If Only You Had Australorp Chickens In Your Backyard

Do I hear the faint yell of Australorp Chickens in the background?

It could be in your backyard…

The good old Australorp chicken originates from Australia and what a good chicken it is.

I have had a few Australorps in my time and can say with all honesty they are a delight to own and not only that!

They also make good pets as well.

Australorp Chickens as Friends

REALLY!

YES!

They are not only placid, but I have found that without much effort this breed of chickens make good buddies.

They are not flighty birds as they are quite bulky in stature unless it’s all those feathers…

But yes if you are looking for a chicken that lays eggs and fits in well in your chicken coop then Australorp birds fit the bill.

Are Black Australorps Quiet?

These chickens are quiet compared to other breeds of chickens.

They are also excellent egg layers as well which is a plus.

Being a quiet bird and also friendly, if you did not know it, they are very curious chickens indeed.

And why not, just because people have formed a picture in their minds that a chicken is just a chicken out scratching in the yard.

They are not silly, I know…

You see a chicken that is not sure how to get back into a coop going back and forwards along a fence and think this bird is not that intelligent.

But you must think not in the way that we, as humans think and start to consider there is intelligence that you don’t see.

So stop judging them for what they are not doing and start to judge them for what they can do.

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They will actually follow you around the place to see what you are doing.

They are not lacking in confidence and with a mellow temperament is what makes these chickens a good pet.

How Old Are Australorps When They Start Laying?

As with any chicken, there is not a real difference when they reach maturity and start to lay eggs.

You are looking around 6 months when they start to lay.

Don’t expect a big egg in you’re laying box, when a young hen starts to lay their eggs are in fact quite small. You need to give their system a chance to develop.

And as time goes on your hen’s eggs will get bigger.

So you could look to having some small omelettes.

Only joking…

You might in fact want to have a photo taken with it for posterity.

Most chicken breeds will start producing eggs at around 6 months of age, but the Black Australorp can actually start as early as 16 weeks of age.

What Color Eggs Do Australorps Lay?

The Australorp hen actually lays brown eggs, much like the Maran chicken, these chickens are in the minority when it comes to laying brown eggs.

If you look after your Australorp hens well enough, they will in kind, will look after you by laying approximately 250 light-brown eggs per year.

In fact, there was a new record set by one of these birds when this hen laid 364 eggs in 365 days.

Now that’s what I call great egg production…

How Long Do Australorp Chickens Live?

When you think of birds in general you think that they don’t live for a long time, but birds are in fact one of the longest livers of the animal kingdom.

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The chicken is not one that can make nearly 50 years of age and can live approximately 6 to 10 years, which in ways is not bad.

Look after them and give them a good variety of food, and you might have a chicken that might even live longer.

Are Black Australorps Broody?

I have found that the Australorp hen does lean towards being broody.

But compared to some breeds like the silkie, they do not have a tendency of going broody that much.

I had a broody Australorp hen, and she was a good mother to her chicks and because of her lovely nature, she never attempted to get nasty with me right from the start.

And I could handle the chicks with no fuss from her, this means that she trusted me with her chicks and knew they were in no danger.

See the bonds of the understanding you can get with these chickens.

What Color Are Australorp Chickens?

The Australorp actually are recognised for three different colours according to the Australian Poultry Standard:

These are:

• black
• blue
• white

As I had thought for a long time that the Australorp chicken only came in black, now that might have been so a while ago, and they have bread colour into them now, I am not sure.

But it’s nice to think that you can get Australorp chickens in different colours.

blue australorp chicken