoping to hear from others as well to keep them healthy and happy, right now it is just the 2 of them , thanks for all the help, everyone has been so kind and helpfull,,
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