The Legbar Thread!

[dheltzel]

None of my CL roosters has ever attacked me, but they do spar with each other, and a few have challenged me (flare their hackles and crouch down into an attack position). None that have ever even challenged me have remained in my breeder flock and they are now all very mild mannered around people.
If someone asks me for a gentle, but protective, flock roo, I never recommend Legbars. My Ameraucanas, Welbars and Copper Marans (in that order) all seem like better flock roos to me.

 

[GaryDean26]

I would take one of my Legbars cocks over one of my Black Copper Marans any day. I guess that just goes to show that every line is a little different. My meanest cock is my Batam Cochin. If he weren't small and cute (and my daughter's bird) he wouldn't get away with half of what he does.

 

[bchomestead]

I have 12 6-week old chicks in a pen together with a small hanging feeder and a bottle baby goat as their neighbor, so I have a chance to watch them eat after I give them feed as I'm feeding the goat. They do seem to eat differently than most breeds I have -- they don't peck, they act like an excavator hoe, one that opens and closes. So they scoop up so much (Purina starter/grower) that they drop most of it and only a bit goes down the hatch, most of the rest ends up out of the feeder. There will be finer grain remnants left in the tray that will be there for hours and they'll peck at it, but it's still there. Has anyone else noticed this eating style with legbars?

 

[Altairsky]

Hi! Can any expert help me chose the best looking CCL cockerel?
Here is the thread:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/cream-legbar-help-me-chose-the-best-cockerel.1641458/

 

[RememberTheWay]

Could of swore I was reading something the other day about shank color on cream leg bars and something about dark streaking on the yellow legs. Does this ring a bell with anyone here? Am I getting another breed mixed up? I can't seem to find what I was reading now....

 

[GaryDean26]

Could have swore I was reading something the other day about shank color on cream leg bars and something about dark streaking on the yellow legs. Does this ring a bell with anyone here? Am I getting another breed mixed up? I can't seem to find what I was reading now....

The shank color for the Legbar is Yellow. Some Legbar get a really bright yellow which most breeders prefer and other Legbars get a pale yellow color that turns nearly while as the hen loses color in the skin from laying. I have seen some get green dermal spots. I haven’t seen the black streaks in pure Legbars. That is something I would expect in a cross to a birds with slate shanks.

 

[RememberTheWay]

The shank color for the Legbar is Yellow. Some Legbar get a really bright yellow which most breeders prefer and other Legbars get a pale yellow color that turns nearly while as the hen loses color in the skin from laying. I have seen some get green dermal spots. I haven’t seen the black streaks in pure Legbars. That is something I would expect in a cross to a birds with slate shanks.

Maybe it was green and not black? Do you happen to have any examples of these green dermal spots on a Legbar?

 

[dheltzel]

None of my CL roosters has ever attacked me, but they do spar with each other, and a few have challenged me (flare their hackles and crouch down into an attack position). None that have ever even challenged me have remained in my breeder flock and they are now all very mild mannered around people.
If someone asks me for a gentle, but protective, flock roo, I never recommend Legbars. My Ameraucanas, Welbars and Copper Marans (in that order) all seem like better flock roos to me.

To provide an update to this. My line of pure, Rees derived, Creams have a perfect record for docility over the past 5+ years. As an aside, I have kept birds for more than 5 years and the hens are still great layers and fully fertile, but the cocks seem to wear out after 3 or so years. I now replace cocks every year or every 2 years. It could be they are affected by the higher calcium of the layer feed the flock gets when actively laying.

... then I acquired some Opal Legbars from another breeder. These were full of "issues" - the recessive white egg gene from the Isabel Leghorns that were created from, poor cresting (at least compared to the Rees Creams) and the aggression in the cocks was back, and much worse. I have spent the last few years fixing all these problems, and they are much better now, only some aggression remains. They are also larger than the Creams, but they lay at least as well and the eggs are identical, so I may select for smaller body size once the aggression issue is resolved.

I find the Opal chicks sell even better than the Creams, and almost everyone wants at least a few of each it seems.

 

[RememberTheWay]

I now replace cocks every year or every 2 years. It could be they are affected by the higher calcium of the layer feed the flock gets when actively laying.

This is an interesting thought. I feed an all flock feed with free choice calcium on the side so it will be interesting to see if there are any difference notable between the roosters you raise and the ones I raise here with them being the same blood lines.