The Golden Laced Wyandotte Chicken is a breed from the Wyandotte family. It’s a hard-to-miss American chicken breed with a stylishly patterned plumage that is difficult to misidentify.
The Golden Laced Wyandotte Chicken was created at a time when poultry farmers were not spoiled for choice of dual-purpose breeds.
Since its creation, this bird has spread across various farms in the United States and has served quite well.
There’s more to this beautiful chicken breed, and in this article, we will profile them accordingly.
Table of Contents
History
The name Wyandotte was coined from the name of the people of the Huron Nation – Wendat (later changed to Wyandot).
Wyandottes were initially bred towards the end of the 1870s by 4 poultry farmers: F. Houdlette, J. Ray, H.M. Doubleday, and L. Whittaker.
The first breeding of Wyandottes produced the Silver-Laced Wyandottes.
The goal of breeding Wyandottes was to introduce a breed that excelled at laying and could also provide decent meat.
The introduction of the Wyandottes came at a time when many chickens did not do so well at laying eggs. The meats from many of the chickens of that time were bland and chewy.
So, it’s understandable that these men made efforts to create the Wyandottes.
The Wyandotte family has an ancestry connected to various chicken breeds. But since the details were not recorded, there is no evidence-based description of the composition of the Wyandottes.
Some people believe that the Silver Spangled Hamburg and the Dark Brahma may have been part of the breeding process that produced Wyandottes.
The Golden Laced Wyandotte Chicken was later created by Joseph McKeen in the 1880s.
To create the Golden Laced Wyandottes, McKeen bred Silver Laced Wyandottes with another breed. He described the unnamed bird as a patterned black-red fowl, which was called a Winnebago.
Another narration says that Golden Laced Wyandottes were produced by breeding Silver-Laced Wyandottes with Partridge Cochins and Gold Spangled Hamburgs.
The Golden Laced Wyandotte was approved by the APA in 1888.
The popularity of Golden-Laced Wyandottes and other Wyandottes declined over the years, and they even became endangered at one point.
However, they regained popularity recently and got off the endangered list in 2016.
General Overview
Golden Laced Wyandotte Chickens are hardy, dual-purpose birds.
They come with golden plumage laced with black edges that clearly demarcates each feather.
Appearance
Chickens of this breed sport a rose comb on their heads, and this comb contributes to their hardiness in cold weather.
Besides the comb, Golden Laced Wyandotte Chickens also sport red wattles, ear lobes, and face.
As their name may have revealed to you, Golden Laced Wyandotte Chickens come in just one color: gold laced.
Size and Weight
When it comes to weight and size, there are 2 variants: the standard-sized varieties and the bantam varieties.
Standard-sized Golden Laced Wyandottes weigh 6-8.5 pounds.
The hens average 6 pounds, while the roosters average 8.5 pounds. The bantam hens weigh 1.5-1.6 pounds, while the bantam roosters weigh 1.6-1.9 pounds.
Behavior
If you are new to poultry farming, you may want to opt for Golden Laced Wyandotte Chickens.
These birds are independent, docile, even-tempered, calm, and easy to handle.
So, you’ll have very few issues taking care of them. As long as you give them water, food, and shelter, they can pretty much survive on their own.
Yet, you have to be careful when children are around these chickens.
Golden Wyandottes do not appreciate being carried or cuddled.
Golden Wyandottes thrive alone and may even ignore other breeds since they prefer their own kind.
They love foraging, and they enjoy roaming.
The Golden Wyandotte breed is not a noisy one. So, you probably won’t have to worry about them disturbing your neighbors.
Their calm and tolerant temperament contributes to the reason why they are used as show birds, especially in places like the Midwest.
Health
Golden Laced Wyandottes are quite healthy, and they grow very fast. So you should supply them with enough protein to support their growth.
At least 20% protein feed is needed for the chicks’ growth.
Coop
When building a coop for Golden Laced Wyandottes, you should consider their size.
The chickens of this breed are large, and the standard-sized coop may be too small for them.
Golden Laced Wyandotte Eggs
Golden-Laced Wyandottes are good layers. The hens lay about 200 eggs per year or around 4 eggs per week.
While Golden-Laced Wyandotte Hens are good mothers, they may or may not be broody. So, you may have to get an incubator if you want the eggs to grow into chicks.
The eggs range from cream to light brown and are usually medium-sized or large.
Wyandotte pullets usually begin to lay eggs around 18 to 20 weeks old.
Buying a Golden Laced Wyandotte
You can get Golden Laced Wyandotte chickens at Meyer Hatchery, Towline Hatchery, Purely Poultry, and Chicken for Backyards.
Golden Laced Wyandotte Chickens usually cost $2-6 depending on the seller, the sex, the age, and the quantity you intend to buy.
Other Colors of Wyandottes
The Golden Laced Wyandottes comes in only gold-laced color.
The Wyandotte family, on the other hand, comes in 8 other colors besides gold laced. These colors are silver laced, buff, white, black, partridge, Colombian, blue, and silver penciled.
Resources
- https://www.chickensandmore.com/golden-laced-wyandotte/
- https://www.thehappychickencoop.com/golden-laced-wyandotte/
- https://www.meyerhatchery.com/productinfo.a5w?prodID=GLWS