Description and characteristics of the sibright chicken breed, conditions of detention
It is believed that chickens are raised only for the purpose of obtaining eggs or meat. But real lovers and connoisseurs of poultry breed breeds that are not very productive, but at the same time are decorative, give aesthetic pleasure by their appearance. Sibright chickens can become a real decoration of the poultry yard, especially since caring for them is not difficult. They are unpretentious and picky.
History of the breed
The breed takes its origin in England, when at the beginning of the 19th century it was first shown by John Seabright, whose name is also given to dwarf chickens. It took the English lord about 15 years to breed, during which he crossed dwarf betnams, Polish and Hamburg chickens. The result was a miniature poultry breed with beautiful plumage. Over the course of several years, she gained such popularity that the breeders created their own club, which included many noble people in Great Britain. Today, seabright chickens have become world famous and adorn many farmsteads and nurseries.
Distribution and direction
Over the course of two centuries, the Sibright breed spread throughout the world and at the beginning of the 20th century was brought to the territory of Russia. Most often, breeding is done for the sake of interest, but sometimes, despite the decorative and dwarf nature of the breed, they are kept to obtain eggs and meat that has a delicate taste.
Description and characteristics of seabright chickens
Seabright chickens are distinguished by their miniature size and low weight. Their plumage can be golden or silvery, with a beautiful black edging, similar to fish scales.
Bird exterior
When purchasing chickens of the Sibright breed, you need to know the main characteristics of the exterior:
- body with graceful lines, while looking wide and well-knit;
- convex chest;
- the neck is in the form of a trapezoid, short, curved back;
- the back is straight, gradually turns into a fan-shaped tail;
- head with a rose-shaped comb and smooth, rounded earrings;
- the eyes are large, the iris is brown;
- beak pinkish, bent at the end;
- voluminous legs;
- the wings are long, hanging down freely;
- metatarsus bare, gray, fingers far apart;
- the feather is wide, rounded.
Gender differences
Roosters and chickens have the same color: golden or silver feathers with a beautiful black edging resembling lace.Roosters do not have sibright feathers with sharp ends in the loins and manes, as is the case with other breeds.
Males are distinguished from females by the size of the crest and tail. Roosters have more.
Character
Sibright chickens are peaceful and non-conflict. Birds easily get along with fellow breeds. But despite their small size, they courageously respond to aggression, boldly rebuff the enemy. They are trusting, they easily get used to the owners, they are unpretentious in care and requirements for maintenance and nutrition.
Productive qualities
The miniature seabright breed is considered decorative. Breeders do not count on high productivity of the bird. On average, 1 chicken per year can lay up to 80 eggs, each weighing about 40 g. Representatives of the breed become sexually mature at the age of 3-4 months. In adulthood, roosters reach 600 g, chickens - 500 g. Females clearly show the instinct of hatching, if necessary, they easily hatch chickens, an incubator is not needed.
Disadvantages of appearance
When chickens are found not to meet breed standards, they are considered marriage. This happens if:
- the bird's body is rough and too long;
- the wings are not lowered, but raised or tightly pressed to the body;
- there are feathers with sharp ends in the mane and on the loin of the rooster;
- feathers do not have a black frame;
- has a double, intermittent or gray border;
- the color has black blotches.
Culling not carried out in time leads to a violation of the purity of the breed, and the herd degenerates.
Bird keeping
The rules for keeping the sibright breed are not much different from others. Taking care of miniature chickens is not difficult, they are unpretentious in food, they live in an ordinary hen house. But it is worth creating favorable conditions for their life, so that the birds grow quickly, develop, do not get sick, reproduce, and retain their breed characteristics.
Chicken coop equipment
For breeding chickens, it is not enough just to allocate a room, it is necessary to equip it so that the birds do not experience discomfort and feel great at any time of the year.
There must be a roost in the hen house - a place where birds sleep, hide from the weather. Its value depends on how many individuals live in the chicken coop. Allocate at least 25 cm per bird per bird. It is prepared from bars, poles and placed in the warmest place in the room, away from the door. Height should match the height of the seabright breed.
It is equally important to equip nests for layers. For this purpose, boxes or baskets are placed in secluded places in the chicken coop and the bottom is covered with straw. They should be about 30 cm high and 40 cm wide.
The feeders are positioned so that birds can easily reach food, but cannot tear or stain it with their droppings. Drinking bowls with clean water are required. The best option is a special device with a dispenser and removal of excess water.
There should always be a clean litter on the floor - dry sawdust, straw. As it gets dirty, it is changed to fresh.
A measure of prevention against the appearance of lice in the sibright breed can be wood ash, containers with which are installed in the chicken coop. Chickens “bathe” in it with pleasure.
Temperature, humidity and lighting
For small rocks, it is very important to maintain the temperature within 15-21 ⁰С, since they are thermophilic and the drops are destructive for them. In winter, it should not fall below 15 ° C.
Dampness has a detrimental effect on the health and productivity of sibrites; in the poultry house, the humidity should not rise above 60%. To reduce it, they arrange forced ventilation or a window, more often they change the litter. It is worth remembering that the sibright breed does not tolerate drafts..
Additional lighting in the coop is necessary as poultry can only fly if daylight hours are extended to 17 hours. Light is also needed for the comfortable existence of the bird.Due to poor vision in complete darkness, they cannot perch, so the lighting must be turned off gradually - first leaving one light bulb, and then turning it off.
Place for walking
The Sibright breed of chickens always behaves actively, poorly tolerates cellular content. Optimal for them is free range in the aviary and living in the poultry house. A yard for walks is usually made on the leeward side of the poultry house, fencing it on all sides with a netting-netting at least 2 meters high.
It is advisable to close the upper part so that the birds cannot overcome the fence.
A shed is installed inside the courtyard so that the chickens have a place of escape from the heat and rain. Drinking bowls and feeders are installed not only indoors, but also outdoors. Experts believe that a nipple drinker and a hopper trough are most suitable. A bed of hay, straw, sawdust is periodically poured onto the ground.
Sanitation and hygiene
When ventilating the room where the chickens are, it is necessary to curtain the door and the window with a net that serves to protect the room from insects.
With the onset of warm weather, in spring, the hen house is cleaned and disinfected. The treatment is carried out with caustic soda (2%) or formalin according to the instructions. To kill bacteria, the walls of the poultry house are whitewashed with lime, wormwood brooms are hung. Two days after the treatment, the chickens are launched into the poultry house.
One of the main conditions for maintaining the health of the Seabright breed is the timely vaccination of the livestock.
Diet
Sibright chickens are born a day earlier than other breeds. Their diet during this period is made up of chopped boiled egg with well-sifted compound feed. The frequency of feeding is at least 6 times. Two days later, the chickens are fed millet porridge with the addition of greens. Gradually, food is transferred to a four-day regimen. After changing the down to a feather, the young bird begins to be fed like adult chickens:
- grain;
- milk;
- greens;
- beets;
- yogurt.
Seasonal molt
The seasonal change of feathers in the Seabright breed takes place annually in the fall and lasts about one and a half months. During this period, it is necessary to support the immune system of the bird with the help of feed rich in sulfur and vitamins:
- cabbage;
- boiled fish;
- meat waste;
- clover;
- peas.
Breeding of decorative birds
Roosters become sexually mature at 4 months, chickens at 3. The breeding process continues throughout the year, excluding the molting period. The Seabright breed is capable of hatching eggs. To do this, you need to make a nest in a secluded corner of the house by placing a basket of hay at the bottom and placing a liner there. As soon as the hen sits in the nest and does not leave it, eggs are laid under it (no more than 6 pieces). Food and drink are placed closer to her. Sibraits have a developed maternal instinct and, after breeding, take care of it carefully.
Diseases and prevention
Diseases inherent in other breeds are characteristic of sibright chickens. They can be acute and more dangerous to miniature birds due to their weak immunity. Among the main diseases:
- rhinotracheitis - caused by a virus, affects the respiratory, nervous, reproductive systems;
- Marek's disease - the virus leads to paresis and paralysis of the limbs;
- mycoplasmosis - an infectious disease of the respiratory system;
- salmonellosis is a pathology of bacterial origin that affects the gastrointestinal tract, respiratory organs.
For prevention, it is necessary to monitor the conditions of keeping the poultry, timely vaccinating the chickens. It is carried out in two ways - by injections and by adding a drug to the drink. The vaccination schedule assumes vaccination in the first two days against salmonellosis and Marek's disease. Vaccination against coccidiosis is done one week after birth, from infectious bursitis - in the fourth week of life with revaccination after eight days.
About when to vaccinate miniature seabright chickens, you should consult with a veterinarian and strictly follow his instructions.
Possible growing problems
When breeding miniature chickens of the Sibright breed, you need to more carefully monitor the purity of the content and take measures in advance to prevent diseases:
- change the litter more often in the house;
- throw away the half-eaten wet food;
- monitor the purity of the water in the drinking bowl;
- periodically disinfect the premises;
- if the chicken is sick, it is evicted and quarantined elsewhere.
Despite all the difficulties of growing miniature birds, this activity is very interesting and exciting for amateurs. Despite the low productivity, the taste of the eggs of the Seabright breed resembles that of quail, and the meat looks like a partridge. But most often they are of interest to breeders only from an aesthetic point of view.
