Brahma chickens are increasingly common in the farmsteads of those farmers who want to get not only eggs from their pets but also good dietary meat. In addition, the hens and roosters of this breed are distinguished by an exceptional decorative appearance, they will decorate any poultry house or yard.
Origin of the breed
Chickens of this breed were obtained artificially, as a result of long-term selection. More than one generation of temple ministers in Asia worked on their appearance. The modern appearance of these birds was registered in 1874.
These chickens are the result of crossing Malayan chickens and the Cochin breed , which allows them to be classified as a meat breed. Initially, these chickens were bred as heavyweights. But gradually they began to select among individuals of this breed, based not on productive qualities, but paying more attention to external decorativeness. And in the course of selection work, several stable subspecies were obtained: American meat chickens, European decorative and Asian decorative meat. Today, a dwarf subspecies has also been obtained.
Very often these hens and roosters are used to decorate a private farmstead, they perform a decorative function. The beauty and unusualness of the Brahma breed of hens can be seen in the photo.
Characteristics and description of the breed
Brahma chickens have a very special appearance that will not allow you to confuse them with representatives of another breed. The plumage can be light or dark, but all roosters have a contrasting collar (light roosters have a dark collar and vice versa).
The hens and cockerels of this breed have a majestic posture, and a large fleshy body constitution, the chest and belly are wide and dense. The body is set high, and the comb is small and pod-shaped, without pronounced teeth, small earrings, and ears, red-orange eyes. The description of Brahma chickens would not be complete without such a characteristic feature as feathering on the legs. Initially, this breed was formed for growing in a cold climate, so today representatives of this breed flaunt fully feathered legs.
All subspecies of this breed have approximately the same productivity characteristics. Chickens belonging to the Brahma breed reach a weight of up to 3.5 kg, and roosters – up to 4.5 kg. An average hen is capable of laying about 120 eggs per year, the average weight of which will not exceed 60 g. The eggshell of this breed is hard and cream-colored.
In describing the characteristics of the Brahma chicken, it is necessary to note that they mature quite late and do not begin laying eggs earlier than at the age of nine months, but even in winter they rarely reduce egg production. Their meat is a little rough but has good taste qualities.
Subspecies of the breed
Brahma chickens are represented by several varieties of plumage color. They were obtained at the very beginning of the selection work on the Brahma chicken breed and have characteristic differences in their description. The Brahma chicken can be light, dark, fawn or partridge.
Light
The light-colored chicken breed is also called the Colombian Brahma. The basic color tone is silvery-white. The adult bird has black flight wings and the upper part of the tail, as well as a black, pronounced stripe on the neck in the form of a collar.
Individuals with a yellowish tint on their silvery-white plumage are culled from the breed.
Dark
The second subspecies of the breed – Brahma chickens – are dark. The birds have a dark color, feathers have a distinct pattern. The main plumage on the body of the chickens is gray, on the head – silvery-white, and on the neck – black with a sharply outlined white border. Brahma chickens of this type have a very complex pattern on the body of two or three black stripes that repeat the contour of the feather and ultimately line up in the form of a crescent.
Roosters have a different plumage color. The head is silvery-white, gradually this color goes down to the neck and shoulders. But the rest of the feathers in the pure species should be black with a greenish tint. The plumage on the legs repeats the pattern on the body.
Brahma chickens with black feathers with a red, brown, or straw tint are culled.
Fawn
Pale Brahma chickens have this plumage color regardless of gender. Roosters differ from hens by a darker mane. The plumage is lush and loose, but it should fit tightly to the body so that the birds do not look slightly disheveled. The legs also have a feather trim, which creates the effect of pants. The collar should be several shades darker than the main color of the color.
If a fawn Brahma hen has a lot of yellow or red in its plumage, there is white in the rooster’s tail, or there is no pattern at all, then such individuals are rejected from the breed.
Partridge
The Brahma partridge chicken breed has, like all subspecies, a characteristic feather color. They have light fawn plumage with triple black-gray feather outlines. Roosters should have red-red heads and backs, and a chest, belly, and legs of black with a greenish tint. Other tints that may be present in the plumage of partridge hens and Brahma roosters are subject to culling.
The eggs of this subspecies of Brahma chickens have characteristic brownish speckles on the shell.
Maintenance and care
Most often, modern farmers take up breeding Brahma chickens because of their decorative appearance. Sometimes the bird is used as a sport or for exhibitions. For Brahma chickens to maintain a beautiful appearance and thick clean plumage on their legs, you need to constantly monitor the cleanliness of the walking area and the chicken coop. The room should always be dry.
To keep Brahma chickens at home, you need to equip a chicken coop. If you want to maintain the purity of the breed, you should not place breeding hens and roosters together with birds of another species and breed. The room should be equipped with perches, nests, feeders, and drinkers, and have sufficient floor space to accommodate the bird.
To maintain good egg production in Brahma hens, you should take care of sufficient lighting in the room. Daylight hours should be maintained for approximately 13-14 hours. During the day, the required amount of sunlight should come through the windows, and in the dark, backlighting is required.
Keeping Brahma chickens requires good ventilation in the room. The poultry farmer must ensure that the room always has access to clean and fresh air. If natural ventilation is insufficient, additional hoods must be installed. Such hoods are often made with dampers to allow regulation of the flow of supplied air.
In general, keeping and caring for Brahma chickens is quite simple, since the bird is unpretentious and hardy to adverse conditions.
Feeding
Before starting to raise Brahma chickens, any poultry farmer should study the question of what to feed them, and to do this, you should understand for what purpose you are going to breed them.
The main requirement for chicken feed is that it should always be high-quality, balanced, and fresh. The content of various substances (proteins, fats, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamin supplements) is vital for any chicken. The bird should receive feed in various combinations and types: grain mixture, wet mash, kitchen, garden, and vegetable garden waste. The diet must necessarily include calcium-rich mineral supplements. It is better to place them in a separate feeder, as well as coarse sand or gravel. They must be constantly available to the bird.
Feeding of purebred Brahma chickens should be organized in strict accordance with the regime. Food is given to the bird three times a day, preferably at the same time. The first feeding is a grain mixture, the second is wet mash, and the third is grain. It is allowed to pour 10% of the daily grain norm on the bedding, thus increasing the motor activity of the bird when kept indoors in an aviary.
Water for Brahma hens should always be clean and fresh. Drinking bowls should be regularly washed and disinfected. Brahma-laying hens will maintain egg production in cold weather if they receive warm water and feed.
Breeding
There are several ways to raise Brahma chickens: a poultry farmer can buy a hatching egg to hatch and raise the chickens themselves; buy young animals or breed adults. When buying young animals or adults, they must be quarantined to avoid bringing any infectious disease that is dangerous to Brahma chickens to your farm.
Hatching chickens in an incubator is not particularly unusual. Brahms have a well-developed instinct for hatching eggs, but most farmers try not to use them for hatching chickens since most of the eggs can be crushed.
When forming a breeding herd of Brahma, it is necessary to strictly monitor that the hens and roosters of this breed do not gain too much weight. To do this, they are kept half-starved or given low-calorie food.
Breed characteristics appear in cockerels and hens only in the second year of life, therefore, for incubation, eggs should be taken from individuals aged 110-120 weeks.
Similar to other breeds of chickens, in the first year, when Brahmas just start laying eggs, the eggs are quite small, which makes them unsuitable for incubation.
Brahma chickens are receiving well-deserved attention from modern amateur poultry farmers. When creating good conditions and observing feeding norms and rules, these birds will become an adornment to your yard and will delight you and your guests with their regal appearance.
