Man, I need to get back here, to spend more time, so much to say about what I have been up to with the chicken species of critters.....
I have a friend, she is raising the Blue Laced Red Wyandottes, they are in extremely high demand in Canada. The problem is for many people wanting to raise this breed is that we are across the border and it is difficult to get different strains of these birds. There are so many hatcheries/breeders in the U.S., but the health papers to import hatching eggs or day old chicks is just so out of reach that there are great difficulties, hence so limited supply of BLRW.
Personally, I don't like the Blue Laced Red Wyandotte colouring, very unimpressive to me, but others are just raving about it and are wanting it deeply. That will happen for them, eventually. My preference is the Gold and Silver Laced and White Wyandotte breed. I have breeding stock of the Gold and Silver Laced. The Silver Laced Wyandotte that I am currently incubating come from a friend that has shown this breed in some very current poultry shows. They have won the first prize in their class. This strain of SLW is large, and I mean large, perhaps again half the size of my SLW hen that I have raised from a hatchery order. The typical SLW have been bred these days more for egg production, and the size has diminished. Through selective breeding, this line of birds that I have hatching eggs from, has been restored back to the original bred of the Silver Laced Wyandotte, which is substantially larger than the current "hatchery" bird. This strain originates from Ontario, there is a very powerful breeder of this breed there, and still breeds the large strain, more like the original breed of the SLW. In the forthcoming spring I will be obtaining the hatching eggs of the White Wyandotte. These birds are extremely winter hardy with their rose comb. The White Wyandotte is on the critical "watch". This is a breed that I must endeavour to cultivate (sounds like a plant I know), as our imminent move to a very cold climate is soon approaching. I am ramblin', hope it all makes sense, and yes, as I said, I need to get back. But as things are, chickens are far more interesting in the wintertime than the bees that are dormant, oops, yes, I still love my bees, but they are just so, on that back burner until the beginning of February. Beautiful days, to love, live, share, and Old Man Winter, will soon be on his way out....health. Cindi