The Welsummer Thread!!!!

[EweSheep]

Quote:
The legs should be yellow in most cases except for the laying hens which it is bleachy yellow. If it is white or pink, it is not acceptable.

 

[HHandbasket]

Quote:
It's a little easier to come across Welsummers here on the West Coast then it is Barnevelders and Heritage Delawares, IMO. They are pretty rare and their numbers are increasing

, but, I wouldn't say they are "extremely" rare, as the seller stated. $25.00 a bird is

pretty blippin' steep in my opinion, (sorry if to the seller if the seller is reading here with us, no offense meant in any way). WoW! I've never EVER sold a Welsummer for more than $20.00...EVER and that includes POL pullets, hens, eggs and chicks. For crying out loud.....for the first time EVER since having chickens.....just 2 short days ago, finally sold 1 bird and that was a Black Copper Marans hen 1.5 years.....AND she is currently laying and she was a cull, for $25.00.

Hugs to you and your family! She is a very loved girl and will be missed but you have done right by her thus far, know that my friend.

Depending on the quality of the pullets, $25 is not bad. I sell culls for $15 if they lay a lighter egg. $20.00 if the hens feather coloring is off, but lays a dark egg. If the hen has the correct color, and dark eggs - Anywhere from $25 and up to $50 per hen.

I only sell culls to backyard city people who use them for eggs. No roosters will be sold with any culls unless they are going for meat.

Nate

In my area, $25 for a purebred welsummer laying hen is a little high but not exhorbitant & I could see paying it for a good hen of laying age. However, $25 for an 8-week-old baby is just highway robbery. Somebody out there in Elverta's hittin the crack pipe a li'l too hard.

 

[Buckguy20]

Do you know where the white legs in Welsummers comes from? I have seen many so called Welsummers with white legs. Is there something in a certain line of breeding that might cause it?

 

[EweSheep]

Are your Welsummers hatchery stock?

 

[Buckguy20]

No I bought chicks from a "breeder" about five years ago, supposedly Barber line. I have added some more from another line, I can't remember the name right now.
I looked at your website and in the pics of your hens it looks like they have white legs. Is that just the photo?

 

[EweSheep]

It is the photo LOL! Believe me they are bleached yellow.

 

[EweSheep]

Well if the Welsummers are from a breeder, either it cropped up badly passing the white legged birds down or you are seeing bleached yellow, I mean, tinted white yellow. They should not be laying right now but can you take a picture of them? When they are not laying, they should be in dull yellow or yellow legs until they start laying.

Otherwise the cropped up would have been "production" lines somewhere.

 

[Buckguy20]

Thank you for the help. I will take a better look at them. Hopefully what I am seeing is bleached yellow.

 

[Tailfeathers]

Don't have much time but read thru some of the previous posts and thought I'd make two quick comments.

First, I sell birds to folks from the Canadian Border to the Oregon border. Most are to folks who have farms and want some birds. Many have been to Newcomers to the Fancy. And many have been to Urbanites who are allowed up to 4 females in their backyard. My prices are as follows:

$5 for Non-SQ (or PQ) Chicks
$10 for "Potential" SQ Chicks
$12 for older chicks (These would be PQ as if they are SQ, I'd be keeping them)
$15 for Juveniles (again, PQ only)
$20 for POL pullets
$20-25 for laying pullets or hens
Males go for anywhere from $5 to 25.

If I tried to sell a chicken here for $40-50 it would have to go along with the plague or ribbon that confirmed it was a Class Champion and more than likely would go to a serious breeder. That's just not what the majority market is here.

WRT the white leg vs. yellow leg, the problem with many of the Welsummers is that they originate back to hatchery stock where there has been no QA/QC done to ensure good leg color. The color has been so diluted that the yellow is almost white now. And when you figure in that one may be looking at a laying hen, it becomes even worse.

Also, keep in mind that just because someone tells you that their birds are "Barber birds", that doesn't mean a thing today. Mr. Barber has been gone a long time and once a person has bred their birds for at least three years, the line becomes their own. Birds may be a "Barber Strain" but it only takes three years to make serious impacts - positive or negative.

Leg color is one of the primary things I've been working on and just this year I've noticed some real improvement in my birds. And leg color as been a focus of my breeding for the past three years.

God Bless,

 

[pinkchick]

Welcome Buckguy!!!!!!! Glad you joined us!