Sussex (breed of chickens): features, characteristics and description

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Among all breeds of chickens there are special, elegant, well-fed and excellent laying hens. This is a Sussex - a breed bred in England. The name of the chickens refers to the county where they were bred. The breed has various subspecies, but each of them occupies a worthy place in the poultry industry. If you choose a breed of chickens for home breeding, then the birds of this breed will definitely not disappoint their owners.

Color

Fleshy, silvery-white Sussex - a breed of chickens with a black mane and tail pigtails, large flight wings, strong pinkish legs and red earlobes. The breed spread from England quite widely. It is bred both on poultry farms and in small private farms.

Silver color is passed on maternally, but boys have it. Therefore, already day-old chicks can be divided by sex, taking into account the color of the fluff. Sussexes are often used for crossbreeding. As a rule, the purpose of crossing is to obtain hybrid breeds - broilers.

Breeding

Sussex poultry is a breed of chickens that quickly adapts to any climatic conditions. It tolerates low temperatures quite well. This bird is unpretentious, so it is quite easy to grow it. By color there are Colombian, silver, white, mottled, lilac, lavender, wild brown, mottled, yellow-Colombian, porcelain Sussex. The breed of chickens from the English county of the same name is very ancient. Back in the forties from R. H., this bird could be found in the Roman Empire. She gained a lot of popularity and all this thanks to her qualities.

These chickens were originally bred exclusively for meat. After a while, people who were breeding poultry realized that the Sussex was an egg and meat breed of chickens, and with very high rates in both areas of poultry farming. On the territory of the former USSR, these chickens appeared in 1961, thanks to which domestic poultry producers obtained Pervomaiskaya and Adler silver breeds by crossing.

The Sussex Club in England was formed in 1903. Dwarfs appeared in 1924. The English Dwarf Sussexes were Columbian (white and black) in color, while the Germans were Porcelain (brownish).

Characteristics of the Sussex species (breed of chickens)

The description of the bird should start with the skin. She is white. The head of the chicken is small in size, but wide. Sussex has a slightly curved and strong beak. Basethe beak is dark, and the tip is light. The scallop is bright red in color, leaf-shaped and straight. The scallop has 4 to 6 teeth. They are low and have the correct shape. The eyes of a hen are round and reddish, and may be orange. The earlobes are also red and round. The small neck tapers towards the head, which is well feathered.

The bird's body has a rectangular shape, a wide back, slightly narrowed towards the tail. The belly of the Sussexes is large. The chicken breast has a powerful and wide shape. The wings are set high and very tightly pressed to the body. They are short in size.

Distinguishing qualities

Calm, making contact, knowing their owner perfectly - these are the qualities of representatives of the Sussex. A breed of chickens, reviews of which can only be heard positive, can please their owners with an excellent offspring and a high-quality product. Poultry meat has a tender structure with a high protein content. By weight, birds in adulthood reach 3 kg (hens) and 4 kg (roosters). Already in six months, chickens successfully lay eggs. Egg production indicators for the Sussex breed are 160–250 pieces. By weight, eggs reach 60 grams. Their color is from light beige to yellow-brown. Birds have a high survival rate of 90–98%. Already by the age of seventy, the mass of chickens reaches 1.5 kg.

Dignity

Of course, this breed of domestic chickens has its advantages in breeding:

• she rarely gets sick;
• peaceful;
• its easyfeed - she is picky;
• bird in the content does not require special conditions.

It is desirable to keep Sussex chickens by the outdoor method. This requires a deep non-replaceable bedding and the possibility of walking in the winter. It is important to monitor humidity and temperature. It is advisable to warm the chicken coop for the winter, despite the fact that the breed is unpretentious and tolerates cold. Mothers of this breed are caring. They have a highly developed brooding instinct. The owners have no problem waiting for offspring.

Types: Porcelain, Colombian and Dominant Sussex

The breed of chickens, which is recommended to be bred in large poultry farms, is the dominant brown and white. In the household - the dominant is gray-speckled, black, silver and blue. Chickens of this species have practically no flaws. This is a versatile egg-bearing breed. Dominant hens can lay up to 300 eggs in the first year. The breed has high immunity and can live up to 10 years. A thick plumage keeps the bird in the cold.

Chestnut-colored Sussex Porcelain is a breed of chickens with a black tail, which comes with a small amount of black feathers on the neck. The eggs she lays are light brown. Differs in stamina, calm disposition and is great for free keeping.

Most of all in Russia and on the territory of countries, in the past of the republics of the USSR, Colombian Sussex is widespread. The breed of chickens of this type is very cute. Its distinguishing feature is the color, which we know more from such breeds as the Adlersilver and May Day. Initially, the ancestors of the Colombian coloration were calico Sussexes. And today they can be found at exhibitions in England. Calico Sussexes by selection are light species.

Light Sussexes are carriers of the silver gene, which, as mentioned above, is sex-linked. This allows, when crossing with breeds that carry the golden gene, to get chicks that are distinguished from each other by sex in a day. Purebreds are light yellow, while hybrids are dark yellow.

Chicken nutrition

As mentioned above, this is an unpretentious type of poultry. Even when fed with low-grade food, the kritz will receive everything necessary for full development. With a free content, they perfectly get their own food, especially dominants. Therefore, food can be given in small portions. Novice poultry farmers can safely start this breed for themselves, since there will be no particular trouble with it. The only food requirement is a sufficient amount of calcium and protein. It is advisable to use feeders, drinkers, which significantly reduce feed consumption.

Despite the fact that chickens are unpretentious, it is still better to pay some attention to the quality of the feed, especially wet ones, if possible. Ready factory compound feed is an excellent solution for adult birds. This is a balanced product that has everything you need. In the absence of such compound feed, the chicken is fed with grain mixtures, mineral supplements are added. Chicks are given starter feed or chopped millet, cottage cheese, boiled egg,gradually adding chopped greens and mineral supplements. In the morning, chicks are given fish oil - 0.1 gram per individual.