The White Leghorn originated in Tuscany and though the exact date is unclear it was first exported in the early 1800s. Although Leghorns have been bred to boast a range of colourful plumage (white, red, black-tailed red, light brown, dark brown, black, buff, Columbian, buff Columbian, barred, and silver), the White Leghorn is the most popular and arguably the most productive of the breed.
They are fantastic foragers, alert to their surroundings, and can be flighty – which makes them less likely to be preyed upon. Leghorns enjoy roosting in trees and are good flyers. Leghorns are very active and intelligent birds, as such they can get bored especially if overly confined. This can lead to pecking and bullying of other more submissive birds. Chicken toys and treats will keep them happy and occupied if you do find them getting bored.
White Leghorns have red wattles and a red single comb that in roosters stands proud and erect, while the hens have combs that should flop over. Their legs should be yellow and have striking white earlobes which match the colour of their eggs.
Recognised as one of the best heritage layers, they will produce 300+ large white eggs per year. They will generally start laying at around 4-4.5 months and are known to never go broody. In our experience they are the golden standard of prolific egg production balanced with outstanding feed efficiency – they consume far less feed than breeds which produce similarly sized eggs.
The Leghorn has been used to create and improve a number of popular breeds including the Rhode Island Red, Black Australorp, Potch Koekoek and the commercial layers. The commercial breeds (Lohman, Hyline Brown, Amberlink, Silver Hyline, etc.) are crosses that carry the Leghorn’s feed efficiency, prolific laying abilities, that lay brown eggs, coupled with auto-sexing (an ever-beneficial trait). It’s worth noting that the precise breeds used to create the modern commercial layers is unknown, though there is no doubt Leghorns have been a significant contributor.
Livingseeds Hatchery currently supplies White Leghorns on a weekly basis.