Welsummer Chicken Breed: The Complete Guide
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The Welsummer chicken breed is distinguished by its beautiful brown and red feathers. It is also renowned for its exceptionally high egg production and superior hardiness in cold climates. Its friendly personality makes it a favorite for small-scale and backyard chicken production.
History of the Welsummer Chicken Breed
The Welsummer (sometimes spelled Welsumer) is named after the village of Welsum, Holland, and was first imported into the United States in 1928. They became popular due to the beautiful dark brown eggs that the hens lay. The Bantam Welsummers were created separately in both England and Germany during the 1930s.
As the Welsummer chicken gained recognition for its unique attributes, it spread beyond its Dutch and English origins. The breed made its way to the United States in the early 20th century, where it was officially recognized by the American Poultry Association in 1991. Since then, Welsummers have become a favorite among backyard chicken keepers and small-scale farmers, appreciated for their dual-purpose capabilities and aesthetic appeal.
My Pet Chicken offers both the standard-size Welsummer.
The Personality of a Welsummer Chicken
The Welsummer chicken breed is a friendly, intelligent, and easily handled bird that loves to free range and forage for food but can also be kept in runs quite happily. These chickens are not known for being overly aggressive or flighty. Welsummers are generally considered easygoing and adaptable.
Welsummers are naturally curious birds that enjoy exploring their surroundings. They are active foragers, spending their time scratching the ground in search of insects, seeds, and other treats. Their natural curiosity can make them entertaining to observe in a backyard setting.
They make great backyard pets for beginner chicken keepers or families with children.
The Appearance of a Welsummer Chicken
When many people picture the stereotypical rooster, a Welsummer is what they have in mind--this was the same rooster featured on the cornflake boxes! Their hackles and saddles are fiery burnt orange and scarlet, with beetle black tails iridescently shining green, like the bars on their wings. The hens are modest, heathery brown, with their hackles shading to glints of gold and black. Even their eyes are a lovely red bay.
The Welsummer chicken breed has single combs, medium-sized wattles, almond-shaped ear lobes, and a strong, short beak. The rooster's weight is 7-8 lbs, and the hen's is 5-6 lbs.
Egg Color and Production of Welsummer Chickens
Hens lay large, medium to deep brown eggs that are often speckled, making them very lovely! The egg coloring is so thick that if you catch it while it is still wet, you can wipe off some of the browns with a clean cloth! Remember that, as with all dark egg layers, the eggs will vary in color, growing lighter as the hens get into the full swing of laying and darkening again after a break in laying (like a molt).
Welsummer hens are very good layers! On average, they lay about 4 per week or 150-200 annually. They usually start laying around 20-24 weeks of age (around 5-6 months old).
Care and Health of Welsummer Chickens
The Welsummer chicken breed is very hardy and can do well in both heat and cold weather. They don't have any specific health concerns and should be cared for as any other chickens in your flock are. The average lifespan of the Welsummer chicken breed is 6-12 years.
Do you have any Welsummer chickens in your backyard flock? Share with us in the comments below.
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11 comments
I think i have a female Welsummer. My baby chick is 2 months old. She has black and light brown feathers. When she was a newborn, she was light brown with dark brown marks and black eyeliner. Am i correct to assume that my chick is a female welsummer? A friend of mine checked its wings, it didn’t have any space, so he said it was a female
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My Pet Chicken:
Your chick’s coloring sounds very much like a classic Welsummer chick! The light brown with dark brown markings and “eyeliner” are typical of female Welsummers as chicks. However, wing sexing is not a reliable method, so it’s best to wait and watch for other signs as your chick grows. By around 14-22 weeks, you’ll see clearer differences—males will develop larger, redder combs and wattles, and more importantly, pointed saddle and hackle feathers! Females will keep a more uniform, rounded feather shape. Sounds like you have a lovely little bird! Keep us posted on how she matures!
My son who is 40 yrs. Old got this desire to raise chickens. I said no for 2 yrs. I finally gave in and he ordered 10 baby chicks. They were so cute when they arrived but we were blessed with an extra one,so we got 11! We kept them in our living room because it’s not used . They grew rather quickly from an antique galvanized steel bucket the size of a large apple basket, and graduated into a kiddie pool at week 1 1/2. We kept heat a lamp over them and adjusted the heat according to their growth cycle from the beginning . My son built a 7’x 3’ runner for them in the living room after they reached 20 days old! They grew fast! We spent so much time just watching them play on dirt hills and different wooden perches as they learned to use their wings so much more . Once they outgrew their indoor runner my son built an 8’x4’ coop that was raised off the ground 2’ to give them a shaded area in this so.California desert town we live in. My son got welsummers because they adapt to heat and cold real good. They also had a 10’ x 4’ runner that attached to the coop. We also ran misters around the top of the runner for the 109• summers. They didn’t need it , but they loved it! When this winter came (Nov.2024) we had placed a brooding plate just under their roosting area at a low temperature to make them more comfortable.
The reason I’m putting all this information in this message is because I truly believe that happy chickens make great laying chickens!!! Our welsummers are great laying hens!! We have been collecting 8-11 eggs each day! One of the hens was an early layer at 120 days old! It was a week before another hen layed. Once all of them were laying there was a fight between who could get the main , nesting box that was used by the first hen!! They have a choice of 4 nesting boxes that are in a row and tow others that are off to the side . All of which are inside the coop of course. I’ve read what others have said about the welsummers being great pets and sweet mannerisms. This is true but they also have a very intense pecking order! Because we don’t have a rooster, not that we haven’t tried, they see us as the roosters and will drop into position when we get close to them as if we were going to mount them. lol!!! It’s so cute!!! We just pet their backs and periodically run our hands up their tail feathers. Here’s the only problem! There are two of us and 11 of them! Thankfully only 4 of them are jealous! They will peck at the heads of the ones getting our attention out of nowhere! They are so fast, we don’t see them coming. They can really hurt one another. One of our hens us named captain winky because her eye got pecked pretty hard as a baby chick . Thankfully she didn’t lose her eye or sight, but about every 3 days my son has to bring her inside to treat her eye because it leaks a little bit every day and we treat it with drops after cleaning her.
Bottom line , if you truly want happy healthy hens that will bless you with beautiful large eggs you need to spend time with them and give them extra care by putting warm water in their water feeders in the winter, (they love it!) they also like a warm shallow pan of water to wade in but you need clean straw around it to give them a drying area. Lol!!! We might be going overboard in spoiling them , but there’s nothing so sweet as being greeted by every single one when we open our back door! They run to their back yard door! Oh ,I forgot to say that they stay in their runner which is covered with heavy tarps for the rainy days but most of the time they spend their days running around their backyard which is 50’x40’ and has a great playground of ladders, pallets, roosting boards etc. because we are in the desert we don’t have much grass except for in the front yard which we allow them to march one by one to get to. They are a great breed!!! But the are temperamental and jealous ladies! We are searching for a gentleman of a rooster but so far we have only had bad experiences! Any suggestions? Have a blessed day and enjoy your hens!! They will show you the same love you show them❣️
I have a welsummer, she is 24 weeks and her wattle and comb have not come in… it is winter here in Australia but just a little worried as today she started having green dihreorea, she is still pretty active and eating well…. just a little worried
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My Pet Chicken:
We’re sorry to hear about your concerns with your Welsummer hen. At 24 weeks, it’s normal for some hens to still be developing their combs and wattles, especially in winter. Keep an eye on her behavior and droppings.
You may need to seek veterinary care if the diarrhea persists or she shows other symptoms. We wish you the best with her!
Our two welsummers lost a lot of feathers when mooting a couple of months ago. When will they lay eggs again? It is getting colder here now in South Australia.
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My Pet Chicken:
Typically, they’ll resume laying eggs within a few weeks to a couple of months after molting, depending on factors like age, nutrition, and daylight hours. Since it’s getting colder in South Australia, the decrease in daylight might delay their egg production slightly. Providing a warm and cozy coop environment can help support them through this transition. Keep an eye on their behavior and egg production, and they should start laying again soon.
I am new to this. I have a Welsummer hen, don’t know exactly age but she laid her 1st egg two weeks ago and has not laid again. Is this normal? Just curious!