Chickens Rhode Island: what are the features and advantages of the breed?

To breed chicken is very profitable. After all, thanks to these birds in your home will always be fresh eggs and tasty meat, which is superior in quality to those sold in supermarkets. After all, a household is always a guarantee of naturalness and environmental friendliness, which marketers and PR specialists are trying to imitate so illusively on television screens.

Therefore, another side of the benefits of breeding chickens is opportunity to sell their products at very competitive prices. Well, now that we have seen the promise of such an occupation, it is worth moving to the choice of a productive breed that can satisfy the highest demands. One of these breeds are the Rhode Island Chickens, with whom we will introduce you below.

Detailed description of the breed and its characteristics for beginners and the most experienced poultry farmers

Breed Rhode Island today is considered one of the most common. At poultry farmers she deserved such an honor thanks to her excellent meat-beefing qualities, able to satisfy the highest demands.

The history of these chickens begins in the nineteenth century in the United States, when it was bred by complex crosses of a large number of diverse breeds. First of all, the local chickens of the state of Massachusetts and Rhode Island were crossed with representatives of the Red Malaya and Shanghai fawn breeds.

The result was quite productive birds, which were once again crossed with the cocks of the Brown Leghorn breed. As a result, in addition to good characteristics, the new breed also became the owner of a beautiful red comb and a nice color.

Standardized breed in the early twentieth century, in the 20s of which the Rhode Islands were first introduced to the territory of the then Tsarist Russia.Here they were immediately praised both by landlords and ordinary villagers. In this regard, today this breed is quite common and familiar to almost everyone, although not everyone thinks about its name and origin.

For what qualities the breed so fond: the main advantages and advantages of chickens Rhode Island

It is important to note that the Rhode Island breed is popular not only among poultry houses, but also among breeders, as it provides excellent genetic material. So, from the described breed to the next generations, not only high productivity indices, but also the characteristics of the appearance and color of feathers are often transmitted.

So, the breed of Rhode Island is the source for obtaining the famous Zagorsky salmon smokers, the breed of New Hampshire and Pervomayskaya. Such crossings without problems can be done at home. For example, when crossing the breed of chickens with Kuchinsky anniversary roosters, they get excellent broilers with extraordinary precocity and good meat characteristics.

But this is not the last advantage of the breed. Among other excellent characteristics of Rhode Island are:

• good and early egg-laying. The eggs of the Rhode Island chicken begin at a very early age — about reaching 210 days (at 7 months). At the same time, it affects not only a large number of eggs, but also the fact that these chickens can nest throughout the year, regardless of the season and weather conditions. Practically all eggs produced from chickens are fertilized, which allows them to grow the next generation from their own products;
• The young generation of chickens has a very high viability, which greatly facilitates their cultivation. Chickens of the Rhode Island breed suffer less and have a stable immunity against most of the most common diseases in chickens. In addition, they grow quite, which also has a positive effect on their viability. In general, it is worth noting that the safety of the younger generation is equal to 95%, and about 86% of adults;
• undemanding to feed. This breed is well adapted to feeding the food that is under their feet. At the same time, such food is best displayed on the height and weight gain of the chickens. Of course, that in our climatic conditions to provide such a diet throughout the year is not possible, therefore, since the summer, especially for chickens,harvest dried grass;
• Ideal for breeding in individual households. When grown on large farms do not give high results of productivity. This is due to both the characteristics of the content, and with feeding. Thus, we can conclude that it is important for representatives of the Rhode Island breed to provide large spaces not only for walking but inside the house;
• unpretentiousness and endurance of chickens, which is difficult to compare with most other breeds. The idea is that these birds can be kept in the most simple poultry houses, even without special perches and places for nests. Also, they are able to very easily and quickly adapt to the most diverse characteristics and climatic conditions of detention, which facilitates their breeding.

They tolerate very low frosty temperatures, although at that time birds should be supervised very carefully, providing warm water and fresh food. To warm the house for the winter also will not be superfluous.

What are the disadvantages of representatives of the breed of Rhode Island?

To be objective means to devote your readers not only to the positive features of the breed, but also to introduce its shortcomings.Thus, in the household, the hens of the described breed exhibit a rather weak incubation instinct.

Even those individuals who have begun to demonstrate the desire to hatch eggs since spring have not always diligently fulfill this task. Thus, the percentage of hatching from the Rhode Islands is on average 70-75%. Of course, this percentage largely depends on the fertilization of eggs, but the role of the hen still remains important.

We get acquainted with the detailed description of the main breed characteristics of the Rhode Island

The plumage of these chickens attracts particular attention, since it is the first breed trait that distinguishes the Rhode Islands from other known and similar breeds. Their feathers are shiny, densely and densely located in relation to the integument. There are no pillows in the plumage. The main color is a very saturated red-brown color. True, with the age of the bird, it turns a little pale, but still retains its elegance and recognition.

An important characteristic is that the core of the feathers of the described breed is colored reddish or salmon.. Sometimes representatives of the plumage of white are found in this breed, but they are not very common.

For real poultry farmers, the plumage is of much greater importance, but the characteristics of the bird’s body and its parts. After all, they can also tell a lot about its productivity and, of course, point to the breed:

• The entire body of Rhode Island is characterized by massiveness, which is evidence of good meat qualities. The shape of it is rectangular, set horizontally. The chest is rather broad, muscular;
• the head is medium in size and round in shape; it is decorated with a characteristic upright comb with leaf-shaped teeth, of which there are usually five. Often, the comb in Rhode Island has a red color, but in rare cases, individuals with a pink comb are also found;
• The representatives of the breed are also impressed by the power of the neck, not only for roosters, but also for chickens. It is medium in length, but due to the beautiful and lush mane it seems that it is very large in diameter;
• the beak is very small. In shape, it is slightly bent to the bottom, painted yellow;
• Because of the rather large size of the body and its large weight, the legs of the Rhode Island breeds are quite strong and short, which gives them good stability and allows them to move easily. No feathering on the legs;
• wings are small in size, but they are distinguished by rather wide feathers;
• the tail gives the birds refinement and elitism, although it does not differ in large size. It is rather short, rounded and well feathered. The color of tail feathers is usually black, but their ebb has bright green, silver or purple colors;
• the color of the eyes of the representatives of the described breed is red, the same as the earlobes;
• the rites of the Rhode Island are colored yellow, low, have no plumage, as an exclusive feature of the breed a red stripe is allowed on the sides.

In the poultry industry, there are very strict requirements for the breeds, and if all the Rhode Island attributes described above are not inherent in a particular individual, they can be immediately rejected.

There is even a whole list of traits that can most often occur among the offspring of the described breed, but are evidence of the breed’s degeneration, the presence of incest with other birds. So, Unacceptable breed disadvantages of these chickens are considered:

• the shape of the figure in the form of a triangle;
• overstated torso;
• too massive with coarse skeletal bones;
• underdeveloped back and tail parts, as well as a roof-like or too high tail;
• back with a hump or too large cavity;
• elongated head shape;
• light colored eyes;
• the formation of pillows in the feather cover of birds;
• too light or dull color plumage;
• flying in the form of specks on feathers of wings;

Chickens and roosters also have many different features. In particular, a great advantage of the Rhode Island breed is that it is possible to determine gender from an early age.

It helps to make a special gene of goldenness, which is manifested in the first day of the life of the chicken and gives the accuracy of determining its sex up to 80%.

To do this, you should well examine the features of the color of the fluff on the wings: in the purebred representatives of the breed, it can have very different variations - from light brown to darkest with spots and stripes of black. So, if the wings are covered with white fluff - in front of you is a cockerel, and if it is brown with white stripes - then a chicken. Also, females often have spots on the back of the head.

Let's talk about the productivity of chickens Rhode Island in numbers

As we already mentioned, this breed is a meat-producing type of productivity. This is facilitated by the rather massive construction of the torso of birds, as well as their rather large weight:

• on average, roosters can reach 3.1–3.9 kilograms by the age of one and a half years, although with good fattening you can grow up to 4-kilogram individuals, although here you should be afraid of obesity;
• Chickens at the same age weigh significantly less, because they are also smaller in size, only 2.5-2.9 kilograms.

Thus, even with one carcass of an ordinary chicken you can get a sufficiently large amount of meat. This Rhode Island product has exceptional tenderness and very good taste.

When describing chickens of the Rhode Island breed, experts always focus on the very good incubation qualities of the eggs of this breed,which, when incubated correctly, almost 100% can produce new offspring.

What features are different breeding chickens of Rhode Island?

Even in spite of the aforementioned lack of poorly developed chickens instinct in chickens of this breed, it is quite simple to develop new generations. The task is facilitated by well-fertilized eggs, which the representatives of the breed will inflict a huge amount in a year.

If there is a hen among the Rhode Islands who vehemently wants to hatch eggs, you can safely use it, all the more so because she will take maternal care quite well. If you do not have such an opportunity, you will have to use a hen of a different breed or lay eggs in an artificial incubator.

The period of incubation of eggs for this breed is the same as for other hens - 20-21 days. It is not necessary to lay more than 15 eggs under one hen, since it will be difficult for them to shelter them and warm them. It is best to lay out 13. It is best to plant the chicken in mid-April, so that the chickens appear at the onset of this May heat, and it was easier to grow them.

Necessary conditions for chickens and adults

First of all, chickens need to be provided with food. You can give them millet, corn and dairy products. Also, from two weeks you need to start to interfere with eating green feed.

With this diet, they will grow quite quickly and gain weight. The diet of adult individuals is more diverse and should include, in addition to a nutritious food, products containing many trace elements that are useful and necessary for the health of birds. To do this, they buy special additives, give shell, or egg shells, try to use as much as possible green fodder.

The most important components of the Rhode Island diet can be:

• a variety of cereals, from wheat to corn, which should form the basis of all feed;
• root vegetables, raw and cooked;
• fruits and berries, but in very limited quantities;
• dried nettles, alfalfa, ordinary finely chopped hay mixed with other feed;
• clean and fresh water, which should always be in the house and near it.

By the onset of cold weather you need to take care of a good poultry house, otherwise you will not be able to rejoice at the healthy population of chickens and their high egg-laying. The temperature in it should not fall lower than + 10ºС. Although in the summer, you also need to take care of good ventilation, which will help to reduce the summer heat. In winter, additional lighting will help maintain the productivity of birds and their sexual activity.

To obtain good productivity, it is also recommended that at the end of the summer or at the beginning of autumn, to sort the chicken population. It is necessary to select only those young chickens who demonstrate excellent egg production, the rest is usually allowed for meat.

In the content of these chickens, it is important to provide them with regular walking on relatively large spaces. Then, in the summer, you can pretty much save on feed.

Do not forget to install a special tank with sand or ash near the house, in which chickens can take a bath: clean their feathers and get rid of various pests.