Barnevelders
Amazing eye candy delivering tasty eggs. In addition to enhancing the beauty of your lawn, the hens earn their keep gifting a steady supply of large brown eggs. Even their eggs are gorgeous! The brown eggs often present heartwarming speckles and tint of copper adding that special touch of personality and uniqueness. Most sought for their amazing feather color and design.
EGGS THEY GIFT
Gifts 3-4 Large Brown (Possible Speckles with a Copper Tint) Eggs a Week
PERSONALITY
They prefer to be able to have room to roam and forage. They should have a minimum of 10 square feet per bird but are much happier with 40+ square feet. The more room you provide, the less you have to clean the run. Their foraging skills means they will consume less feed providing they have adequate foraging space. Our ladies have an innate desire to forage. We do not like hens to be wired to depend solely on obtain their meal from a feeder, instead they crave and thrive in an environment where they can peck and scratch to roam pasture and help turn compost. Barnevelder chickens love to range, and most varieties are in colors and patterns that blend in well with their surroundings. Although they aren’t good fliers, they are alert to their surroundings and excel at predator detection.
HISTORY
The Barnevelder breed’s name is most commonly pronounced “Bar-na-vel-der,” although you will hear some Americans pronounce it “Barn-vel-der.”
The only variety recognized by the American Poultry Association (APA) is the Golden Double Laced variety. These chickens are gorgeous with greenish-black and dark gold feathers. The hens’ body feathers are dark gold with greenish black lacing. The silver and blue are newer bloodlines that are not yet recognized. The rarer colors are sought after for backyard fanciers and exhibit showings.
The creation began in 1865 in the surrounding areas of Barneveld, Gelderland, and The Netherlands when local fowl were crossed with Asiatic “Shanghai” breeds including the Brahma and Langshan. This was done to increased their size, brown shell coloring, and extended winter laying. In 1898 they were mated to an “American Utility Fowl”, (they resembled a single-combed golden-laced Wyandotte and laid red-brown eggs). In 1906, the Buff Orpington chicken was crossed in. By only keeping the darkest brown eggs and the double laced design, the Barnevelder chicken emerged.
SEXING METHODS
Several communities have laws in which roosters are not allowed. The sex of a Barnevelder being reliably identifiable by external characteristics on average is 90%. Inspecting the vent as day olds reveals their sex. Thus, industry standard is to offer as a female chick or pullet. To assist city families, we offer with your choice of traditionally sexed females with coverage or DNA sexed females.
