Sourdough Hens

[servant_of_fluffs]

I live in the Seward Peninsula in Alaska (as in Nome not Seward lol) so it is very cold and windy. I have had very bad luck with hatchery stock, but when I hatched my own mixed breed they did great!

Vision:
Look like willow ptarmigan with summer plumage (barred tolbuntish )

• very cold hardy
• dual purpose with broad breast like the APA Wyandotte (hens: 4-6 lbs, roos: 6-8 lbs)
• muffs/beards
• very disease resistant
• small rose combs
• small preferably forward facing crest
• pinkish brown eggs with speckles
• maybe feathered feet like the Pavloskaya

I want them to lay consistently into old age, but not an unhealthy amount like traditional breeds. The max eggs per year would about 100-150.

I have most of the components for this except for the crest and feet. What breeds do you recommend for starting this? (I'm thinking Pavloskaya, Russian Orloff, or Hedemora landrace)

Do you guys think the feathered feet would help protect the birdies from cold weather? Any pros/cons?

I'm what I call "alaskatarian" which is where I only eat meat I have ethically raised or hunted, so I crave chicken like you wouldn't believe, since I don't normally produce enough roos to eat for the year.

 

[servant_of_fluffs]

Griffin
This guy was named Griffin. He was a Barred Rock (Grim)/ something that had barring (Chainsaw?). He produced all barred offspring with gold/mahogany leakage. Griffin also had a single comb and 3 toes that got frostbitten. Shy temperment and sweet to hens after puberty. He only died because I ate him and replaced him with his son Abby.

He produced Abby (pea comb), Jinu (pea comb), Romance (pea comb), Creek(rose comb), Crook(rose comb), Crippler (rose comb), Croatia (single comb), and Cranberry (single comb/boss hen.) As you can tell they have themed names

 

[servant_of_fluffs]

Velociraptor
My girl Velociraptor. She definitely suits her name, always biting at my ankle if she's hungry. She is half SL Wyandotte hen and half Black Australorp roo (Viktor). She has a rose comb (obviously.) One of her brothers died randomly in the same hatching, so I assume that she is pretty resistant if it was transmissible. She lays lovely brown eggs with a heavy pink bloom.

This is a terrible picture because she was molting and looking quite raggedy.

 

[SourRoses]

Do you guys think the feathered feet would help protect the birdies from cold weather? Any pros/cons?

Actually, feathered feet are a detriment in cold. When they get damp, wet, muddy, that source of moisture can freeze. Think wet socks.
Better to be dry.
The best way to keep feet warm is a plush floof underside.
I like to call them pantaloons on my E. Orp type mixes.
That kind of floof helps on the roost, where they can snuggle their feet all the way under.
And it helps during the day, when they can stand on one leg and tuck the other up into their tummy fluff. They tend to alternate feet.

 

[tlcmurphy]

Actually, feathered feet are a detriment in cold. When they get damp, wet, muddy, that source of moisture can freeze. Think wet socks.
Better to be dry.
The best way to keep feet warm is a plush floof underside.
I like to call them pantaloons on my E. Orp type mixes.
That kind of floof helps on the roost, where they can snuggle their feet all the way under.
And it helps during the day, when they can stand on one leg and tuck the other up into their tummy fluff. They tend to alternate feet.

Beautiful birds!
I was going to say the same thing, stay away from feathered feet. I don’t live where it’s cold enough to freeze, but my French BCM constantly has soggy, muddy foot feathers. Hate them!

 

[servant_of_fluffs]

Actually, feathered feet are a detriment in cold. When they get damp, wet, muddy, that source of moisture can freeze. Think wet socks.
Better to be dry.
The best way to keep feet warm is a plush floof underside.
I like to call them pantaloons on my E. Orp type mixes.
That kind of floof helps on the roost, where they can snuggle their feet all the way under.
And it helps during the day, when they can stand on one leg and tuck the other up into their tummy fluff. They tend to alternate feet.

Thank you for your input! Yeah, that's what I read. I have noticed that northern birds who spend a lot of time walking on snow have feathered feet (like ptarmigan), but who knows how many of them don't make the winter. Pavloskaya chickens have a special type of foot feathering called "grouse" feathering that supposedly does better in cold weather. I mean they are from Russia, but IDK if that means much considering that our climates might be pretty different.

This is a random pic from online but if you zoom in the feathers are a bit different than say a brahma. It's probably still not that great in cold damp weather, though .

 

[servant_of_fluffs]

Chainsaw
Now for my girl, Chainsaw! I swear she was named that only because she made a funny noise. Chainsaw has a crest and a floppy single comb (looks like bacon to me.) She and 5 other hens, were given to us when we did not have a clue as to why that was a horrible idea. (Several of the chickens ended up being real sickly, but didn't get our flock sick, thankfully!) Chainsaw wasn't sick at all (resilent? ) just had gotten a nasty wound from a mean rooster. She looks like a crested gold legbar, but I'm pretty sure she doesn't lay blue eggs, soooo probably a mix! She is the possible mama of Griffin and grandma of Abby since she has barring (and Griffin HAS to be double barred since he produced all barred chicks.)

the girlie in the front

 

[servant_of_fluffs]

Plans for 2026:

• buy hatching eggs to introduce new genes (just have to figure out what kind!)
• hatch 2-3 batches of chicks in the bator or under a broody hen if one of em goes broody
• sell all chicks that don't have muffs and proper combs
• keep track of chick's mom with colored zip ties
• sell pullets that I don't like (not a good weight, not friendly, etc)
• have about 20 roos for the freezer

 

[fluffycrow]

Have you tried Chanteclers? I’m definitely not in the right climate to be giving personal advice and opinions, but I have heard good things about how they handle the cold

 

[servant_of_fluffs]

Ok. So I think I'm going to buy some Pavloskaya hatching eggs as a sort of experiment to see if they do better with the snow than my barefooted girls. If they don't do well, I have some neighbors who would love them, so win-win!