In article ,
"Ray Drouillard" wrote:

"Glenna Rose" wrote in message
news:fc.003d094101d2f9723b9aca00ef08c800.1d2f98e@p mug.org...
writes:


Paul was very delighted to get a double-yolk egg this morning. I
told
him that maybe Racetrack (the name he gave his hen) gave him that egg
because he fed her so many bugs. She really is the best laying hen I
have ever seen. I think I'll buy a dozen black sex link pullets next
year. She only missed one day since the day she started laying, and
that is exceptional even for a hen in her peak. Most start laying an
egg or two a week, and take a while to get to peak production.

I've found the Australorps (sp?) to be reliable layers. This is only
the
second year for my Aracuna but she seems to be a steady layer also
easy to
tell since she is the only one laying blue/green eggs. g

We still only have one layer. The others are too young. I'm expecting
the Isa Browns to do very well. The Barred Rocks and Rhode Island Reds
are old classics, and ought to be steady layers for a long time. I
don't know what breed the white ones are (they were unexpected extras
that someone else had ordered but didn't pick up), so I don't know what
to expect from them. They look somewhat like leghorns, but have red
earlobes.

I'm glad to hear the araucanas are reliable layers. We have ten of them
(should have had an even dozen, but the person doing the sexing must
have had a bad day). We had gotten a pastel blue egg from a farm before
we moved up here, so when I found out what kind of chicken did that, I
ordered some.


Aren't pet chickens great?!

I certainly have no problem getting my middle child to eat eggs. He
loves to run out there and collect the egg from his pet hen, and wants
me or his mother to cook it up right away. We're enjoying the birds a
whole lot more than I thought we would.


Ray


I agree about the Barred rocks and RIR's being nice reliable standby's
:-) Our local feed store has gotten in the fall chicks. I like to get
them right now as the tend to start laying right about the time the
older hens quit for the winter. I picked up 2 of each along with a
couple of ornamental bantams, and dad bought me 3 more aracauanas. All
are sexed as hens.

By far tho', my most reliable layers have been red sex links, and also
turkens. The turkens were good for about 3 years before they slowed
down, and tended to be better winter layers.

Don't mourn the Aracauna roosters! They are very nice birds, and I've
never had a mean one... One rooster per 5 to 10 hens is about right but
if your hens start getting bald backs, you may wish to make soup out of
one or find it a good home. I've also found aracaunas to be one of my
longer lived birds. My one roo' is about 8 years old now.

K. (a fellow chicken lover!)

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