Why do people dislike leghorns?

[lceh]

Okay, I know this is shallow, but I dislike Leghorns because that big floppy comb creeps me out! I might like the rosecomb variety though.

 

[A.T. Hagan]

The two major objections that folks have to Leghorns is that they lay white eggs where most backyard chicken folks want brown (and maybe green/blue) and they are an active, sometimes flighty breed.

I brood my Leghorns with my more docile brown egg layers and find they tend to be less panicky than a pure Leghorn flock would be.

My customers strongly prefer brown eggs, but I've gradually won them over to the appeal of a nice range of color in the carton. To that end they get white, blue/green, and as much of a color range of brown eggs as I can give them from that day's eggs. Seems to be working as demand is slowly increasing even though we're going into summer when local demand typically sags.

There's just nothing like a good Leghorn for foraging ability. Those girls hustle. And if anyone lays at all you can be sure there will be Leghorn eggs among them.

 

[NellaBean]

I have two white leghorn girls, who are a few months over a year old. Still laying a big ol jumbo egg for me every day without fail. Laid all through winter too. Very flightly girls who scream and flap when I try to grab them up..........but are the first ones to come running when they see me. Treat hounds.

Interestingly enough, I hatched out some of their eggs..........fertilized by my big jersey giant rooster. Kept 4 of the 5 girls (my neighbor got 1) and they are broodiest little birds ever. 2 are raising babies now, a 3rd is broody and trying to sit and the 4th was broody but I "broke her" from it. I had to get rid of the rooster as he turned into the nastiest thing ever.....but wish I had hatched out and kept more chicks.

I wouldn't want a whole flock of flightly white leghorns, but they are definitely keepers in small quantities in a mixed flock. When I was getting 2-3 eggs a day this winter, there were always the two big white eggs there waiting for me. The mixed daughters seem to be a better cross....beefier (chickenier, LOL) birds that are still great layers but also excellent broodies.

 

[ginasmarans]

I always enjoyed getting the huge eggs from my birds. Mine weren't overly flighty, but they weren't overly friendly and didn't do as well free ranging as the others, but I did have several go broody and they were wonderful mothers. I think they would have raised the chick until it crowed or laid an egg. Most of my customers want the darkest egg they can find,so I have not replaced them. Mine didn't seem as hearty as the others, they didn't tolerate temp changes and were more apt to catch a cold and die. They also lay out earlier,but that is probably because they lay so many eggs the first few years.

 

[Doug the Chicken Man]

We have our 4 leghorns in a mixed flock. We have white and dark brown. the whites are 2 years old and lay an egg almost every day. THe browns are close to that they may miss the odd day but they are consistant. The white are laying large to jumbo where as the brown are laying medium to large. our girsl have differnet personalities by bird. the whites are friendly one will easily let you hold them as they have been held almost every day for 2 years. the browns are a year old and are more flighty even though they have had the same treatments as the others. They are exellent foragers when out free ranging. they are not afraid to roam from the coop and they do keep thier head up for hawks. You see them head for the trees if they see a hawk. White may not be the best color to hide but they do run really quickly.My wife has named one of the white girls crazy legs as she runs everywich way. Our brown are a bit more flighty than the white.

 

[the4heathernsmom]

ok I have the same thing we have one white leghorn named floppy and she is the kids favorite and will come straight up to you let you get her and the kids hold and love on her. She is a good layer, dependable when not in molt. Now the other three brown leghorns nope no way flighty as can be even after having them a year they lay about every other day. They are 2 years old now. I would not get any more personally because they seem to not be able to be made tame. they will not even come in the coop when we feed, they wait until we back out of the coop while every one else is climbing all over us lol.