Descriptions of chicken breeds of meat and egg direction for breeding at home

Using meat and egg chicken breeds for breeding at home is a cost-effective and interesting activity. Due to its unpretentiousness, rather high egg production, high live weight, good gastronomic properties of the products obtained, such poultry is grown not only by owners of private farmsteads, but also by medium and rather large farms.

Features of meat and egg chickens

Meat and egg chickens have the following features:

1. Possibility of obtaining two main types of products - eggs and chicken meat.
2. Rapid puberty - layers are capable of producing eggs as early as 6 months of age.
3. Balanced character - the bird of these breeds is distinguished by a calm character, lack of aggression in behavior.

Also, females of this direction are wonderful and caring hens. Due to this, when breeding offspring, it is often not necessary to use various expensive incubators.

Main advantages and disadvantages

The main advantages of meat and egg chickens are:

• high vitality;
• not exactingness to the conditions of detention;
• high percentage of fertilization;
• a significant tendency to forage (the fastest possible breakdown of the food consumed by the bird's body);
• excellent gastronomic qualities of the meat and egg products obtained.

The disadvantages of such poultry include:

1. Low, in comparison with purely beef breeds, the rate of gain in live weight.
2. There is a high risk of a decrease in the number of livestock when kept in a limited space (aviaries, cages).
3. Low egg production with poor care.

The best breeds

There are more than 200 breeds of meat and egg chickens in the world. The most common and popular ones will be described below.

Australorp black and white

Australorpus are chickens with lush black plumage, clearly visible, evenly spaced white blotches, a small head with a leaf-shaped erect comb of red color, short legs with pronounced pigmentation. The down of the bird is light, the skin under the plumage is white.

The maximum weight of roosters is 2.6 kilograms, chickens - no more than 2.2 kilograms. For the year, the productivity of Australorp egg products is 200-220 pieces.

Adler silver

Possessing light yellow plumage, the Adler silver chickens have a very dense constitution - a massive chest and back, a large and rounded head, crowned with a leaf-shaped ridge, a powerful beak and fledgling legs of a bright yellow color.

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Egg production is relatively low - no more than 180 pieces. The weight of males reaches 4 kilograms, females - no more than 3 kilograms.

White Moscow

White Moscow is a breed of Russian selection, characterized by pure white, even plumage, long and strong legs, a fairly powerful physique, a drooping leaf-shaped red crest crowning a medium-sized head.

The productivity of Belaya Moskovskaya is quite good: the maximum egg production is 220 eggs; males can weigh up to 3.5 kilograms, while laying hens - no more than 3 kilograms.

Hungarian giant

Hungarian giants have a beautiful lush plumage of dark brown color, a massive large body, a small head with an inconspicuous crest, yellow eyes. The mass of adult chickens and roosters is 3.6 kilograms. Egg production is not bad - up to 180-200 pieces.

Wyandot

Sedentary and calm black-and-white variegated Wyandotte chickens have a small annual productivity of egg production (up to 175 pieces), a fairly large live weight (up to 4.0-4.2 kilograms).

Zagorsk salmon

Unpretentious and highly productive breed of Russian selection. Females are capable of producing up to 250-260 large eggs per year. The live weight of an adult bird reaches 3.6 (roosters) and 2.7 (chickens) kilograms.

California gray

A breed characterized by a calm and non-aggressive character. Layers of California sulfur have a high egg production - up to 240 pieces.

With proper feeding, maintenance and care, Californian Sulfur chickens and roosters can gain up to 3-3.5 kilograms of live weight.

Kuchinskaya Jubilee

The bird of this breed has a large body, pale brown plumage, and an erect toothed comb. Egg production - up to 220 pieces; the live weight of an adult bird can reach 4 kilograms.

Maran

Breed of French selection. Its representatives have a very beautiful color of feathers, a massive and dense body, short and unfeathered legs. Females are capable of producing up to 170 large eggs with a chocolate-colored shell per year. Maran chickens are appreciated for their rapid growth, as well as the excellent taste of meat.

Moscow black

A breed that has similar characteristics to the Moscow White. The only difference is the black feathers interspersed with copper shades.

New Hampshire

A very common breed in private backyards and poultry farms. Egg production is high - up to 220 pieces per year. The live weight of adults ranges from 2.5 (chickens) to 3.5 (roosters) kilograms.

Orpington

Orpington is a breed characterized by a variety of colors of plumage, massive body, small legs. The live weight of adults is up to 4.5 kilograms. Laying hens' egg production is average - does not exceed 160 pieces.

Plymouth Rock

American breed with variegated plumage. It is characterized by the following productivity indicators: the maximum live weight of an adult bird is 5 kilograms, the annual egg production is 200-210 pieces.

Poltava clay

Breed of Ukrainian selection. It is characterized by a massive body, unfeathered yellow limbs, short in length, and a pinkish, ruby-colored crest crowning a relatively small head. The productivity of Poltava clay egg products per year is up to 210 pieces. The live weight when grown for meat products ranges from 2.5 to 3.8 kilograms.

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Pushkin breed

It includes two lines - Sergiev Posad (Moscow) and Piterskaya. This bird has a massive body covered with variegated white-gray plumage.Legs are of medium length, without feathers, cream color. The head is round, of medium size. The crest is small, erect, leaf-shaped (at the Moscow line) or rosy (at the Piterskaya line).

The breed has average performance indicators: egg-laying hens does not exceed 200 pieces; the live weight of adults ranges from 2 to 3 kilograms.

Rhode Island

A traditional breed of chickens of meat and egg direction, whose representatives have a massive body, brown-red plumage, an erect leaf-shaped scallop. Rhode Island females produce up to 200-210 eggs per year. Adult Rhode Island chickens and roosters weigh up to 3.8-4 kilograms.

Ukrainian ushanka

Unpretentious and medium-productive, this breed of Ukrainian selection, widespread earlier, is now rare. A characteristic feature of the Ukrainian earflaps are small tufts of feathers near the auricles.

Laying hens have an egg production of up to 190 eggs. With proper care and feeding, chickens and roosters of the Ukrainian earflaps reach 3.5 kilograms.

Faverol

Possessing lush plumage, characteristic "sideburns", adults of this breed weigh up to 4 kilograms. Egg production of chickens - 180 pieces.

Shaver

Breed of Dutch origin with three colors of plumage - white, dark brown, dark. Adult birds weigh, on average, 2 kilograms. The low live weight of the bird is compensated by the high egg production - layers of this breed produce 220-250 eggs per year.

Why is it profitable to breed chicken meat and egg breeds

The benefits of growing chickens of these breeds are:

1. Obtaining 2 types of products - homemade eggs and chicken.
2. Unpretentiousness to conditions and disease resistance.
3. Getting chickens in a natural way - chickens of this direction are caring hens, so there is no need to buy chickens or a special incubator.

In addition, these breeds have a docile nature, so that caring for the bird will not cause much trouble.

How to choose chicks?

Chickens for home keeping should be purchased at poultry farms or from trusted vendors who breed certain meat and egg breeds.

When purchasing chicks, the following are evaluated:

1. Appearance - healthy chickens are covered with an even fluff, their eyes are wide open, shine, small wings are tightly pressed to the body.
2. Behavior - a healthy chicken stands confidently on its feet, moves quickly, squeaks loudly.

A sick chicken is covered with disheveled down, it has half-closed eyes, sluggish or even passive behavior.