Chickens of the Adler Silver breed: description and characteristics

Every poultry breeder who breeds chickens carefully chooses the breed of his livestock. Meat varieties of chickens are able to quickly gain body weight, in addition, the meat is of high quality to its taste.

If the farmer's goal is to obtain a large number of eggs, then it is necessary to focus on layers with a high egg production rate. And some breeds in the aggregate have both properties. In our article we will talk about a breed called Adler Silver.

Appearance

This chicken has a rather decorative look. Therefore, the bird will not only give good meat and eggs, but also decorate any yard. The main characteristics of the breed are as follows:

1. The plumage of the Adler silver is very rare, but at the same time it is very tight to the body. Plumage color of the Colombian type.
2. The body is small in size, but with a well-developed chest. The back is straight, the neck is long, but the chickens look quite compact.
3. The head is large and wide enough.
4. On the head there are small red-orange eyes. The beak is curved, rather short. The earlobes are clearly visible and the earrings are red in color.
5. On the head is an erect 5-tooth comb of red color. In males, the crest is an order of magnitude larger than that of females.
6. The legs are of medium length, the metatarsus are very well developed.
7. The tail is medium and the wings are very long.
8. Mature males weigh up to 4 kg (average 3.5 kg), while females weigh about 3 kg (maximum 3.5 kg).

What does a feathered lady look like?

The appearance of the feathered beauties is unique, so it is difficult to confuse them with other species. An adult "lady" can weigh from 2.5 kg to 2.8 kg, and at the same time boasts lush, thick feathers of a snow-white-silver color. Therefore, the Adler breed of chickens also has a name - silver.

Feather tips can be black in some places, making it more attractive. In appearance, the kvochka is not large, with a small neck and a round head. But due to the yellow paws, the bent beak to match them, the Adler laying hen is always in trend.

The wings are small, slightly rounded, due to which it cannot fly high - this makes its maintenance less problematic. This natural fashionable look of the feathered lady is completed by a small pinkish, flat scallop.

Character

Representatives of this breed have a rather peaceful and calm character. Most often, they get along well in a new place, next to other breeds of chickens.

Adlers can get along well not only with their own kind, but also with other birds, such as quails or pigeons.

For humans, the rooster of this breed does not pose any danger, although it has quite impressive dimensions.

But even though it is peaceful, it is not a cowardly breed. If you provoke a rooster, then he will certainly answer, and he will answer very seriously.

As for the noise level, it is a fairly quiet breed. Laying hens rarely cackle just like that, doing it only at the moment when they laid the egg. As for the roosters, their voice is very pleasant and loud.

Purchase

Many farmers say that it is quite difficult to find purebred Adler silver chickens for sale. Very often Sussex is sold instead.

It is best to purchase hatching eggs from the gene pool. The cost of a weekly chicken is about two hundred rubles. But even in such sources of sale, sometimes inaccuracies occur and they sell you non-purebred birds.

Most often, farmers visit exhibitions where they purchase chickens from well-known breed breeders who are very worried about their reputation.

The Adler silver breed of chickens is incredibly beautiful. Birds adapt well to any backyard. Farmers often make a choice in favor of this breed and cannot get enough of Adler chickens.

Breed productivity

Yes, this is not the most productive chicken. However, given its number of other advantages, it can be considered as the main breed for keeping at home.

On average, a laying hen is capable of producing about 200 eggs per year, but it is also necessary to take into account the fact that with home keeping, the diet of chickens is often random, therefore, productivity is in the region of 150-180 eggs per year.

The eggs are very large, up to 70 grams. The taste of eggs is high.

As for puberty, the Adler silver begins to rush no earlier than 6 months, which is another disadvantage for industrial poultry farms.

The optimum temperature at which chickens have the highest egg production rates is 17 degrees Celsius.

If the temperature in the house does not drop below -5 degrees Celsius, then the chickens will not stop laying.

As for the taste of meat, they are quite high. Therefore, at Adlerskaya, both males and chickens are equally valuable, which cannot be said about modern egg-oriented crosses, where males are used only for processing into animal feed.

Chick survival is in the 95% range. Unfortunately, in adults, this indicator is an order of magnitude lower and reaches 84%.

Origin

This breed was developed at a poultry farm located in the city of Adler. The breeders have set themselves a goal: it is worth developing a large breed of birds that will grow very actively.

In addition, egg production should be at a height, and the taste indicators of the quality of meat differ from the rest for the better. To achieve this result, breeders have carried out several stages of crossing different breeds of chickens.

The complexity of the process is that achieving the optimal balance of all the necessary qualities is a rather complicated process. For example, after crossing with a Russian white chicken, a breed was obtained that could carry a lot of eggs, but differed from the negative side in terms of meat.

Therefore, it was necessary among several generations of chickens to choose those that were distinguished by increased immunity and viability. Then they were crossed with the New Hampshire breed. This has led to an improvement in meat quality indicators.

When the breeders had already reached the fourth generation, they no longer added new types of chickens to the offspring. The best individuals were simply selected.

Exterior was also used as a selection criterion. Therefore, the new breed had special external data. Another generation possesses Plymouth Rock genes, which gives it even better ball quality indicators.

As a result, the breed included such chickens as:

• Russian white chicken.
• Vocal Oryol.
• New Hampshire breed.
• May Day chickens.
• White Plymouth Rock.

In general, the work on the breed took about ten years. In 1965, the breed was presented at an exhibition and given the name Adler Silver.

Advantages and disadvantages of the breed

Despite the fact that the breed has already begun to be forgotten and it was replaced by modern crosses, it is still found in the yards of many farmers who value their Adlercs for a number of their advantages:

1. Excellent peaceful character.
2. Unpretentious in terms of nutrition.
3. Perfectly adapts to any conditions of detention.
4. Has a fairly decorative appearance.
5. It has a dual focus: it is suitable for growing both for the purpose of obtaining eggs and for obtaining meat products.
6. The eggs are large enough, up to 65 grams.

As for the disadvantages, the following are worth noting:

1. The hen begins to rush very late, not earlier than 6 months of age.
2. Its productivity cannot be compared with modern crosses, which can produce up to 400 eggs per year.
3. The complete absence of maternal instinct in chickens.

Adler silver breed of chickens

The Adler silver breed of chickens is very popular with poultry farmers. It is noteworthy that the selective breeding of the species lasted several decades, and scientists had to cross birds of various species, but the result was really worth the effort.

Note: The appearance of the representatives of this breed is so unique that it is difficult to confuse them with any other species.

Figure 1. Chickens Adler silvery
The name of the breed reflects several important concepts associated with it. The first purebred representatives were bred at the Adler poultry farm, and the prefix "silver", which is often used to describe the breed, reflects the predominant shade of plumage of females and cockerels (Figure 1). Despite the fact that it is difficult to confuse the Adler breed with another, in the following sections we will pay special attention to the peculiarities of its appearance, so that when buying, you can accurately determine the belonging of an individual to one or another species. In addition, we will pay attention to the selection work that was carried out to breed the breed, because the existing productive characteristics of birds depend on this.

Origin and description of the breed

As mentioned above, the breed was bred at the Adler poultry farm, and the main task of the specialists was to create large birds with high egg production and tasty nutritious meat. To achieve these goals, the method of multi-stage crossing of many breeds was used.

To create the Adler breed of chickens, representatives of five species were used, and each of them took part in breeding work only at a certain stage.

Note: It is known that representatives of the breed Russian White, May Day, Plymouth Rock, New Hampshire and Yurlovskaya Vocal were used to breed Adler chickens.

Breeding work began back in 1951, continued for several years and was carried out in the following stages:

1. To obtain the first generation of the future new breed, May Day cocks were crossed with hens of the Russian white breed. Then, to stabilize the result, reproduction was carried out within the obtained species.
2. The strongest and most viable females were selected from the resulting offspring and crossed with New Hampshire roosters, which made it possible to improve the indicators of meat productivity in the resulting offspring.
3. At the second stage of selection, the most productive individuals in terms of meat parameters were selected, as well as chickens that were distinguished by the most attractive appearance. They were crossed with white Plymouthrock cockerels, which further improved the meat performance of the new subspecies. Traditionally, the next stage of selection was accompanied by reproduction within the resulting breed.

At the final stage of selection, the resulting offspring were crossed with the Yurlov Vocal breed cockerels. As a result, the first representatives of the Adler silver breed in its modern form were obtained.

Figure 2. External features of the breed

The external features of the breed are explained precisely by the fact that birds of various species were used to create it. The main shade of plumage is light (Colombian), but the feathers on the tail and wings are black (Figure 2).Despite the fact that the breed belongs to the meat and egg direction, outwardly the birds seem small and compact, while the chest is wide and deep, and the back is straight.

Among other external features of the breed, it is worth highlighting:

1. The head is small, round and in proportion to the build. The beak is yellow, curved, the crest is red, leaf-shaped, with five teeth.
2. The wings are long enough, but fit snugly to the body. The legs are of medium length, but the muscles on them are well developed.
3. The main difference between a chicken and a rooster is in a smaller body, a lighter head and a modest crest.

It should also be borne in mind that strong tail development is uncharacteristic for the breed. It should be small and compact, therefore birds with an overdeveloped tail or a comb hanging on the side should be discarded and not used for breeding work.

However, appearance is far from the only feature of the Adler breed chickens. Unlike representatives of other species, these birds can be kept for three to four years without loss of productivity, while for representatives of other species, the optimal keeping period is only one year. In addition, these birds adapt well to new living conditions, rarely get sick and quickly become attached to humans.

The only drawback of the breed can be considered a poorly developed incubation instinct, which was dulled in the process of selection work. That is why the young are taken out mainly in incubators.

Molt and break of egg production

Like any other breed or cross, the Adler Silvery encounters time gaps when a lay break occurs. Typically, the performance of a chicken is as follows:

1. For three to four weeks, the hen lays stably for 24-48 hours (1 egg).
2. Then there is a break, which lasts several days, sometimes up to 2 weeks.

If the break is prolonged, then most likely something happened to the chicken:

1. The chicken does not eat properly or the necessary elements are missing in its diet.
2. The bird faced obesity problems.
3. She is under stress.
4. Daylight hours are too short.
5. Some kind of disease has developed.

If these problems arise, you need to eliminate them, and the previous productivity of the bird will return. Also, a hen can take a very long break during molting.

You should not worry too much about this, since this is a natural natural process. Chickens of any breed shed. Adlers do this most often in the fall. The duration of molt depends on various factors, but most often it lasts 2-4 weeks.

Laying cycle

Absolutely all chickens are characterized by the so-called egg-laying cycle. First, the laying hen brings eggs at regular intervals, in different breeds it ranges from 24 to 48 hours. This is followed by a rest period when the chicken does not lay for 7 days to 2-3 months.

For Adler chickens, the normal cycle is when the chicken is carried daily for 3-4 weeks, followed by a break for 1-2 weeks. Longer interruptions are caused by negative factors that can and should be addressed.

Improper nutrition. A very common reason. The diet of birds should be abundant in calcium, vitamins and minerals. You can use ready-made feeding for layers, or give plenty of chalk or crushed eggshells, herbs, root vegetables.

Overfeeding is a very common cause of decreased egg production. It leads to obesity, which negatively affects health and productivity.

Proper nutrition is the key to good chicken productivity

Stress. Chickens are very conservative birds.Any change in life - a change in the daily routine, a change in diet, a transfer to another room, the appearance of new birds in a flock, can make them nervous, and, as a result, rush less.

Adler chickens need constant temperatures and regime

Insufficient daylight hours. Its changes are perceived by the bird's brain as a kind of "calendar". Short days and long nights are recognized as winter, a period when wild chickens do not fly. This instinct can be easily fooled by artificial lighting in a chicken coop. Chickens rush at their peak with 13-15 hour daylight hours.

The length of the day for Adler chickens is 13-15 hours

Molting. Good layers should shed within 2-4 weeks in the fall. Sick chickens also stop laying. Carefully monitor the health of the livestock, prevent epidemics and carry out preventive antiparasitic treatment in time.

Healthy chickens should molt in the fall within 2-4 weeks.

The diet

Since this is a "Soviet" bird, it is quite unpretentious in terms of nutrition. However, the chicken needs to be provided with adequate protein and calcium.

Protein and calcium play a critical role in the production of egg products. If the chicken lacks protein and calcium, then it will begin to lay very small eggs (about 40 g each), which is a huge disadvantage even when poultry is raised at home.

We recommend to read: Description of the breed of chickens Foxy Chick

In addition, in the case of chickens, without protein, they will be very lagging behind in development.

Maintenance and care

As has already been repeatedly noted in the article, the Adler Silver is a fairly unpretentious breed. This makes the chicken suitable even for novice farmers. However, if you completely "score" on the bird, you should not expect 250 eggs per year. In order for the chicken to feel good, develop normally, give a lot of eggs and not get sick, at least the minimum conditions of detention must be observed:

1. This is an active bird that needs to walk a lot. Cellular content is not very suitable for Adlerka.
2. The coop should not be damp, and the floor should be covered with a special mat. It can be used as sawdust, straw, peat and any other suitable material.
3. Once every 6 months, it is imperative to disinfect the premises. It allows you to rid the chicken coop of fleas, ticks and other misfortunes that can harm the bird.
4. There should be no draft in the chicken coop, but at the same time, aeration must be present. It is necessary not only to provide the bird with access to fresh air, but also to remove unpleasant odors from the chicken coop.
5. In winter, additional lighting should be present in the chicken coop. With a short daylight hours, the productivity of females drops significantly.
6. Chickens very often turn feeders and drinkers over. To prevent this from happening, it is recommended to place them along the wall. Also, the water in the drinking bowl in the summer is changed 2 times a day, and in the winter 1 time a day.
7. In a mandatory measure, roosts must be present in the chicken coop. They are located at a height of 60 to 80 cm.

Diseases and treatment

"Adler silvery" are distinguished by strong immunity, but poor sanitary conditions in the chicken coop can lead to the appearance of parasites. Prevention consists of regular cleaning of the chicken coop, availability of bathing tanks and regular inspection of birds. If you notice any signs of disease in the chicken, it must be isolated to prevent infection.

The lack of vitamins in the body can be signaled by the color of the chicken legs. In healthy individuals, they are yellow, sometimes with a brown tint. With a lack of nutrients, they brighten. When infectious diseases appear, the chicken coop must be carefully processed, and the infected individuals must be sent to the slaughter.

Breeding the breed

Despite the fact that this is not a cross, it is very difficult to breed new offspring of the Adler silver at home. This is due to the fact that chickens do not have a maternal instinct and they do not want to become hens. At the same time, if we talk about the fertilization of eggs, then it is at a fairly high level and very often reaches 100%. Accordingly, Adlerskaya eggs are ideal for hatching chickens in an incubator.

Experienced poultry farmers advise laying eggs in the month of May. So, chicks will be born in the warm season, in summer, and will have time to get stronger even before the frost begins. In addition, fresh grass can be included in the bird's diet, which cannot be done in winter. If there is no incubator for hatching chickens, then you can lay eggs on a hen of another breed, of course, if there is one.

How to properly keep Adler silver chickens

Despite the fact that this breed is considered unpretentious, some nuances should be taken into account when keeping it, which will ensure high meat productivity and stable egg production.

Among the main points of keeping the breed, it is worth highlighting:

1. For females, early onset of oviposition is characteristic, up to six months of age. Such premature development is undesirable, as it can lead to a weakening of the immune system and a sharp decrease in productivity. To prevent this undesirable phenomenon, use the method of artificial growth retardation. For this, the birds are limited in nutrition and the length of daylight hours for young animals is reduced.
2. Representatives of this breed can be called universal not only in terms of productivity, but also in terms of content. They feel quite normal in cages, but higher rates of egg production and weight gain are observed when keeping livestock on fenced areas.
3. Birds tolerate a drop in temperature well, but are very sensitive to moisture levels. therefore, the floor in the house must be covered with a layer of bedding that will absorb moisture.

It should also be borne in mind that Adler chickens are very clean, therefore, inside the poultry house or on the walk, it is imperative to leave containers with sand or ash so that the birds can take ash baths at any time (Figure 3).

Figure 3. Keeping livestock in the poultry house and on the run

The Adler breed is considered unpretentious in feeding, but in order to maintain egg production and fast weight gain, it is better to adhere to a balanced diet. In addition to cereals traditional for birds, the menu must include vitamin and mineral supplements, fresh vegetables and herbs. It should also be borne in mind that the diet of chickens and adults is significantly different (Figure 4). First of all, it is necessary to balance the diet in terms of the protein component. Lack of protein can cause young chicks to develop late, and adult chickens will rarely lay or their eggs will become too small.

In general, the breed can be called unpretentious in terms of feeding, but experienced poultry farmers recommend adding fish waste or small fish, meat and bone meal and buttermilk to the diet of birds. At the same time, it is important not to allow an excess of protein, therefore, such products are given out to livestock every other day, and no more than 30 grams per head.

Note: If you don't have the opportunity to buy quality bone meal or other protein-rich foods, you can substitute fish broth porridge instead. Chickens are very willing to eat such food, but care must be taken that the remains of porridge in the feeder do not deteriorate and do not provoke food poisoning.

Figure 4. Features of feeding the breed
If the main purpose of breeding the Adler silver breed is to obtain high-quality meat, the diet must necessarily include premixes that contribute to rapid weight gain.However, even if birds are kept for eggs, it is still better to include premixes in the diet to improve the overall health of the flock.

In more detail, you should dwell on the diet of young animals:

1. In the first days of life, chickens are fed mainly with chopped boiled eggs. It is advisable to roll it in semolina so that the product does not stick to the paws of the chicks.
2. From the second day of life, the diet begins to be replenished with fresh chopped herbs, and then fresh chopped vegetables are gradually introduced, and the advantage should be given to pumpkin, carrots and beets.
3. Baker's yeast will also bring health benefits and should be added to the feed in a low concentration.
4. It is important to feed chicks frequently. In the first 10 days, feeding is carried out every two hours, and as the young grow up, they switch to a frequency of 7 times a day.
5. Chickens under one month old are strictly forbidden to give out whole grains. The source of protein can be meat waste and insects.

When the chickens reach the age of one month, feeding is carried out up to 4 times a day, and already at this age it is possible to increase the amount of grain in the diet. Preference should be given to ground barley and millet. Also, in the room for keeping young animals, a separate gravel feeder must be installed, into which vitamin and mineral supplements can be added.