You’d agree with me that those days are gone when people raise chickens just for their ability to lay eggs or produce meat, the reasons vary these days. Recently, backyard flock keepers for some reasons, now find Fancy Chicken Breeds attractive additions to their coop.
Fancy Chicken Breeds are the type of birds considered exotic, rare, and unique due to their eye-pleasing appearances and friendly dispositions.
While some backyard owners in search of chicken pets may opt for friendliest chicken breeds, your interest as a chicken beauty enthusiast would likely tilt towards birds that can bring color and elegance to your garden coop.
These fancy chickens are a beauty to behold and one-of-a-kind birds.
They’re popular among breeders not only because of their beauty, but also because they are highly rated by chicken groups and given standards that qualify them to be displayed at exhibitions and chicken competitions around the world.
Even if you’re not interested in showing off your chicken at any exhibition, you’d agree with me that these breeds are still great additions to your flock, as some of them are dual-purpose birds.
Some Fancy Chicken breeds can offer you a decent amount of eggs while some are great meat producers, which simply means you stand to gain more than just the aesthetic satisfaction they offer.
Things To Consider Before Raising Fancy Chicken Breeds
Having talked glowingly about the good things associated with keeping Fancy Chicken Breeds, you may find them alluring enough to bring into your pen. However, before you make that decision, there are many important factors you need to consider.
You should be aware that specific characteristics of several Fancy chicken breeds may require unique modifications.
For instance, some of them have extremely long tail feathers, feathered feet, small stature and so on. As a result, these awesome critters may need special accommodations most suitable to their peculiar features.
Before you add these doting chickens to your backyard flock, you should do a temperature and environment analysis because these breeds are typically sensitive to climatic conditions.
Though some of these exotic birds are raised in warmer climes, they can also survive in cold temperatures. In addition, some breeds would find it difficult to survive in a hotter environment.
Also, for smaller breeds such as the Serama hens, they need small housing. In the same vein, Frizzles, Polish, and Silkie chickens need to be protected from rain or water due to their inability to tolerate damp conditions.
In summary, as you mull over the idea of bringing these exotic chickens home as pets, you should also arm yourself with useful information on how to keep your hens happy and happy.
Getting armed with all the necessary facts about whichever breed you pick will go a long way to determine if a fancy chicken will be suitable for your backyard flock.
That said, we have compiled a list of 10 unique, beautiful chickens you can use for the adornment of your coop.
Meet our 10 Fancy Chicken Breeds picks for you
1 Serama Chicken
Let’s kick off with the smallest chicken species in the world. Yes, the Serama chickens are widely known as the tiniest breeds in the bantam chicken category.
Bantam hens are generally regarded as the smallest chicken breeds, sometimes as a reference to their miniscule nature, which is where the Serama aptly fits into.
Originally from Kelantan, Malaysia, these birds are so tiny an adult weighs less than half a kilogram. Also referred to as “Toy Soldiers”, they’re usually short, like six to 10 inches tall.
However, Serama chickens make up for their small frame with beauty and elegance. Its body, tail, feather and head are all in upright direction with the chest reaching up to its head giving Serama a uniquely pleasing appearance.
Compared to other chickens, this breed is much quieter and is used as therapy birds. They can easily go broody and are considered prolific layers even though, as you would expect of a bird of their size, they lay small eggs measuring one inch in length.
Serama chickens are mostly raised for exhibition at shows but they are also great pets for companionship.
2 Silkie Chicken
If you’re looking for a bird with fluffy feathers, Silkie chicken is your best bet.
The Silkie is a popular breed with a unique look. This unusual-looking chicken derived its name from its soft and silkie feathers, which may compel you to just give them a hug.
Additionally, Silkies have five toes on each foot, feathers that spread from the top of the head to the toes, basically they’re feather padded. And their blue earlobes, black skin, beak, and bones make them a truly unique breed.
In some climes, they’re categorized as bantam while the case is quite different in other places, but one sure thing is that their fluffy, and sometimes colorful feathers, will make you easily fall in love with them.
Silkies are just a lovable breed, with gentle and sweet personalities which make them a perfect addition to your backyard flock.
However, if you’re looking for a chicken with great egg laying prowess, I’m sorry to inform you that the Silkie is not your best choice. Its average egg production per year is around 100 to 120 but you can be sure to receive a lot of love if you add one to your flock.
3 Sebright Chicken
Sebright is one of the natural bantam chicken breeds found in the United Kingdom.
These dainty critters were first discovered by Sir John Sebright in the early 19th Century and are regarded as the oldest British true bantam breeds of chicken ever since.
With their light brownish feathers and a darker brown around the edge, these chickens are a symbol of rarity.
Although small in size, Sebright chickens are quite popular due to their fancy looks, which makes them the toast of breeders who raise birds for shows.
They’re so adorable, exotic, with admirable temperament, which puts them among the breeds suitable for your backyard flock.
However, Sebright chickens are hard to come by, and this may not be unconnected with their paltry return of eggs.
They only lay just over one egg a week, which cumulates to around 60 eggs in a year. Nevertheless, they still possess enough qualities to make a good addition to your coop.
Fancy chickens are popular among breeders not only because of their beauty, but also because they are highly rated by chicken groups and given standards that qualify them to be displayed at exhibitions and chicken competitions around the world.
4 Onagadori
Here is another breed on our list considered rare.The Onagadori is a bird of Japanese origin and mostly famous for its long-tail.
Onagadori is a Japanese word meaning ‘Honorable Fowl’, this probably explains why this breed is considered as part of heritage culture in the country.
Their unique tail is the longest among the chicken family, it could stretch as long as 10 meters and their tail size simply means that they need to be housed in a special type of coop.
They’re usually kept in a coop called Tombaku.
Onagadoris have docile temperaments, which makes them very easy to handle like friendly breeds, and are primarily raised as ornaments or for exhibition shows.
They’re rarely found outside Japan. Also, there are only a few hundreds of them around, which makes them one of the rarest birds in the world.
5 Araucana
The Araucana is perhaps best known and reared for the colorful eggs it produces, but that doesn’t make it a less fancy chicken breed either.
In fact, Araucana is a rare kind of bird due to its hairy chest that appears from either side of its face, which places it among the most stunning birds ever.
With their little, bright red wattles and ear lobes, you can say these hens are truly raised to stand out. Also, their distinctive feathers and all round great personality make them an endearing bird to pet chicken lovers.
Araucanas love to free range and are excellent egg producers with a healthy dose of meat to boot.
While this bird can give you an array of colorful eggs, it should be noted that a single bird will not lay different colored eggs. But if your flock is made up of Araucana hens, you could end with a rainbow assortment of egg colors.
These Chilean birds are prolific layers and can produce approximately 180 eggs a year.
6 Appenzeller Spitzhauben
Appenzeller Spitzhauben is a breed that originated from Switzerland, this breed usually thrives in mountainous areas because of its climbing skills. You can easily spot them climbing down a tree and jumping on a rock.
The Appenzeller Spitzhauben cares more about outdoor life. They are avid foragers, thus, they prefer to free-range over being confined to the corners of a coop.
These birds are cute and attractive with a unique personality. They’re a friendly fowl, with the top of their heads adorned with a spitzhauben or a woman’s hat of feathers.
The Appenzeller chickens have a v-comb and they cope quite well in both warm and cold climates.
Talk about egg-laying abilities? Yes, this breed has an amazing egg laying prowess. They can offer you 200 medium to large, white eggs in a year.
7 Frizzle Chicken
Here comes a proper show bird! Frizzle chicken is popular not for its egg laying ability or meat production capacity, but rather for its unique appearance.
Frizzle is such an old breed to the extent that it got a mention from Charles Baldwin, who called them Caffie Fowl and noted that they were from India.
Yes, that’s how far this breed has traveled. For a chicken that lays about 120 eggs per year, safe to assume that its popularity was strictly influenced by its unusual-looking feathers.
The Frizzle has feathers that curl tightly backward toward the head. While this may not be a unique feature because it is also found in other breeds like the Polish and Cochins, Frizzles have the right personality to compliment their looks.
This breed is good at brooding and may need help regulating body temperature, but they can be a great addition to your flock.
8 Polish Chicken
The Polish chicken breed is another amazing option for backyard flock keepers.
Polish chickens have this unique appearance as they look like they’re wearing a crash helmet. Another interesting feature that makes this hen a keeper’s darling is that some varieties have magnificent beards under their beaks.
They also have a small V-shaped comb, white earlobes and are very docile. This breed is tame and can make good pets.
However, due to the amount of hair around their face, their vision is somewhat distorted which can make them act a little odd sometimes.
Also, their submissive nature also makes them susceptible to bullying by other dominant and aggressive breeds.
Polish breeds are one of the most popular ornament chickens and are usually raised for exhibitions, but they are also good egg producers. They lay approximately 200 eggs in a year.
9 Plymouth Rock Chicken
The Plymouth Rock is one of the most popular breeds in the U.S. due to its Massachusetts origin.
Known as a dual-purpose bird, Plymouth Rock chicken is widely considered a prolific layer and also produces good meat for consumption.
They’re regarded as friendly and highly recommended as suitable breeds for anyone looking for poultry pets.
They have a sweet personality and with dedication and effort, you can easily train them to follow you around and even eat from your hand.
They’re gentle and calm behavior which makes them easily get along with kids.
The Plymouth Rock will lay up to 200 brown eggs a year, and they can also be kept for meat.
10 Ayam Cemani
Here comes Ayam Cemani, the last but definitely not the least on our list.
Ayam Cemani is a special and a truly unique-looking bird from Australia. This fancy breed has a strong hyperpigmentation that causes almost the whole parts of the chicken to be black.
Right from its feathers, beak and even its internal organs, Ayam Cemani is all covered in black in and out.
However, you need not be scared of its blackness, these birds are actually very friendly and hardy. They can make for a beautiful pet if you decide to bring one into your coop.
Note that Ayam Cemani are not by any means known to be prolific egg producers. They offer less than 100 eggs a year, but this doesn’t make them a breed very easy to come by.
In fact, you may have to part with thousands to bring a pair of these exotic birds into your coop.
Conclusion
Do you have a coop and would love to make it appear beautiful with exotic flocks, or you just want to start a whole new flock of fancy chicken breeds?
Whether your preference is the furry, feathered Silkie or Frizzle, or the dual purposes such as Plymouth Rock, you have more than enough options to pick from our list.
Remember that chickens are not just raised for eggs and meat production anymore. They can now serve other purposes including being used as pets for kids, ornamental purposes or for exhibitions.
Therefore, feel free to add any of these fancy breeds to your coop to satisfy whatever desire you may have.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
A fancy chicken is a breed that is considered rare, exotic, or unique. They are a type of chicken raised not for their ability to lay eggs or produce meat, but because of their beautiful and elegant appearance.
Expensive chickens are usually the rare breeds that are not easy to come by. Their population is very small partly due to their small egg quantity.
But what makes them so expensive is actually their unique features that you may not find in another breed. A good example is Ayam Cemani.
An ornamental chicken is a chicken breed raised to be an ornament.
They are mostly used for decorative purposes and are usually not known for their meat or egg production but their unique appearance and characteristics carry a lot of value.
This can be somewhat subjective and is strictly down to personal opinions.
Some chickens are widely considered the prettiest and they include; Silkie, Barnevelder, Frizzle and Welsummer.
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