HERITAGE BREEDS
SILVER GREY DORKING
The Dorking was thought to have been brought to England by the Romans around 2000 years ago. This breed has five toes, unlike most birds that only have four toes on each foot. They come in many colour varieties but the most common type found in NZ are the Silver Grey Dorking, with single combs. The Dorking is also highly sought after as a meat bird in many countries.
The sex of the Silver Grey Dorking chick is easy to identify after around 4 weeks as the developing breast feathers of the pullet are a light brown colour as opposed to the black ones of the cockerel.
Hens are a medium - large size pretty bird, and are good layers of white oval shaped eggs. I have found that they will go broody during the summer months if a number of eggs are left in the nest box for a while.
Roosters develop into a heavy bird with a large full breast & are reportedly a delicacy to eat. They do take quite a bit longer than some of the other breeds to develop into a good size table bird though, reaching their potential at about 2 years. Their large combs are spectacular but some type of feeders can be difficult for them to use so care needs to be taken that they can get their heads in to feed.
BLACK ORPINGTON
The Orpington chicken was originally developed by Lord Orpington in the 1890’s in the county of Kent. They are a heavy breed and are considered a dual-purpose bird known for their egg laying as well as meat value. Their eggs are a tinted pink-brown colour and they can lay up to 230 eggs in their first year. They are also a gentle and docile breed making them good pets as well as a good egg layer. Being an English breed, they can also withstand cooler climates.
Orpington chickens are generally good foragers and their large fluffy bodies make an excellent variety addition to any backyard flock.
LIGHT SUSSEX
The Light Sussex has a white body with a black tail and black wing tips. Its neck is white, striped with black and has a very striking appearance. This is known as the Columbian pattern. The feathers around the neck are called hackle feathers and each one is black with fine white lacing around each. This is the most common variety in New Zealand.
The Sussex breed is a greatly productive bird, kept by many as a dual purpose breed, good egg layer and meat bird (rooster).
The Sussex is a very popular garden breed in many countries. They come in eight different colours and are an excellent productive bird. Here in New Zealand this breed has proven to be an excellent utility, dual purpose breed, laying good size eggs that are tinted cream to a lovely brown colouration, capable of laying upwards of 260 + eggs per year, in their first years..
They come in a large array of colours, including Brown, Buff, Light, Red, Speckled, Silver, White and Coronation, however some of these different coloured Sussex are very hard to get.
The Sussex breed, whatever colour, should be a large graceful bird with a broad long, flat back & a rectangular build, the tail should be at a 45 degree angle from the body. Their eyes should be red in the darker varieties & orange in the lighter colours and they have a single, medium sized, erect comb. Earlobes should be red with legs and skin white in every colour variety.
Old English Game
The Old English Game come in both standard and bantam size. It is a British breed of domestic chicken probably originally bred for cock-fighting. Since the abolition of cock-fighting in 1849, the Old English Game has been kept primarily for show. Even though their body size is quite small, their meat is well suited for consumption.
Old English Game have only a modest egg laying capacity, averaging 160 to 180 eggs a year. Considering their aggressive hereditary origins, it is advisable to be selective when placing them with other chickens. They come in a wide variety of colours, which include black, gold, red breasted, spangled and silver.
At present I only have the Old English Game bantam but intend moving into the standard size in the near future.
Cornish
The Cornish or Indian Game is a British breed of domestic chicken from the county of Cornwall in England. The Cornish were originally bred to be game birds. Cornish chickens, as well as crosses of Cornish are the most-used breed in the chicken meat industry. They are heavy, muscular birds and appear stocky due to their short legs and well-spaced legs (which can cause some problems later in life as they get too heavy for their legs).
They lay small to medium sized white to light brown egg and will produce a limited amount of up to 160 or so eggs a year. As far as broodiness goes the Cornish hen will go broody more frequently than you might think for a meat bird, but not as well as most of my breeds. They come in a small range of colours. The dark blue-green which can be laced and the Jubilee Cornish Game which are usually light wheaten in colour with light brown patterning.