Mystery of the Rare Breed Chicken

Doesn't that sound like a Nancy Drew title? :)

I have figured out what my rare chick is! They throw a mystery rare chick in with your order at McMurray Hatchery (along with extra roosters evidently) and it turns out that mine is an "Egyptian Fayoumi"! :)

Here is a good picture:



He is the liveliest of all, holds his tail straight up, and swoops in to grab every worm I offer anyone. He also has started trying to crow, and looks rooster shaped although smaller than the others. If I'm right he may stay as small as 4 lbs!

The chicken chart I like says "Precocious scavenger and escape artist. very economical eater; does not like containment; lively; flighty, known for wildness, but varies."

McMurrays says: "These small, active, lovely chickens have been raised along the Nile River in Egypt for centuries, and even though quite common there, are practically unknown in this country. We got our start of this very rare breed from one of the state universities whose poultry department was using them for special studies in genetics. No other breed matures quite so quickly as these do and the young pullets are apt to start laying their small tinted white eggs at 4 to 4-1/2 months while the cockerels will start to crow at an unbelievable 5 to 6 weeks. They are attractively marked with silvery white hackle and white bars on black background throughout the body plumage. Leg color can be either willow green or slate blue. Baby chicks are highly colored in brown, black, and white markings on the back and a brownish purple head color."

As a chick he did have a brown head, the only one who did - and then it came in white, but the whole time I was distracted by the big white chicken who has a hen comb and looks like an eagle, but has started trying to crow so is probably an Auracana male.

Here is McMurray's Fayoumi page: click here

And here are more chicken pics, look how they've grown! :)