We all know silver laced and golden laced. I remember when blue laced red became the “it” variety of Wyandotte to own as well! But have you seen Columbian Wyandottes?
Columbian Wyandottes are a gorgeous variety that are not as common as other varieties. These birds are striking with their mostly white bodies.
In this article, I will discuss the history of the Columbian variety and their traits for those of you deciding what breed to raise!
History of Columbian Wyandottes
Wyandottes go back as far as the 1870s or earlier and were named for an Indigenous tribe called the “Wendat.” Columbian was not the first variety of Wyandotte accepted to the APA Standard of Perfection whereas silver laced was.
Columbian resulted from a crossing of a white Wyandotte and a barred Plymouth Rock. They were first exhibited at the World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893, hence the name of the variety being called Columbian.
Things to know about the Wyandotte
Since I got my first birds in 2020, I have found a few issues with them. One being they do not stay white. My birds yellow out very easily, but that is to be expected with a white chicken.
Temperament-wise, I have found them to be fairly calm and non-aggressive. My children have been able to handle them.What I did find out was they take around a year to fully mature. We did not get our first eggs for nine months! This can be a real problem for someone who wants them for eggs. However, I found they converted feed fairly well into their size and were amazing foragers.
Due to their heavier size, I did find they could not roost as well as my other birds and they also were more prone to bumblefoot. Our rooster was 9.5lbs and the hens are around 8lbs. They can be rather intimidating to people coming to deliver packages!
We initially bought them as a homestead bird and they really did not disappoint.
To conclude, I really do love these birds. However, they are hard to source. Our rooster recently died and we are still searching for his replacement.
I really do suggest these to those of you looking for something different. It just is not the classic silver laced and many who see our birds do not think they are Wyandottes at first!
By Virginia Montgomery
I am an English Creative Writing major at the University of West Florida. I aspire to write about ecology, conservation, sustainability, hot topics, agriculture, and many more. I have a passion for Agriculture and sustainability which I bring to my writing. I am a mother and pride myself in being a knowledgeable parent and keeping myself up to date on various topics. Click here for my LinkedIn profile and please visit my website.
