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The word “brahma” is associated with the aristocratic caste of India – the brahmins. Apparently, this is why many poultry farmers are convinced that Brahma chickens were brought from India. Moreover, the proud appearance of a chicken suggests an important noble person. In fact, everything is more prosaic. Brahmas were bred in North America at the end of the 200th century by crossing Vietnamese meat cochinchins and fighting Malay breed of chickens. The Malay breed, by the way, appeared in Europe XNUMX years ago.
Brahmas were registered as a breed in 1874. In those days, Brahma chickens were highly valued as a meat breed. The weight of the roosters reached 7 kg, because of which they could hardly stand on their feet. The fact is that the brahmas had a large muscle mass with an elegant skeleton, and the laws of nature are such that the more muscles on the bones, the thicker and stronger the bones must be in order to withstand the weight of the muscles. The brahmas of the late 19th – early 20th centuries showed a clear imbalance. With the advent of broiler breeds of chickens, the importance of Brahma as a productive meat breed has decreased, and selection began to be carried out with a bias towards decorative appearance.
Modern Brahma chickens do not correspond to the description of the breed of the last century. Today, their weight has decreased, and their appearance has become more decorative.
Brahma breed standard
The weight of the modern brama is almost 2 times less than the previous one. Roosters weigh 4 kg, and chickens 3. Compared to conventional breeds of chickens, this is a lot. In addition, the bramas are high-legged and due to this they seem to be the size of a goose.
Brahma rooster
It looks like a very large and massive bird with a small head, on which a low triple comb grows. The beak of the brahma is short, strong. Earrings are small while earlobes are large. Comb and lobes with red earrings. The ear holes are closed with delicate feathers.
Brama is generally a “hairy” breed, in which weak plumage is a disadvantage.
The neck is medium in length with a nice curve. The exit of the neck is high, which visually increases the size of the rooster. An abundant mane grows on the neck.
The body is dense, strongly knocked down. The body of the brahma rooster gives the impression of a “square” due to the wide back, chest and shoulders. Plumage on the body should be abundant everywhere.
The loin of the rooster gradually rises to the tail, which “let us down” against the background of the rest of the brahma feather. The tail of the rooster should be short, but magnificent. Tail braids should not be long.
Rooster’s shins are covered with lush feathers. The yellow metatarsus is well feathered in front, feathers grow on the fingers.
Brahma Breed Disadvantages. Insufficient feathering on the metatarsus, bald middle finger, flat body (herring effect: when viewed from the side it is very large, almost invisible from above), legs that are too long, white earlobes.
Brahma chicken standard
The brahma hen differs from the rooster in its smaller size and the tail located more horizontally than that of the rooster. In color, the differences between a rooster and a hen are within their color variety.
Brahma chicken colors
Theoretically, chickens of this breed can be:
- light (white);
- dark (black);
- partridge;
- fawn.
In practice, it is difficult to find a Brama with a high-quality color in Our Country, since they are often crossed with Cochinchins and other breeds of chickens. Brahms of different colors are also crossed with each other. Inbreeding also does not add high quality chickens.
In Our Country, the most popular light and dark color brahm. This breed is the second largest among ornamental chickens. On the first bantamki.
The gate is bright
The light breed of Brahma chickens has a two-color plumage. The black tail feathers on top may be covered with white integumentary feathers. In the mane on the neck, the feather is mixed. White on the head, it is gradually replaced by long dark feathers with a light shaft. The body of the light brama is white.
Brama dark
The color of the rooster of the dark branch of the Brahma breed is also called silver-black. The head and neck of the rooster are covered with a light feather with black longitudinal stripes. On the shoulders, back and lower back, the integumentary feather is also light. On the lower back, the coloring of long feathers repeats the coloring of the feather in the mane.
The chicken has a more original color, although it looks simple at first glance.
Brahma chicken has a gray mottled color, ranging from dark to light gray. In a healthy hen with a shiny feather, when moving, the impression of shimmering feathers is created due to the alternation of light and dark stripes on each individual feather.
There is an interesting rivalry between these two color varieties. The owner of the Brahma chickens in the video claims that the white branch is larger than the dark one.
Other sources say the exact opposite: the dark branch of the brahm is heavier than the light one by half a kilogram.
Considering that 500 g with a rooster weighing 4 kg is a relatively small error, it can be assumed that in fact both of these branches are the same in average weight, and there is a difference of half a kilogram between individual individuals. And, perhaps, due to fat, since the breed is prone to obesity.
Brahma partridge
The partridge coloration of the brahm is the color of its wild ancestors. The rooster looks quite elegant, but the chicken, painted in brown tones to match the color of the earth, looks inconspicuous in the jungle.
Bram breed today is bred in two directions: in Europe, these chickens are decorative; in the USA – meat. Partridge brahma is a branch of American selection, so a rooster can reach a weight of 5 kg.
In the video with quarry brahms, you can not only see the quality color of this branch, but also learn some of the nuances that you should pay attention to when choosing chickens for breeding.
Field gate
The chicken of this color lives up to its name. The rooster is brighter. The fawn of the rooster is only the chest, stomach and legs. The head, neck, back and loins are covered with brighter red-brown feathers. The black tail feathers are partly covered by a red-brown integumentary feather. The tail tufts are black.
The weight of these chickens is the same as that of the light and dark varieties.
The red brahma and the blue brahma are most likely crossbred chickens, if we are not talking about dwarf brahma.
Brahma Breed Characteristics
Brama are late-ripening, and this immediately makes them unsuitable for industrial breeding. Brahma chickens grow very slowly, and they reach puberty only at 7 to 8 months. At the same time, egg production in chickens is also below average: 100 – 110 eggs per year. Egg weight 55 – 60 g. In the second year, egg production drops sharply.
It is believed that the brahma has a well-developed incubation instinct, but sometimes it happens that the brahma hens “forget” about the eggs lying in their nest. Therefore, to breed brood hens, it is recommended to cross Bram with smaller egg breeds of chickens. With such crossing, the instinct of incubation is preserved, but the mother hen is more responsible in her duties. Most likely, this is the reason for the very large number of unpurebred bramas.
Brahmas, like hens, have another significant disadvantage: due to their large weight, they can simply crush the eggs by stepping on it with their paws. When pressure is applied to the egg at one point, the egg shell does not withstand.
Perhaps a duck egg can withstand a light 3-kilogram brama. Turkey duck eggs are crushed. So it’s better to first check if the duck eggs can withstand the bram as a brood hen. Goose are able to withstand the pressure of a large chicken.
Features of feeding brahm
Chickens of this breed are prone to obesity, so the composition of the diet and the amount of feed given to chickens should be approached carefully. Birds should be provided with fresh feed with sufficient protein content. Chickens also need vitamins and minerals. In the case of an inadequate diet, chickens get sick. For large breeds, a full-fledged diet is especially relevant, since chickens will not be able to make up for the deficiency by searching for food on their own.
If the owner does not have a zootechnical education, it is better for him to rely on professionals and use ready-made feeds. Experienced poultry farmers can make their own diet with the addition of vitamin premixes and shell rock to the crushed grain.
Content
Features of the content here are quite simple. All legged breeds of chickens require special cleanliness of the litter. Otherwise, dirt and droppings can stick to the feathers on the paws. Perches for bramas should be done at a low altitude, because due to the large weight this bird flies poorly.
Hatching and rearing chicks
Here, opinions about the brahma are directly opposite. Some argue that chickens are very capricious and demanding on the conditions of detention. Others, on the contrary, that it is a very unpretentious bird with one hundred percent hatchability and survival. It may very well be that the point here is in different conditions of keeping and feeding, as well as in the seller of hatching eggs.
From poultry farms, you can often buy infected eggs or already sick chickens. Unfortunately, until the chickens begin to die, it is impossible to understand that they are sick. Since many diseases are very difficult to tolerate by chickens and occur in a hyperacute form, it is rarely possible to save chickens.
The main scourge of chickens and chickens is coccidiosis. On farms, antibiotics and special preparations against eimeria are used to combat it. Private traders, frightened by the word “antibiotic” and trying to treat chicken diseases in folk ways, often lose the entire population of chickens.
dwarf brahmas
If the large variety has already become decorative, then, naturally, the breeders could not pass by and not bring out the dwarf breed of these chickens. Although usually this breed is not described, as people are more attracted to giants.
At the same time, the dwarf brahma chickens in the photo, in the absence of scale, are no different from their giant counterparts.
But the weight of the roosters is only 1,5 kg. Chicken – 1,3 kg. Laying hens produce 80 small eggs per year.
Just like their large counterparts, dwarfs are distinguished by a calm, balanced disposition.
When arranging a chicken coop for dwarf chickens, it must be borne in mind that these little ones also fly poorly. Therefore, perches for them should be at a height of 20 – 30 cm.
Feeding is the same as for large chickens.
“Everything is like the big ones”, only in proportion to the size.
Bram owners reviews
To summarize
The brahmas will certainly prove to be the pride of the court, but one should not expect a serious return on eggs and meat from them. These chickens are for the soul and communication.