Among all poultry, the guinea fowl of the Zagorsk white-breasted breed stands out. Representatives of the “royal (Caesar) chicken” have been known to mankind for a long time; they were popular even in the times of Ancient Greece and Rome, and were domesticated in Africa long before the advent of our era. The Zagorsk White-breasted breed was bred in Russia and is perfectly adapted to its climatic conditions.
Origin of the breed
As the progenitors of the Zagorsk white-breasted guinea fowl representatives of the gray-speckled and white guinea fowl.Specimens with a snow-white breast, characterized by good health, stability, early maturity and excellent egg production, were purposefully selected. As a result, the breed turned out to be in demand and prolific.
Selection work continues today, thanks to which there are three varieties of the breed, differing in characteristics and properties.
Description and productivity of the Zagorsk white-breasted guinea fowl
Guinea fowl are related to common domestic chickens, quails and turkeys. The Zagorsk White-breasted poultry has the following characteristics:
- Oval body.
- A small “dry” head with characteristic details that indicate its relationship with turkeys - a “bump” on the back of the head, lack of feathers, a strong beak with a curved end. Males have red “earrings” on both sides of the beak and a bluish protrusion in the craw area. Females have less pronounced and weakly colored “decorations”.
- Thin neck.
- Long legs with developed toes, armed with claws, which guinea fowl use to rake the ground in search of food.
- The plumage is of mixed colors - gray-speckled with a bluish tint on the body and snow-white on the chest and on parts of the wings.
- The tail is short, pointed, and, due to the specific contours of the body, is inconspicuous.
- The peculiarity of the bird is its different skin color, depending on the color of the plumage: light under the white feather, dark gray under the speckled feather.
- The wings are strong and developed, allowing guinea fowl to fly. To avoid this, it is recommended to trim the flight feathers slightly.
Unlike adults, guinea fowl are covered with delicate down of a golden-brownish hue with a pattern of stripes and spots.
An adult guinea fowl weighs up to 2 kilograms, a guinea fowl can weigh half a kilogram more. At 70 days, the young weigh up to a kilogram.
Sexual maturity occurs at 7-7.5 months; the female lays eggs in the warm season and produces one egg daily. She can lay up to 150 eggs in a year. The weight of the eggs ranges from 38 to 50 grams, and the hatchability of guinea fowl from them is 80-90%.
Advantages and disadvantages
This type of poultry has many positive aspects, but there are also a number of small disadvantages that you need to be aware of before purchasing guinea fowl for breeding.
The positive qualities of the Zagorsk white-breasted guinea fowl make it perfectly suitable for keeping and breeding even for beginners in poultry farming.
Features of keeping and caring for birds
In order for guinea fowl to live peacefully and amicably, they are kept in a pen of 20-25 individuals. There should be 4-5 females per male. Guinea fowl can be released to graze in the yard. They quickly get used to the daily routine and return to the coop on their own. But this method is somewhat restless, because the Caesar makes noise at the slightest sharp sound, calls the females to the tasty morsel and can disturb people and other animals with his squealing.
Guinea fowl have a peculiarity for which they are sometimes kept as pets. They love to peck at ixodid ticks, the causative agents of deadly human diseases. Birds drink a lot, so there should be 3-5 drinkers per group.
What to feed the breed
Feeding is no different from the chicken diet. Feed is given three times a day. In the morning, it is preferable to make wet mash, and the portion should be calculated taking into account body weight.
If guinea fowl of the Zagorsk white-breasted breed are raised for meat, the feed must contain protein in the form of milk waste, cake, cottage cheese, and grain. For the egg direction, succulent food should predominate in the diet. Their presence stimulates egg laying.
Green feed is 300 grams per individual, the same amount of fresh grass is added, and grain mixtures are 90 grams per head.
Subtleties of breeding
Despite the fact that guinea fowl love to drink water, they cannot tolerate dampness. When it gets cold, guinea fowl can huddle together and trample weaker relatives, so in cold weather it’s worth providing a warm overnight stay. When keeping chicks, it is better to make the floors mesh, then waste spills down, and the birds do not suffer from dampness and are not affected by infectious diseases.
Adult cesars take females seriously, watch them and can be jealous of the “harem” of strangers, but they quickly get used to the permanent staff. Females are poor mothers, so the eggs are collected, cleaned and incubated. In homesteads, you can put it on a hen - chicken or turkey.
When growing in enclosures or special poultry houses, it is necessary to make wooden floors slightly above ground level, pour loose filler, and install sun-permeable roofs. They will provide a sufficient level of light and protect from moisture that is harmful to guinea fowl.
Possible diseases
Although it is believed that Guinea fowl are disease resistant, they may suffer from the following diseases:
- Pasteurellosis. It appears in two forms. In acute cases, birds die; in chronic cases, they become infected. The sick have to be destroyed.
- Pullorosis. When sick, the bird is immobile and suffers from indigestion, which can be complicated by peritonitis. The sick are slaughtered, the rest are given antibiotics.
- Neurolymphomatosis (Marek's disease). Affects the limbs and cells of the body, caused by herpes B. Deadly.
- Trichomonosis. The pathogen gets in with dirty food or water and is more common in young animals.
Tuberculosis, mycoplasmosis, salmonellosis and other dangerous diseases can also occur in guinea fowl. Birds also suffer from non-contagious diseases: gout, omphalitis, dyspepsia, and injuries are also common, since females can fight.
If you suspect a disease, you should immediately call a veterinarian, because treatment only saves at the very beginning.
