All about breed langshan chickens: how to breed, the pros and cons of the breed

Some lovers of breeding poultry will love the langshan meat breed chicken with good egg production, excellent performance and decorative appearance.

This article will discuss how to keep them at home.

Breed description

It is not known exactly when this breed of hens was bred.

The origin of the langshan chickens is due Chinese breederswho were engaged in breeding domestic chickens with high rates in the production of chicken meat.

By the 1870s, this initiative was taken up by German and English breeders. As a result of breeding rocks Minorca and Black Plymouth It turned out the breed, which has not only good performance, but also a decorative look.

Learn more about the Minorca and Plymouthrock chickens.

A little later, Langshan chickens appeared in Russia, where local breeders used them to improve the qualities of local purebred chickens. In 1911, Russian specialists developed a new standard for langshan hens. Chickens of this species have different color - with white, blue and black plumage, and are divided into two subspecies: barefoot (German type) and mossy (English type). The difference between these species is not only in the feather cover of the extremities, but also in some habits: the “Englishwomen” do not have the habit of digging around the site, which do not cause inconvenience to their owners.

Did you know? In ancient times, some nations treated the chicken as a subject of worship. During the excavations of burial grounds in the territory of Ancient Persia (Iran), dated to the II millennium BC. Oe., images of a chicken that were used in worship were found.

External characteristics

Birds have the following external characteristics.

Females

1. The weight of an adult chicken in the range of 2.5-3.5 kg.
2. The body is elongated and proportional.
3. Lyre-shaped line of the back.
4. Small head, beak and earrings.
5. Black or brown-gray eyes.
6. Neat leafy scallop red.
7. The front part, earlobes and earrings are red.
8. Beak from dark to white-bluish color.
9. The neck is a bit bent.
10. Wide breast.
11. The wings are long, pressed to the body.
12. Cone lush tail.
13. Fluffy plumage.
14. Dark legs, with or without plumage.
15. Hocks are long and thin bone.
16. Claws and skin are white.
17. Color: black with emerald tint, blue and white.

Males

1. The weight of the rooster reaches 4.5 kg.
2. Growth tall and stately.
3. The body is muscular, with powerful bones.
4. From the neck there is a dorsal depression with a steep rise to the tail.
5. Small head with a carved leaf-like comb.
6. The eyes are black to brownish gray in color.
7. Comb, earrings, earlobes - red.
8. Chest wide.
9. Neck with a noticeable bend.
10. Powerful, dark paws, with plumage or completely naked.
11. Claws and skin white.
12. Raised highly lush tail with long braids.
13. Color tricolor, like females.

Pros and cons of breed

The breed of hens Langshan has the following advantages:

• unpretentiousness in the care of adult chickens;
• enhanced adaptive qualities;
• calm character;
• decorative look;
• breed rarity;
• high meat productivity;
• meat of excellent quality.

The main disadvantages of the breed:

• requires a special temperature for breeding;
• weak young animals exposed to infections;
• slow plumage and growth of young;
• low safety of adults and chickens;
• high percentage of rejection of eggs for breeding;
• the underdeveloped maternal instinct of the Klush.

Important! Adult langshans can adapt to any conditions, but their chickens do not tolerate moisture, cold, drafts and poor-quality water in drinking bowls.

Puberty and the onset of egg production

The age of maturity in hens begins at 5.5 months, and from that age the birds begin to actively lay eggs. At this time, young males and hens are placed in the same coop.

Breed performance

Langshans are distinguished by the following performance indicators:

1. Slow maturation as layers and meat producers.
2. In matters of egg production, productivity ranges from 110 to 150 eggs per year (approximately 3 eggs per week). The eggs are large, brown with a pinkish coating, each weighing about 55 g.
3. Chicken meat is very tasty, tender and juicy. The weight of a one-year-old bird is from 3.2 kg to 4.2 kg.

Chinese chicken lukedanji is remarkable for its dark color and eggs with green shell.

Maintenance and care of this breed

In order for the chickens to gain weight and to fly well, they need to ensure the right conditions for their housing — a cozy chicken coop, a high-quality diet, and suitable temperature and light conditions.

Housing equipment

Requirements for the coop:

1. It should be roomy (for every 5 birds in 1 square meter area), warmed and dry, equipped with a ventilation system.
2. The room must be regularly treated with parasite products.
3. In the chicken coop should be dimmed lighting, preferably with an infrared lamp (1 lamp per 10 sq. M. Area).

4. A sufficient number of roomy nests located at a distance of 50 cm from the flooring, in the shade, without drafts.
5. Nests should be clean and dry, measuring at least 30 cm in diameter. They are filled with straw or sawdust, interspersed with chips.
6. The perches are arranged in several levels from round wooden beams, with a section of 4x6 cm. The distance between the crossbars is 30 cm, the lower crossbar must be at a height of 90 cm from the floor. The perch per person is 20 cm.

7. Floors make warmed, dry, with a clean bed of sawdust or straw.
8. For the fattening of birds equipped with special cages of wooden slats. The length of the cage for 10 individuals - 130 cm, width - 60 cm, the distance between the slats - 8-10 cm.
9. The courtyard should be spacious and surrounded by a high fence.

Diet

When feeding chickens and roosters, separate feeders are used so that you can monitor the growth of muscle mass in both sexes.

Did you know? Some poultry farmers in their gardens specially plant and grow earthworms to provide their pets with animal feed, even in winter.

The diet for chickens should consist of the following feed:

1. Any cereals.
2. Balanced feed.
3. Mixers of corn and wheat, brewed on whey.
4. Vitamins and mineral supplements with the presence of calcium are added to cereals.
5. In the mash is recommended to add fish oil. It is diluted in half with warm water, poured into the feed and mixed (0.5 tsp. For 1 kg of mash).
6. Cottage cheese, meat and bone meal and fish meal.
7. Various chopped vegetables and grass greens.
8. Clean settled water.
9. Chamomile decoction to enhance immunity.

Temperature and light modes

Temperature and light requirements in the hen house:

1. Temperatures below 0 ° C should not be allowed in the coop, although adult individuals are resistant to severe frosts (down to -40 ° C). Low temperatures can affect egg production.
2. In hot weather, the optimum temperature in the chicken coop is +27 ° C.
3. Young animals in winter should be kept separately from adult birds, in a warmer room.
4. Drafts and dampness are not equally tolerated by both adult chickens and offspring.
5. For laying hens, the length of daylight in winter should be gradually and evenly increased to 14 hours a day.
6. It is not recommended to increase daylight when keeping young.

Egg Incubation

Langshan chickens have poor instinct nasizhivaniyatherefore, artificial incubation with strict selection of eggs is used for hatching:

1. Only eggs from healthy and strong layers are suitable.
2. Eggs must be fresh, of the same shape and even color.
3. The shell is clean, strong and thick, without cracks and roughness.
4. You can not use for incubation eggs laid on the ground or floor.

Important! To avoid temperature fluctuations during egg incubation, it is necessary to have a spare generator to generate electricity.

Care for the young

Caring for chickens is as follows:

1. The room for keeping young stock should be spacious, dry, clean, warm and with good ventilation.
2. The litter on the floor should be regularly updated. To do this, use dry grass, sawdust or dry coarse sand.
3. In the drinkers should be only clean and fresh water.
4. Once a week, a light solution of potassium permanganate should be poured into the drinkers.
5. There should be additional capacity with chamomile infusion.
6. It is important to ensure that chicks do not overturn their drinkers.
7. In order to protect young animals from infections, it requires regular inspection of the vet and compliance with the vaccination schedule.
8. From the first days of life, chickens are fed corn grits mixed with chopped egg shells and chopped boiled eggs.
9. The diet of grown-up chickens should consist of wheat cereals and warm mash, greens and chopped vegetables.
10. It is necessary to regularly add multivitamins to the feed.
11. Leftover uneaten food should be cleaned regularly.

Care for the adult bird

Care for adults is as follows:

1. Birds should be kept in a spacious, dry and clean chicken coop.
2. Birds with a lag in development are kept separately and additionally supplemented, if they do not gain the necessary weight and height.
3. The diet should contain high-quality animal feed, vitamins, mineral supplements, calcium and protein.
4. Individuals with approximately the same weight and height should mate, otherwise a large male can injure a small chicken.
5. It is necessary to monitor more aggressive males and, if necessary, to cut their beak. This procedure should be done by a veterinary specialist.
6. Releasing pets on the walking yard, they need to cut the wings so that they do not fly over the barrier.
7. Once a month for the birds arrange ash-sand baths for the prevention of parasites. To do this, an equal amount of wood ash and sifted fine sand is poured into a wide container, mixed and added with pyrethrum powder.

Age problems

The productivity of this breed decreases with age, so after 2 years the breeders must make a planned replacement of the herd.

Such breeds as Cornish and Pomfret differ in high rates of meat productivity.

Diseases and how to deal with them

Because of its "shaggy" langshan breed chickens are prone to parasitic infections.

For prevention, it is important to observe the following measures:

• ensure that the litter in the hen house is always fresh and dry, otherwise wet litter can be a source of infection;
• periodically disinfect the room;
• make routine vaccinations on time and consult a veterinary specialist.

Important! The langshan breed of chickens practically does not suffer from paw diseases, but care must be taken to ensure that after a walk there are no lumps of dirt left in which parasites can be found.

Video: Langshan Hens, German Standard

Chickens breed Langshan very beautiful, well born and have tasty meat. However, they require caring attitude and careful care. If you can provide all the necessary conditions for your pets, they will delight you with their decorative look, high-quality eggs and tender meat.

Watch the video: All 18 Chicken Breeds Originating from the United Kingdom A to Z (April 2024).