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POTTERS

ANIMAL FEED & SUPPLIES

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Potters Large & Bantam
Pure Breeds 

 Norfolk Grey

Breeding Quartet for 2021

OFS

The Norfolk Grey is a utility breed of chicken that originated near the city of Norwich, in Norfolk, England, in around 1910. The breed was originally created by Frederick W Myhill of Hethel, Wymondham Before the First World War as utility birds under the name Black Marias. The name was unfortunately reminiscent of funerals and was quickly dropped and the breed took the name Norfolk Grey instead. 
They were first exhibited at the Dairy Show in 1920. 
They are a heavy breed but are not actually that large and only weigh around 6-7lbs. They were developed by crossing the Birchen English Game with Partridge Wyandottes. They have a single comb and a red face with black eyes while the legs are slate or black. Plumage is attractively marked and the male has a beautiful silver hackle striped with black as is the neck, back, saddle and wing feathers while the rest of the plumage is black. The hen's hackle is similar to the cockerels but she has an otherwise rich black feathering all over apart from the throat which is silver laced. They can produce a good-sized carcass for meat production if they are allowed to mature slowly and are regulars at shows where they win prizes. 
They are a rare breed and almost disappeared in the early 1970s but fortunately a private flock was found to contain 4 birds in 1974 and the breed was revived. 

Dual-purpose meat/eggs
Egg production 220
Temperament -  Active Forager
Egg Colour-  Tinted

Brahma 

                         Various Pullets Available

The majestic Brahma is an old breed with its roots far back in time; as with many heritage breeds, the exact genetic makeup of this bird is unknown. Historians have reconstructed the likely origins of this noble bird from clues left in the poultry books and journals of the 1800s.

Famed for its size and known as King of ‘Chickens’, it’s a docile, calm bird that is a both used for meat, and egg laying. They are sedate birds with broad, deep bodies, full breast and long powerful, orange or brilliant yellow legs and feet covered with abundant soft feathers which produces lovely big floppy feet. The head is small for such a large bird and the face is smooth and free from feathers with large, prominent eyes, short strong beak and a triple or pea comb and small wattles. The brow is broad which produces heavy eyebrows. 


Brahmas are very large, stately, docile birds who make good reliable broodies which can cover a large number of eggs due to their size. The eggs are small and low in number but chicks hatch strongly and grow quickly. Their feathering is beautiful and they are very elegant birds. 

They will happily stay behind 2-3 foot fencing and prefer dry conditions because of their foot feathering they can develop mud balls (or fecal balls) on their toes. If this is not removed, the loss of nails or the tips of the toes may result. 

They are slow maturing and take two years to reach maturity. They are trusting birds and are easy to tame. 

Because of their size, they do take up a lot of space but they do not fly and can be let out to roam happily in the garden. Hens don't start to lay until they are around six or seven months old and the eggs are as small as those of the larger miniature breeds. 

They do continue laying throughout the winter unlike some pure breeds. Their profuse feathering makes them very good at withstanding cold winter weather. 

They are tolerant towards other breeds so can be kept together with other varieties without any problems and can even be submissive towards others despite their large size. Even the cockerels will tolerate each other. They make very little noise and even the cockerels do not crow particularly loudly. 


Purpose - Dual Eggs & Meat

Eggs - 150
Size - Large
Egg Colour - Brown
Buff, Light & Speckled Sussex
* Limited Numbers in stock 



The Sussex originated in the county of Sussex. They were prized table birds more than 100 years ago.
The Sussex today is still a very popular breed to keep. 
Bred to be a dual purpose bird, it is one of the most productive breeds. 
The hen will lay around 260 large eggs that are cream to light brown in colour. 
The Sussex is one of the oldest breeds that are still in existence today.

The Sussex chicken is an alert but docile breed that can adapt to any surrounding easily. 
They are good foragers. Whilst they are quite happy to be free range, they will also be fine if kept in a confined space. 
They can occasionally but not very often go broody, the speckled is the most likely of the breed to do this. 

The colours found in Sussex chickens are brown buff, light red, speckled, silver and white.
 The Sussex chicken whatever its colour should be graceful.
 The eyes are red in the darker varieties but are orange in the lighter ones.
 They have a medium sized single comb. The earlobes are red and the legs and skin are white in every variety. 
The brown and red varieties are rare now with the other colours being quite common.

Dual-purpose meat/eggs
Egg production - 260 per year
Size - Large
Egg Colour- Brown, Cream, Tan


Buff Orpington - 
OFS

Today, the Buff Orpington is one of the world’s most popular breeds. A heritage chicken, it was even the favourite breed of Queen Elizabeth! 

A much loved, beautiful bird with personality. 

Originated in Orpington, Kent, in the late 1800's. .  

It is a docile chicken breed, the Buff Orpington is known as the friendliest and calmest of all the Orpington varieties.

A calm, stately chicken, it glides around its garden in search for food. It enjoys being held and likes the attention of humans.
With fantastic feathering, this chicken is absolutely lovely to behold. It moves in a gentle gliding motion, offering a sophisticated and classy air to your entire chicken run. 

It will even let you know when it’s ready for some loving, emitting soft little cries to encourage you to pick it up!

Good winter hardiness.


Dual-purpose - meat/eggs
Eggs per year - 190
Egg Size - Large
 Egg Colour - Light brown

Leghorn
OFS

The Leghorn is an Italian breed, named after the port of Leghorn, from which they were shipped all over the world. The breed was further developed in the USA, arriving in Britain in the 1870s. The Leghorn is usually an all-white bird except for its yellow legs and beak, and coloured facial features.

Leghorns will get dirty and muddy, so don’t keep them if you’re a clean freak, and want your chickens to look as immaculate as your home!

the Leghorn is a superb chicken to keep at home if you love eggs, as they are proficient layers, and lay throughout the winter. It’s no wonder that they are the breed of choice for commercial egg farms, laying eggs as white as their feathers.

Leghorns are not broody, non-sitters, and they continue laying after many other breeds are finished The chicks mature early, and young hens are ready to lay within four to five months. Leghorns are heat tolerant, but hate the cold, so make sure you bring them in during frosty weather, and provide them with a draught-free coop and plenty of bedding.

They are rather aloof, and since they can fly, they should be kept in an enclosed run. They will take quickly to being free-range.


Average Annual Egg Production - 200
Best Features: High Egg Yield 

Egg Colour - White

Pekin
Various Colours
 In Stock  

The Pekin is a small bantam, originally from China. . 
Loving and really quite docile, these comical little chickens are perfect for beginners. 
The Pekin is probably the most colourful of all the chicken breeds and are well known to have feathering about their feet and legs.

The first Pekins are said to have been stolen from a private collection held by the emperor of China in Peking around 1860. Another story states they were imported from China around 1830-1840 and were presented to Queen Victoria. These imported birds were then crossed with other breeds and are now know today as Pekin Bantams.

The Pekin is a very gentle bird. They are good layers of small eggs but are broody, making them great mothers. 
They make excellent pets for children as they are tame. They settle very well and require little space. 
Pekins can look rather pale and anaemic if not allowed on grass to forage. They tend not to scratch around in flower beds so are good birds to keep in an urban garden. They are normally a robust and long-lived bird that loves company.
Pekins are a very popular breed here in the UK. 
They are available in a whole range of colours. Lavender, blue, silver partridge, red partridge, blue mottled, Columbian, cuckoo, mottled, buff, black, white and wheaten. 
With all their feathers they actually look larger than they really are. 

 Ornamental
Egg Size - Small
Egg Colour - Brown



 Aruacana
Breeding Pairs For 2021
OFS

The Araucana comes from South America and are named after the Araucano tribe of Native South Americans. There are records of blue egg laying chickens in South America going back to the 1520’s. They first appeared in Europe at the World Poultry Congress in The Netherlands in 1921, exhibited by Prof. Castello who imported them around 1914. These were rumpless birds with pea combs and tufts of feathers growing near their ears and laid blue eggs. Rumpless birds had an advantage in the wild because predators struggled to catch them. 

 Great back garden bird. They are hardy with a great resistance to all common poultry-related diseases. The breed is a great flier so wings may have to be clipped or they will need to be kept in a fully enclosed run.


Araucanas are an active, hardy, light breed that lay a unique blue/green egg with colour permeating right through the shell. The Araucana is one of the most varied breeds. It comes in tailed, crested and rumpless, tufted versions. Both types have thick muffs and beards.


   Production - 180 

Egg Size - Med/Large
Egg Colour - Blue

Rhode Island Red

 2021 Potters Breeding Plan

OFS

The Rhode Island Red is an American breed of domestic chicken. It is the state bird of Rhode Island. It was developed there and in Massachusetts in the late nineteenth century, by cross-breeding birds of Oriental origin such as the Malay with brown Leghorn birds from Italy. 

Rhode Islands are classed as a heavy breed, but are active. They enjoy foraging on grass. They are bright and alert but at the same time quiet. They make great pets and are relatively hardy. They will produce a large amount of brown eggs a year. 

The Rhode Island is a Red bird. The plumage is a dark rich glossy red in the male, being slightly less glossy in the female. The male should only have black in his wings and tail and the female the same but can have black on her neck. The body is broad and deep and oblong in its shape. It has a broad flat back with a medium sized tail. The earlobes are red in colour as are the eyes. They have yellow legs.
 
Dual-purpose meat/eggs
Eggs - 260
Egg Size - Large
Egg Colour - Brown


Cochin 
Breeding Quartet for 2021 Plans
OFS

The Cochin is a breed of large domestic chicken. It derives from large feather-legged chickens brought from China to Europe and North America in the 1840s and 1850s. It is reared principally for exhibition. It was formerly known as Cochin-China. 


It is doubtful that any other single breed of chicken has inspired more people to keep poultry as a hobby or fancy. When the Cochin chicken made its debut outside of China it was met with astonishment, wonder, and awe. 

Cochins are gigantic with an abundance of feathers and calm disposition. Together with the Brahma chicken, the Cochin fueled what became known as “hen fever” a national obsession for all things poultry that overtook America and England around 1850.

The Cochins rounded appearance unfortunately affects its health as the birds tend to suffer from metabolism and heart problems which is compounded by their rather lazy lifestyle. They like to be kept on short grass and will not venture onto longer vegetation as this damages the feathers on their feet. 
They take up remarkably little room and like to be contained with fencing but avoid putting them onto cold, wet grass as youngsters. The profuse leg and foot feathering means that it is best to confine Cochins on wet days when mud becomes a problem and can cause balls of mud to collect under their feet. 
They do not fly and a 2 foot fence is sufficient to keep them contained. They make excellent broodies because of their calm, maternal nature. They lay quite large eggs but don't produce many over the year. The chicks are strong when they hatch but take 22 days rather than the usual 21 to emerge. 
Cochins are friendly, docile chickens and tend to be submissive when kept with more aggressive breeds. 
They require good quality feed and mature in two years. 
They make remarkably good pets and a pet Cochin should live between 8-10 years.

 Ornamental
Eggs - 160
Egg Size - Medium
Egg Colour - Light brown

French Wheaten Maran -  Limited Laying Hens Available

 French Black Maran - Limited Amount Available 

French Cuckoo Maran - OFS


This poultry breed is famed for the deep glossy brown colour of its eggs. 

Good pure breed Marans can be hard to find. The Maran was one of the last breeds to be introduced to the UK. It was developed in France in the town of Marans in the mid 1800s. The eggs started to be imported to the UK by a London wholesaler. The dark brown eggs soon caught on and became very popular which led to English farmers breeding the Marans. 

They are a medium to large sized hen. 

Slow growing and being a of a utility breed the cockerels make great Coq au Vin. 

They are a docile bird, quite placid in nature they forage well and are quite disease resistant.


They have bright orange eyes and white legs. Best of all they produce an almost chocolate brown egg and very succulent meat. They were popular as show birds in the 1940s where there were far more colours including a gold colour cuckoo.


Marans can be lazy birds. They will get fat very easily if allowed to therefore it is best to keep them as free range as possible to prevent this. Marans are easy to look after and if given the space will be active.


Dual-purpose meat/eggs

Eggs - 150
Egg Size - Large
Egg Colour - Dark brown
  

Cream Leg Bar
 Limited Amount Available


Cream Legbar rare breed hens originate from Britain. They are a very alert and sprightly chickens and lay approximately 180 Blue, Green or Olive shaded eggs per year.

They are very productive layers.

This breed of chicken is known as an auto-sexing type. The male Cream Legbar have a distinct pale dot on their head and the females have a dark brown or black stripe on their heads which will carry on continuing down the body. Both types have a yellow beak with either red or orange eyes and yellow feet.


The Cream Legbar is a chicken that enjoys foraging, so if you can provide them with an area to roam so much the better. Although they can tolerate confinement. 

They appear to be a healthy breed of bird with little in the way of problems. The crest should be carefully checked for lice as birds with ‘headgear’ have a tendency to collect them.


 Main purpose - Eggs
Eggs - 180
Egg Size - Medium
Egg Colour - Blue, Green, Olive, White



Chicks and Young Birds In Stock


When collecting your chickens, please bring a suitable carrier to take them home in. 

A cat carrier, dog crate (with a blanket over the top) or a cardboard box would be perfect.

Two chickens would be comfortable in a cat carrier. Please ensure that the carrier is secure and ventilated,

 ideally with some shavings or straw to keep the chickens clean and happy on the journey.  

If your cardboard box does not have any holes, we will make some for you. 

We also have some cardboard boxes available if you forget or don’t have an available carrier -

 we won't ever charge you for boxes!


Terms & Conditions Apply - While Stocks Last


Please call to order as demand is extremely high 


Please feel free to book an appointment 

to visit Potters, meet the team, 

and come to see our lovely girls and boys.



01379 384 801


pottersfeedstore@gmail.com

224-546-0546