Hybrids of Hy-Line chickens are in great demand at each poultry breeder. Representatives of birds are famous for their calm and calm disposition, strong immunity, high productivity and good vitality.
Cross History
Cross High Line is an egg cross created by Hy-Line International in the USA. In the course of the work, scientists were able to create several subspecies of hens: High-Line Brown, Silver Brown and Sonia. All of them differ in plumage and egg shell color.
High Line individuals are popular in Western Europe and South America, and they can also be found in Asia and the Middle East.
Bird exterior
High Line birds are not easy to distinguish from other chickens, but they have a certain standard.
The main signs of High Line chickens:
- the body is small, narrow, slightly oblong in the shape of a triangle;
- the head is small, the neck is strong;
- pinkish crest, has pointed teeth;
- small oval-shaped earrings;
- the scallop is darker than the skin on the face;
- yellow eyes;
- wings fit snugly to the body, developed;
- the tail is small, lush and raised high;
- plumage is dense, white or brown.
Characteristics of High Line Chickens
High Line individuals are small birds of thin physique, a laying hen reaches a mass of 1.8 kg, and a rooster does not gain more than 2.5 kg.
Character
Individuals High Line will not create trouble for the owner, they have an excellent calm character.
The birds are very quiet and peaceful, they will not provoke other birds to fights and conflicts. They can boast of excellent stress resistance, they are very difficult to lose their temper. Males are also not bad, they look after "girls", protect them, stand up for them, try to help them avoid any dangers.
Representatives of the cross-country High-Line behave like phlegmatic people, they are not particularly interested in the outside world, it seems as if they constantly think about something and solve their personal dilemmas. It’s interesting to watch the birds. Individuals perfectly endure any hardships and trials of life.
Puberty and egg production
Crosses with an average pace of puberty, starting laying at the age of six months.
Often there are no delays. If the birds begin to bring eggs later than at 6 months, then there is one reason - the wrong diet. Overfeeding or underfeeding usually negatively affects females, natural processes stop or do not proceed as nature intended.
Instinct of incubation
Purebred chickens have a maternal instinct, crosses and hybrids lost it during breeding. Cross High Line was no exception, laying hens do not have the instinct of incubation, but this is more an advantage than a disadvantage.
The hatching process forces females to hatch offspring for a long time, and therefore laying hens cannot bring eggs during this period. And the results of their laying are really record high.
Keeping High Line chickens is considered cost-effective, because the laying hen can work and not be distracted by the work of the “mother”, which today the poultry breeder can entrust to both the other mother hen and the incubator. Features of incubation of chicken eggs are described here. But remember that the offspring of the cross will have significantly reduced rates relative to egg production, etc., than their parents.
Productive qualities
As for weight gain, they are very slow and small. Adult chickens reach 1.8 kg, and roosters more by 0.5 kg.
Average annual egg production
It is not for nothing that Cross-Line is considered an egg direction, individuals occupy a leading place in this matter. For 1 year, the female can bring more than 300 eggs, a record was a record - 340 pieces. It all depends on the diet of birds. The mass of one egg varies within 65 g. The shell is white, without spots.
The first time after the start of oviposition, the testes are small, but after a couple of months they become larger, such eggs can be further used for incubation.
Pros and Cons of Cross-Country
High-line hybrids have their advantages and disadvantages, they must be considered when breeding birds.
Benefits:
- high productivity;
- undemanding care;
- standard diet, without special "dishes";
- quick adaptability to new habitat.
Disadvantages:
- lack of maternal instinct;
- a short period of high egg production, in order to prevent the appearance of this minus, you need to think in time about replacing the livestock.
Conditions of detention
The main plus - they are unpretentious and can live in any conditions. For comfortable maintenance, poultry farmers equip a chicken coop with ventilation. Individuals tolerate low temperatures well, but still the ideal temperature for them is + 10 ... + 26 degrees Celsius.
If the winters in the region are too frosty, you will have to install a heater in the room, in other cases the chicken coop is insulated, bleached and regular treatments are carried out.
Chicken coop requirements
For the proper maintenance of chickens, it is important to adhere to the simple requirements for arranging a chicken coop:
- So that the egg production of the females does not fall, the backlight is set in the room. Daylight hours should be around 14 hours. In the summer, windows from the south side help in this, and in winter, extra light. You can purchase and install infrared lamps, they not only illuminate the territory, but also give off heat.
- Chickens are kept on warm litter; they are made from peat, sawdust or straw. It is better to use the first option, since this material gives heat when in contact with the litter. Even if there will be severe cold in the fresh air, the temperature in the chicken coop will not drop below +10 degrees.
- Mandatory nests, they are installed in the back of the room, near the far wall. The place should be dark and impassable. For 3 females - 1 box. It’s nice to place them with a ladder, one above the other. How to build nests on your own is described in this article.
- Birds need perches for an overnight stay, the usual requirements are for a beam diameter of 4 cm. The poles are placed at a height of 1 m. Each female needs 0.35 m of perch.
- Water and food containers are placed on the floor, washed every day.
- It is necessary to monitor the cleanliness of the litter, from time to time to ted it and change. In the same period, walls, floors and ceilings are treated.
- Bird droppings contain a small proportion of ammonia, which adversely affects their respiratory system and utilities, in order to avoid this, a high-quality ventilation system should be installed.
- Humidity in the room should vary within 65%. During feathered walks in the fresh air, you need to open the barn and ventilate it.
How to build a suitable chicken coop on your own is described in detail here.
You can not equip a large yard for walking, just make a small aviary. In the warmer months, birds should be outdoors. In the courtyard there is always a large amount of grass that birds can chew on. Containers with ash are also installed, birds bathe in them and clean their feathers from insects.
Individuals are released into the fresh air, only at temperatures above -7 degrees Celsius. Long walks in the cold lead to frostbite on the paws and ridges.
Diet high line
At special poultry farms, layers are fed with vitamins and minerals, they contain all the components necessary for chickens. On the farm, feeding the layers is a little different, but the diet should be balanced in any case.
In your farm, you can enter various additives in the bird menu. Another plus of this cross is a small feed consumption per 1 individual (approximately 100 g of grain per day). And with all this, this norm does not change depending on the time of year and their needs.
High Line Chicken Diet:
- Ground or whole grain. Great options: corn, oats, wheat, rye and barley. In winter, give seedlings of grain to healthy mineral supplements.
- Beans: soy, lentils and peas.
- Fresh or dried grass: nettle, alfalfa, dandelions, vegetable tops, plantain.
- Wet mixersincluding vegetables boiled in meat or vegetable broth.
- Boiled vegetables: beets, zucchini, pumpkin and cabbage leaves.
Add chalk, egg shells, yeast, bone and meat and bone meal to the layers ’diet. Crosses, especially in egg production, need a lot of calcium and vitamin.
Growing chickens
The basics of raising chickens:
- Chicks at the age of 1 day are placed in a special brooder with a temperature regulator. Litter of sawdust is laid at the bottom, it is necessary to change it in time. The first 3 days babies live with round-the-clock lighting.
- In the brooder, the temperature is kept at +32 degrees Celsius, every week the indicator is lowered by 2 degrees. Thus, the chicks get used to the normal temperature.
- Watching the young, you can determine how they feel. If it’s cold, the kids group and sit closer to the heat source, if it’s hot, they drink a lot of water, practically do not eat, and sit far from the lamp.
- Babies are transferred to an adult chicken coop at the age of 40 days. During this period, birds acquire feathers and do not need additional heat. The chicken coop is being processed; feeders and drinking bowls are installed in it. How to make a drinker for chickens with your own hands is described here.
- In the early days, the chicks are fed a boiled egg mixed with cereal. Special feeds suitable for the composition and age of birds are introduced into the diet. Mixtures for young animals up to 2 weeks old are finely ground.
Frequent diseases and pests
Cross High Line is distinguished by strong immunity. Chickens do not pick up diseases and various viruses. The birds do not suffer from illnesses at the time of vaccination.
For prevention, it is necessary to clean the premises on time, feed the birds with high-quality food and regularly monitor the behavior of chickens.
The main signs of sick birds: litter of a different color, lack of egg laying, refusal of food and water.
Shedding and egg laying break
Shedding in birds High Line - a standard phenomenon, occurs once a year. The birds do not suffer from it, they even continue to lay eggs, albeit a little less than usual.
There are times when the molting does not start, then you will have to contact the veterinarian to call her artificially. This method significantly accelerates molting and the bird does not feel any discomfort or pain at all.
Herd replacement planned
At the age of 1.5 years, egg production is significantly reduced, so the poultry breeder should think in advance about replacing the livestock.
Where can I buy this cross?
As mentioned earlier, it is not possible to breed crosses on their own, chicks are born unclean and often sick. Therefore, young animals are purchased at special poultry farms from the official supplier of chickens Hy-Line International. There are such organizations in the cities of Russia, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
Similar crosses
Cross is not particularly popular in the cities of the Russian Federation, so it is difficult to find an official poultry farm in your city. But there is a way out - layers can be replaced with other equally productive hybrids:
- Highsex. Ancestors - Leghorn and New Hampshire. Weight from 1.5 to 2.5 kg, egg production per year more than 300 pieces, weight of one 65 g. At 5 months, puberty begins. The temper is balanced and calm.
- Shaver. Egg production - more than 350 pieces per year, strong immunity, endurance and tolerance. The color of plumage is white, black. The mass of an individual is from 1.7 to 2 kg.
- Broken brown. Puberty at 5 months. Egg production is up to 320 pieces per year, the mass of one is 65 g. Good-natured and peace-loving chickens.
- Tetra. They have strong immunity, they bring about 250 eggs a year.
High Line Hens Reviews
Vera, 46 years old, teacher, Omsk. I have been breeding these hybrids for more than 4 years. Layers are very strong, strong, not sick. They behave appropriately, do not swear, do not fight. They are characterized by unpretentious care and high productivity. I recommend to all friends to get these chickens.
Sofia, 67 years old, librarian, Sochi. Started chickens on-line in his courtyard. The hen family is small, only 12 birds. My husband and I wanted to make unpretentious and productive crosses, birds bring about 300 eggs a year, do not need special conditions. This cross meets all our requirements.
Oleg, 32 years old, lawyer, Simferopol. Birds were chosen because of their calm disposition, otherwise we had nervous and aggressive breeds in our country house, there was no rest from them. High Line chickens were shared with other domestic birds, so they got along with them, they didn’t arrange fights. They do not eat much, but they bring eggs, as if from a machine gun.
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High Line chickens are one of the most coveted birds of the egg direction. Many poultry farmers seek to breed these hybrids on their territory. The reviews of the breeders claim that the cross has no particular drawbacks, but the list of benefits is impressive.