The Rhode Island chicken breed (less common name for Rhode Island) was bred by North American breeders in the mid-19th century as the result of crossing with chickens of various types and colors, such as:

  • Malay red-brown;
  • Shanghai fawn;
  • Leghorns.

The result of selection was the emergence of one of the most popular breeds of this poultry. Russian business executives met Rhode Island chickens in 1926.

Description of the breed of chickens Rhode Island

The breed of chickens has a characteristic plumage color: red-brown (always glossy), the feathers are tight. A lush tail of black feathers with a green tint. The body is large, rectangular. The head is medium, foliate comb contains five teeth.

Important!The non-rectangularity of the body is one of the criteria for in-breed rejection.

Live weight of males reaches 4 kg, females - up to 3.5.

Chickens Rhode Island

Interesting. In Germany, a reduced variety of the breed has been bred, dwarfs are smaller in size.

The female from the male can be distinguished immediately after hatching: potential laying hens have a special spot on the head, while in cockerels it is absent. But their color of down on the wings is light. This allows you to immediately form a herd for fattening and separately for laying eggs. Rhode Island chickens are excellently used in both directions of poultry farming.

Note! The egg production index is 160-170 eggs per year. The average egg weight is 58 g. The meat is distinguished by good taste and pleasant structure, eggs also have a good taste characteristic.

Keeping chickens

Ginger chickens

Feeding Rhode Islands is easy. These chickens are unpretentious to the diet, adapted to feeding on pasture. If walking is carried out in a limited area, the vegetation ends in a short time. In this case, Rhode Islands should be fed with mixed feed or grain mixtures, vitamins and minerals should be added to the diet. In summer, the bird must get green grass without fail.

Important! A high carbohydrate (potato based) supplement cannot be recommended due to the high likelihood of obesity.

Breeding chickens of this breed is not difficult and feasible even for a novice poultry breeder. As the holders of this species note, the instinct of a brooding hen is poorly developed in half of the hens, so an incubator is needed for breeding. It should be noted that it makes no sense to have thoroughbred birds in order to make a profit, therefore, this bird is mainly bred by enthusiasts in small farms. But cocks are successfully used to create new breed lines and broiler breeding. Fertility of eggs is about 85%, but if the breed is disturbed, it can drop to 65%.

Council. Top dressing with sunflower is also not recommended in order to avoid a decrease in egg production.

Breed advantages and disadvantages

Mini chickens: description

Chickens of the Rhode Island breed have a calm character, a balanced psyche, they are kind to people and the inhabitants of the farm coexisting with them. They are well adapted to the Russian climate, live well and lay eggs at temperatures in the chicken coop up to 10 ° C.

To summarize the above, then the advantages of the described bird breed are unpretentiousness, high egg production and taste. The disadvantages include the low profitability of breeding.