Light Sussex Chooks

Our Light Sussex Chooks

Nothing says, “Farm yard” more than Chooks running around the place. Chooks were high up on our list of animals to get. There were a few requirements I desired in the type of Chicken breed I wanted. They had to be friendly, non-aggressive, good layers, good mothers, one of the larger older breeds, able to tolerate the cold and of course they had to have an appealing colour. Not too much of a list?  Thankfully there are so many Chicken breeds around now that it’s not too hard to find what you are looking for.I did a lot of research (thank God for the Internet) and came up with two of my favourite breeds the Light Sussex and the Buff Orpingtons. They are both very beautiful birds. Next step was to scan every Saturday paper and ring around the pet shops and stock feed shops etc. Finally someone gave me a name and phone number of a breeder at Sheffield. So I rang him and he had some Light Sussex that would be ready in a few months. Right Light Sussex it is then.  We ordered 6 Hens and 1 Rooster. John and I then set to work fixing up somewhere for them to live when they arrived. They have settled in really well and are so quiet and friendly.  When I’m out gardening they are right there with me they seem to like the company and are good at cleaning up the snails and slugs. It didn’t take them long to get to know our two dogs either. They all get on famously. As I write this they are now five and a half months old. Their tail feathers are not fully-grown yet however they are such a big bird you would think they are older.Some interesting facts about the Sussex breed of Chicken. The Sussex were bred to be a dual-purpose bird and is one of the most productive breeds of poultry. They lay large eggs that are cream to light brown in colour. The Sussex chicken was created around 1900 in the county of Sussex, England. The original colours were the Brown, Red and Speckled. The Sussex is one of the oldest breeds of chicken that still exists today.

 The Light Sussex fowl description originally referred to a type of table bird that was produced by farmers in a district of Sussex in the 16th century. In fact Sussex and other type of fowl existed for hundreds of years. The Sussex where not standardised until 1904 when the Sussex breed began to be shown. The Light Sussex is the main variety and should be white with the neck hackles prominently striped in black. Black is also seen in the flight feathers when the wing is opened and the tail is also black.

Michelle.