There are many good breeds of chickens today. In recent years, breeders have bred many hybrids with very high productivity. And one of the most popular crosses is, of course, Highsex.
Hybrid story
The breed of Highsex chickens was obtained in the Netherlands by Euribrid specialists. When breeding it, breeders set themselves three main tasks:
increased egg production;
weight reduction of chickens, and, consequently, a decrease in the amount of food consumed by them;
an increase in the size of the eggs themselves.
And all these three goals were achieved by specialists in full. White Leghorn and New Hampshire were used as parent breeds for the new hybrid.
Hayseks (breed of chickens): general description
What does this hybrid popular with farmers look like? There are only two main varieties of Highsex chickens at the moment:
white (white);
brown (brown).
It is believed that white crosses Highsex are more durable. Young growth of such a bird is usually kept at 100%. The breed of chickens Highsex Brown in appearance is very similar to the rhodonites well known to many summer residents. The safety index of young animals in such a bird is 90%.
The crest of all Highsex chickens has a rich red color and hangs on its side. When choosing such a bird on the market, the owners of personal plots should be as careful as possible. Since chickens are small in size, some sellers may give adult Haysex (2-3 years) for young. In order not to make a mistake with the choice, when buying it is worth looking at the legs of the bird. In young females they are light yellow, and in adult chickens they are gray.
Chickens
The Highsex chickens , among other things, also have one interesting feature. It is possible to distinguish the cockerel of this hybrid from the chicken already at the age of one day. For owners of household plots this is, of course, a big plus. The Highsex chickens are light yellow in down and the hens are beige.
Productivity indicators
The sizes of these chickens, as already mentioned, are very small. They weigh only about 1.4-1.8 kg. In brown browns, this figure in some cases may be equal to 2 kg. Males of both varieties usually reach a weight of 2.3-2.6 kg.
Some farmers are also interested in how to distinguish leggorn chickens from hayseks. The answer to this question is relatively simple. Leghorns are a bit larger than high-tech. Chickens of this breed weigh about 2 kg, males - 3 kg. In addition, the birds of this breed do not have such large scallops.
High sexes of both varieties reach puberty a little earlier than birds of almost any other breed - already by 4-4.5 months. In a year, one Highsex chicken can lay up to 300 eggs. The weight of the latter, despite the small size of the layer itself, can vary between 65-70 grams. Some chickens of this breed carry even huge eggs - at 90 g. But the owners of such a unique bird, unfortunately, in certain cases there may be problems with its content. Such a small chicken has a huge egg (almost duck weight) can simply get stuck in the oviduct. To save a bird, it has to be operated on. Which, in turn, greatly affects the productivity of the individual in the future.
Highisex White chickens are not only large in size, but also simply have great taste. They are valued by farmers, including for low cholesterol. A large number of eggs laid during the year - this is why, among other things, the high-breed brown chickens deserved good reviews from farmers. The productivity of this species is slightly better than that of the white bird. Brown chickens of this breed carry about 20-30 pieces. there are more white eggs per year.
Compared to many other breeds, highsexes, according to many farmers, have another important advantage. Unlike modern crosses, such chickens in the second and even third years practically do not reduce productivity.
Care Features
Highisex chickens can be kept on farms both by cell and floor methods. In any case, at least 4 m 3 of free space should fall on 4 individuals. In the barn for this breed, you should definitely arrange good ventilation. These hens do not like dampness and stale air.
Highsexes suffer, unfortunately, much worse than most domestic breeds. Therefore, the floor in the barn should be covered with a layer of sawdust with a thickness of at least 15 cm. In winter, the room with hens must necessarily be heated. Otherwise, the bird will not only stop trotting, but may freeze altogether. The temperature in the barn must be positive (about +12 o C).
Perches for these hens are usually located at a height of 60 cm from the floor. In this case, it will be convenient for layers to climb on them. In addition, in winter the bird will not freeze. Laying nests are installed in the most secluded and dark places of the house. Too low and deep experienced farmers do not advise them to do it. Otherwise, the bird will rush worse.
The chickens of this breed are relatively demanding, not only to heat, but also to light. There should be several windows in the house. In addition, a sufficient number of lamps should be placed inside the barn. Daylight hours for this bird should last at least 17 hours a day (even in winter).
How to feed
The ration for these hens is supposed to be developed a little different than for ordinary laying hens. Hayseks fed 2-3 times a day with mixers and grain. In addition, legumes and corn are necessarily included in the diet. Food for these hens is poured into the feeders as much as they can completely eat in 30 minutes. Of course, they should not be soured by the mixers in the troughs.
Among other things, universal premixes with a wide range of trace elements should be mixed into the feed for these chickens. In particular, the Haysex white breed of chickens needs such additives. Without premixes, this bird can greatly decrease in productivity.
Highsex drinking water should always be fresh. In order for the chickens not to catch any infection, it is worth periodically adding a little potassium permanganate to it.
What problems can a farmer face?
Hysex brown is a breed of chickens (its description was given above), which is relatively unpretentious in food. For a variety of white diet should be more carefully. But unfortunately, quite often farmers who grow this breed are faced with such a problem as biting backs and paws. To exclude cases of cannibalism, experienced poultry farmers advise using red lamps in the barn when keeping these hens. If bites still appear, they should be treated with brilliant green or iodine.
Sometimes chickens of the Highsex breed also begin to pluck feathers from themselves or from neighbors in the barn. To prevent this from happening, the bird needs to add a little feed sulfur to the food.
How to get chickens
Since Highsex is not a pure breed, but a cross, you cannot get high-quality offspring from it in a homestead economy, of course. In principle, it is possible to incubate the egg of such hens. However, chickens bred in this way will not inherit the high productivity of their parents. In fact, the Highsex chickens themselves never hatch eggs. Unfortunately, their maternal instinct is completely lost.
Thus, young animals of this breed can be obtained at home, only from an incubation egg bought at a pedigree farm or at a poultry farm. They sell it at about 11 rubles apiece. Highsex eggs are incubated in the same way as eggs of any other laying hens.
Chick Care
Experienced farmers are advised to start feeding high-altitude chicks with factory food. Chickens grow very quickly, and their diet, of course, should be as balanced as possible. It is recommended to start preparing food for young animals on their own from the age of at least 10 weeks.
Hybrid Dawn-17
Thus, the breed of Highsex chickens is actually characterized by very high rates of productivity. However, this bird, and especially brown, is not adapted too well to the climatic conditions of Russia. Some difficulties with its maintenance sometimes arise for farmers. Therefore, Russian breeders based on this breed also created a four-line cross-dawn-17. The appearance of these chickens is exactly the same as high-tech. The same goes for productivity indicators. The only difference between charge-17 and highsex is its insensitivity to low temperatures.
What do farmers think about the breed
So, this hybrid is relatively good in terms of productivity. The opinion of the owners of household plots about these crosses was very positive. The main advantage of this breed of chickens, of course, is the very high egg production rate of farmers. High-performance surpasses the majority of modern popular breeds in productivity.
Also, the advantages of the hybrid are the fact that it rushes for a very long time. Highsex Brown chickens from farmers in this regard did not deserve as good as white. The white variety of this bird even lays eggs almost every third year of keeping. Browns, however, rush well, unfortunately, mostly only in the first 2 years.
Of course, there are not only positive reviews about these chickens. Highsexes, according to farmers, have some drawbacks. The minuses of this breed include, for example, poor resistance to cold and a tendency to bite. Owners of farms also consider white crosses to be too shy. The breed of chickens Highsex Brown is more even in character. However, representatives of both varieties often show aggressiveness towards another poultry.
Many farmers consider the lack of self-preservation instinct to be a certain disadvantage of these chickens. For example, this bird can freely try to take food from a dog. Which, most likely, will end badly for her.