How to Raise White Leghorn Chickens

The white, small-bodied Leghorns are the most numerous chicken breed in the United States today. The hens lay a large number of large white eggs and consume less feed than hens of larger breeds. White leghorns are the most common, but the breed has a variety of colors, including brown, buff, and silver. All Leghorns have relatively large combs and wattles. The roosters average 6 pounds, while the hens weigh about 4.5 pounds. Leghorns are active foragers and fly quite well if given the opportunity. They rarely go broody and set on eggs.

Things You'll Need

  • Chick brooder
  • Chick starter, grower and laying mash
  • Chicken feeders
  • Chicken waterers
  • Chicken coop
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Instructions

    • 1

      Purchase day-old Leghorn pullets from a reputable breeder. Select chicks from healthy, high egg-producing stock. An alternative is to hatch fertile Leghorn eggs. Because Leghorn hens are rarely broody, an incubator is required. Roosters are not necessary unless fertile eggs are desired.

    • 2

      Build a suitable brooder for the chicks. A plywood frame inside a small shed or garage is a common design. Provide ½ square foot of brooder space per Leghorn chick. Newly hatched chicks require an environment with temperatures ranging from 90 to 95 degrees. Install a 250-watt heat lamp for every 80 chicks and lower the temperature 5 degrees each week. A second light is recommended in the event the bulb burns out. Cover the floor of the brooder with a thick layer of wood shavings, chopped straw or other bedding material.

    • 3

      Purchase chick starter feed and fill the chick feeder. Provide about 2 inches of feeder space per Leghorn chick. Provide clean fresh water in a chick waterer. Purchase a waterer that allows the chicks an unlimited supply of water but not an area to drown. A one-gallon waterer is suitable for 50 Leghorn chicks up to 2 weeks of age. Provide a one-gallon waterer for every 10 older birds.

    • 4

      Move the Leghorn chicks from the brooder to the chicken coop when they are approximately 6 weeks old and the weather has warmed. To avoid the labor for brooding chicks, purchase young growing Leghorns at 6 weeks of age or older. A chicken coop provides shelter from wind and precipitation and protects the birds from predators. Install roosts in the coop, 6 inches of space per bird. Poles out of 2-inch lumber are suitable for roosts. Chicken coops often have an exercise yard with 5 to 10 square feet per bird. Feed the growing Leghorn birds a developer mash or chick starter and allow 3 to 4 inches of feeder space per bird. Provide chicken grit, too.

    • 5

      Build 10-inch by 10-inch nest boxes in the coop for every five hens. Leghorn hens begin to lay eggs at 4 1/2 to 5 months of age. A Leghorn hen will lay about 280 eggs a year. Collect the eggs two to three times a day. Provide 14 to 16 hours of light per day for optimum egg production. Leghorn chickens molt when the days are shorter in the fall and winter unless supplemental light is provided. Change to a laying mash at 20 weeks of age.

    • 6

      Isolate the Leghorn hens from other birds to prevent the spread of disease. Keep the facilities, waterers and feeders clean. Talk with a local veterinarian or university extension agent about disease prevention for the local area. Check regularly for lice or mites and treat, if necessary. Chickens live for three to five years.