There are a number of color eggs that chickens lay. Some breeds like the Araucana and Ameraucana are known for their blu eggs. So, what is easter egger chicken known for?
Easter eggers are good chickens that can be raised as dual purpose birds. They are popular for laying eggs of different colors like blue, green and even pink.
In this article, I am going to take you through everything you need to know about easter egger chicken. This will help clear the doubt and also separate facts from fiction.
What is an easter egger chicken?
According to sources, Easter egger are any breed that possesses or has the colorful egg gene and can lay rare colored chicken eggs of various shades.
But in this case, this particular chicken doesn’t meet the breed standard set by the American Poultry Association.
Mostly, these chickens are not heritage but rather hybrid with mixed genes from two different egg laying chicken breeds with different egg color.
Easter egger chicken history
The genesis of easter egger chickens can be traced back when chicken enthusiasts started crossing chickens that could lay blue eggs with other chickens.
In this case, the blue eggers were the Araucana and the Ameraucana chickens. For example, When an Ameraucana hen is mated with a Blue copper marans rooster; the resulting offspring will be an Olive egger and will lay some olive green eggs.
They derive the name from their easter egg color that these chickens lay. Many hatcheries have always mistaken and labeled them as ameraucana or araucana.
Easter egger chicken eggs have become very popular in the recent years making the demand for easter egger hens rise sharply.
These chickens are hardy, calm and friendly and require low maintenances than other chickens. They do well in mixed flocks as well as on their own.
Characteristics of easter egger chickens
Easter eggers are hard to describe because they contain different features depending on the parent gene.
In addition to that, these chickens do not have a unique color but rather they are made up of different colors as the parents responsible for their individual genes are.
In some there are tufts on their ears giving them a gamey appearance or what some sources may refer to as chipmunk-ish but as for me I would brand them Ameraucana easter egger chicken.
This is because the dominant gene is that of the blue egger the Ameraucana chicken breed.
In some, the comb is pea while in some it is rose depending on the parents. These chickens have multiple features and it is hard to describe them.
Their earlobes are mostly red or white while eye color varies. The feet are featherless, can be of any color and there are four well-spaced toes on each foot.
Easter egger chicken breed have a solid plumage with several color shades on their feathers. They are medium in size and are not noisy.
Easter egger chicken temperament and Hardiness
Although they carry mixed genes, these chickens are generally calm, docile and quiet birds. They make good pets and pose no threat to your kids.
Easter egger chicken rooster is good and predator savvy making a good herds man when your birds are out ranging. He will look for any potential threat like hawks and possums.
These chickens will offer you company and follow you around as you go on with your daily chore. They will be happy if held on the lap and gifted with tasty treats like grapes and cheese.
Call your favorite easter egger chick a good name and she will come to you for treats or to sit on your lap. Hand feed her and she will get used to you and bond.
Easter eggers are very calm and not shy. They are often bullied by assertive breeds and denied equal feeding and drinking opportunities when living in confined mixed flocks.
They are very hardy and will do well in cold areas just like the Speckled Sussex. Although they are equally fine in hot climates, they easily suffer from heat stress and require enough shade and plenty of cool drinking water to cool their bodies.
Egg laying and uses
In a year, these chooks will lay about 200 medium to large eggs translating this to about 4 eggs per week.
Easter egger chicken eggs are made up of different color shades so don’t be surprised if you get some rainbow colors on your egg tray.
You will have to wait a little bit longer to get eggs because easter eggers mature a bit late. Pullets reach sexual maturity at the age of 5 to 6 months while other breeds only take 4 to 4.5 months.
Although these chooks are faithful layers, they can offer enough meat for a small family of 5. Mature roosters weigh around five pounds while hens weigh four pounds.
Broodiness and Free range
Even though easter egger chickens are faithful layers, these chooks rarely get broody and much of their time is dedicated laying colorful eggs.
Because of this, these chickens make awful mothers and are not ready to shoulder any maternal responsibility.
If you want easter egger chicks for sale, order some from meyer hatchery you can get them from or be ready to power on a chicken hatcher to get some baby chicks.
For those who do not have egg incubators, you can use breeds like Yokohama and Cochin chicken to hatch some baby easter eggers for you.
These chickens are excellent at free ranging. Easter egger roosters are predator savvy and will guard the flock as they look for any potential danger.
Out on their own, these birds will help control the number of insect pests that raid your vegetable farms like grass hopers and crickets.
This way, they are able to supplement their diet of crumbles with some extra tasty protein helping bring down the cost of feeds they eat.
When free ranging, do not leave the responsibility of herding the hens to the rooster but rather also be on the lookout.
In wooded areas, a chicken run with a hawk netting to keep away hawks and other birds of prey can deter away threat.
Lifespan
In a normal lifestyle, chickens can live for 5 to 8 years. However, this period may lengthen to pet chicken because they are raised for prestige rather than meat and eggs.
Although the life of a particular living thing is not specified, easter egger hens raised for their eggs may live until they are not able to lay as they are expected to.
These birds will stop laying at the age of 2 to 3 years. They will have no other role to play other than be culled where they will be slaughtered for meat.
Roosters are likely to die earlier than hens. This is because they will be butchered as cockerels as soon as they attain the right market weight.
However, the p[period of time that your live chickens are going to be around you will be determined by the quality of care they will be getting.
Integrating easter eggers
Easter eggers are very cool and calm. Because of this trait, these birds are easily bullied by other assertive chicken breeds.
They rank low on the pecking order and will easily be harassed. Easter eggers denied the opportunity to get close to chicken feeders and waterers.
When integrating them with other chickens, it is important that you mix them with chickens that have the same personalities as they do.
This will spare them the agony of spending the nights on chicken bedding. They will also not be chased from the roost bars.
If the other flock members are bullies, have an extra chicken run to isolate and keep the bullies away from them.
If they have to share the coop, take the juvenile easter eggers there at night. Place them on the roost bar.
When morning comes, other chickens will think that these new members have been living together with them.
Always remember to check whether they are comfortable because they might be pecked at causing injuries and bleeding.
Health Issues
Easter egger chickens are strong, healthy and robust birds. They are not deterred by cold or hot weather and do well in both climates.
However, they are infested by the common chicken lice that use their plumage as shelter. Here, these parasites suck blood and damage the growing feathers.
Using small amounts of diatomaceous earth powder in their dust bathing sand will help control them. Also, internal parasites like chicken worms do infest them.
These endo-parasites live inside the chicken’s body where they feed and multiply. Seek advice from a qualified vet on the right chicken dewormer to administer.
Why choose easter egger chicken?
These chickens are popular for colorful eggs they lay. May it be the lavender easter egger chicken or the black easter egger all you will get are rainbow eggs.
They are calm, cool and docile posing no threat to your little children giving you no reason to be apprehensive.
Having easter egger chicken most of the kitchen scraps like extra broccoli and left over celery will not end up in the dust bin but rather these birds will eat them up as food.
They make good pets and will offer you company and follow you around as you go on with your daily chores.
These chickens are not noisy and you can keep them in an urban setting.
Final Thoughts
Easter eggers are good chickens to keep. They are hardy and adapt easily unlike other chicken breeds that can only be raised on a specific environment.
They have low maintenance cost and do well when free ranged and kept in mixed flocks. Colorful eggs are a guarantee providing a cheap source of protein to you and your family.
So, do you keep easter egger chicken? Share your thoughts on the comment section.
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