Hi Marla, What I wanted to point out was that some strains do seem to be seasonal layers while others lay all year round. Most strains don't lay during the coldest parts of winter but I had a show strain once that did. They originated in Northern Iowa which is a lot colder
on average than where I live in North East Missouri. No doubt our winters here was like an unseasonal warm spell to them and could have triggered them to lay a lot. Their offspring inherited the same
laying cycle and that can be attributed to early hatching and a long growing season for the chicks.
Everything I learned about Sumatras has been gathered over a 38 year span of constant study and from owning several different strains of Sumatras. Also there is a world of difference between strains. There is some hatchery stock that defies the term Sumatra because their breed characteristics are sadly lacking. I have seen roosters with short and sparse tails, purple sheen, white skin, one spur per leg, red faces and floppy pea combs. All of these would get a bird cut for defects and disqualified for a foreign comb under a competent judge. I am glad I never owned any of those types but I did have a strain of Bantam Sumatras with great color, well shaped heads, and dark gypsy faces but over all were pretty trashy otherwise.
I like the Sumatras because they do not require the amount of attention that the other long tailed breeds do to look good for the show bench. The males seem to be more careful with their tails and the hens I have owned didn't have the urge to preen and ruin the hackles of the males as is seen in so many other breeds.
As you mentioned "they are something completely different than the average chicken." When a person has owned and studied pure Sumatras
for a while it soon becomes apparent that these aren't you run of the mill barn yard type chicken. They have pheasant like characteristics and a personality that is comparable to no other domestic chicken on the planet. [Cubalayas are similar because they were derived in part from Sumatra crosses.]
I am one of those people who when they see something that is well bred and beautiful in every way I usually have to buy a start. I have had just about every kind and color of chicken in the standards at one time or another and there were very few I didn't like on some level.
And like you and Cathryn I am drawn to Silkies and Sumatras in a bad way. To me they are like a good brand of assorted chocolates that are so good that you can't stop at just one. You gotta have'm all and then get more. LOL Right now I do not have any Sumatras because a friend begged me out of them but I do have quite a coop full of Blue Silkies that seem to like me as much as I do them. Silkies are the pet bunnies of the chicken world. They are hogs for attention and curious about everything around them.
Before I close I have to correct something I posted earlier. The Ga Ho chickens only lay 70 or fewer eggs in their lifetime. Direct Quote: (a battery raised chicken will lay around 185 eggs in its lifetime while a Ho chicken will lay fewer than 70). For some reason I got this switched around.
http://www.ganoi.com/gaho.html
That is a pretty sorry production record for any domestically raised fowl and could probably take the record for being the world's poorest laying breed. Dean
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"Marla" <marlajulich@...> wrote:
Thank you so much for sharing this Dean! There is a lot of information here that I never knew before. I'm sorry if I mislead anyone on any info I have shared. It was based solely on my own limited recent experience. Sumatras are by far my favorite breed and I would never intentionally sully their reputation.
When I was little my grandpa had sumatras. Only I didn't realize that's what they were until I was talking about getting some chicks. My parents thought it was funny, that I'm so much like my grandparents and live in their old house. I think grandpas birds were larger than what I have, or I was so little I thought they were. Lol. My dad had a hatchery when I was a preteen-teen and had some but with that many different breeds I never got to know many breeds very well. I've had mine for going on 2 years. Last year my hens started laying mid Jan and laid nearly daily until late June early July then stopped. I say nearly daily as it was more often than every other day but they missed some days. By what you said they must be pretty good layers for their breed.
They are something completely different than the average chicken. Very unique personalities and great foragers. I keep them in a roofed run. I have a hen that makes the coolest singing noises. I can't say enough about how much I love this breed (like Cathryn and silkies lol). Sorry I made this so long.
Thank you again for sharing Dean,
Marla
CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.com
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