Dominiques

pullets stand outMy 3-month old pullets are way more fun than I expected! In the mix are Ameracauna, Black Minorca, Pearl White Leghorn, and a dark Brahma with the Dominques. These young birds are foragers extraordinaire! So quick to chase down and kill mice, pill bugs, grubs, and tiny bug eggs or what-have-you. I love to watch them work! My favorite clever girls had always been the Pearl Whites in the past, but these Dominiques are a pure delight to have in a free-range setting. They don't miss a thing! Not as friendly as the other breeds, except for Minorcas, who keep to themselves, but they do pay attention to what I am doing and what I have in my hands to see if there is something tasty involved. And they seem to have better sight and sense of their surroundings than any of the other breeds, tending to hide faster than may be necessary. So I will wait to see how the egg-laying goes, and if the quality proves them out, this is another breed I would consider raising permanently on the ranch. I will update in a couple of months. Update one year later: The hens are laying medium-sized med. brown eggs, 4 per week. Only one is favored by the 4 roosters available. These birds are really happy to forage for themselves and hardly eat commercial feed at all. Cheap to keep! Very alert and clever girls, I'm pleased they don't fly over the coop, ever, but they sure watch for open doors! Very entertaining to watch them, but not what I would consider to be a great provider of eggs or chicks.

Not too pleasedThe female we had was little and punky.