The Urban Chicken Podcast - The Urbanite's Podcast Resource for Keeping Backyard Chickens

Bantam Black Langshan – photo courtesy of Matt Stillman

Question: How do you make the most strikingly beautiful, large, feather-legged, dark brown egg-laying chickens? Answer: Ancient Chinese Secret!

Langshan, Cochin and Brahma are the three breeds that comprise the entire Asiatic Class of chickens recognized by the American Poultry Association. All three of these originated in China and have been causing a stir in the western poultry world since the 1800s.

Matt Stillman

Today on the Urban Chicken Podcast, we are going to discuss at length the rarest of the Asiatic Class birds – the Langshan. Matt Stillman, a breeder of both standard and bantam Langshans and District One director of the American Langshan Club, joins me on the show to share the fascinating history and attributes of this marvelous Chinese chicken.

HISTORY OF THE LANGSHAN CHICKEN

Major F.T. Croad – photo from Croad Langshan Club UK

Langshan chickens were the last of the three Chinese breeds to be brought to western world – first to England in 1872 and then later to the United States in 1878. Though it was Major F.T. Croad, who first imported the lovely Langshan chicken, it was his niece, Miss A.C. Croad, who worked tirelessly to establish the breed in Britain.

Almost immediately upon importation, a bitter dispute erupted between Cochin and Langshan enthusiasts. Many argued that the Langshan was merely a poor variety of the black Cochin. Breeders used the Langshan as stock to improve the black plumage coloring in the British Cochin lines at that time. Miss Croad and other Langshan supporters steadfastly maintained that the Langshan was a distinct breed separate from the Cochin.

Blue Langshan Hen – photo courtesy of Matt Stillman

Looking upon this debate now, it seems laughable that the tall, tight-feathered, athletic Langshan was once mistaken for a Cochin, which is a short, round-bodied, fluffy-feathered and less energetic breed. Truly, these two breeds are easily distinguishable.

Eventually, Langshans were accepted as a unique chicken breed in Britain and elsewhere. The original Langshan breed recognized in Britain is called the Croad Langshan, in honor of Croad family and to distinguish the breed from other Langshan varieties which were bred to accentuate different features. In Germany, the Langshan were bred for long, clean legs. This line became known as the “German Langshan.” In England, one group of breeders created the “Modern Langshan” breed which is similar to the German Langshan and has a body type akin to the Modern Game.

The Langshans in America are Croad Langshans – though we do not use the distinguishing name, Croad. There are three varieties of Langshans currently accepted in the A.P.A. Standard: Black, White and Blue. Black Langshans were admitted into the American standard in 1883 and the White Langshan followed ten years later in 1893. Interestingly, almost 100 years would past before the Blue Langshan was accepted in 1987.

ATTRIBUTES OF THE LANGSHAN

Black Langshan Rooster – photo courtesy of Matt Stillman

The original Langshan chickens were solid black with a brilliant green sheen to their plumage. They are the tallest, non-game breed – the average Langshan rooster stands between 24-36 inches in height. The breed is known for its long legs, which are lightly feathered under the American and Croad Langshan (British) standards. The leg feathering is found on the shank and outer toe of the breed.

Additionally, Langshans are full-breasted, deep bodied birds. Though a large breed with standard weights for cocks being 9 1⁄2 lbs and hens 7 1⁄2 lbs – Langshans are the smallest of the three breeds in the Asiatic Class. Their white skin and abundance of white meat qualify the breed as a good meat bird.

Langshan Chick – photo courtesy of Matt Stillman

The Langshan is also renowned as a prolific layer. The average Langshan hen will typically produce about 150 eggs per year and lay during winter months as well. Consequently, Langshans are considerably better egg-layers than both the Cochin or Brah...

Red Mite by Arenamontanus

Lice and mites are creepy-crawlies that can torment your birds and cause them serious suffering, physical ailment and in extreme cases, lead to the death of your chickens. There are many things to know about chicken lice and mites such as: how to detect these creepy-crawlies; how to treat for these pests; and how to prevent infestation in the first place.

Video with lots of pictures of live lice and lice egg sacks on a hen (Icky!):

Poultry lice and mites are a common ailment for any chicken owner to have deal with. Lice and mites are easily transferred from bird to bird. Typically lice is introduced to your flock when you add a new, already infested bird to the group. This might happen when you get new birds to add to your flock and were unaware that the new chicken had a lice or mite problem. You might also bring home lice or mites on your bird if you take a bird to a location which exposed it to other birds outside of its own flock – such as at a chicken show. It takes very little contact with another chicken for your chicken to catch their lice and/or mites. Quarantine protocols are essential to preventing outbreaks in your coop whenever you are bring a new or exposed chicken back home. A good quarantine protocol will last for at least two weeks and keep the suspect birds away from the main flock.

Video of poor chicken completely infested with mites (Yuck!):

Mites are commonly brought into your coop through wild animals. Little sparrows or squirrels sneaking into your coop to snack on chicken feed are very possibly leaving behind mites to infect your flock and coop. Because you never know where and when mites might strike in your flock – it is important to carefully observe your birds for symptoms of pests. Some of the most common symptoms of lice or mite infestation are: feather loss, irritated looking skin, excessive preening or scratching, head shaking, lethargy, anemia, pink looking combs and/or waddles and stopped egg-laying. Even if you don’t observe these symptoms, it is still a good practice to regularly inspect your flock for pests. The most common locations for lice to be found on a chicken are around the vent area or under the wings. Mites are usually found on the neck, back, belly and upper legs of the chicken’s body. Keep in mind that the red mites do not live on the birds, but rather inside the coop and simply feed upon their victims as they sleep. Therefore, you may have a mite problem and yet not find mites upon the bird itself.

Video showing the typical size of red mites (small, but nasty):

If you do find mites on your bird, the problem is probably worse than it looks. According to Laura John, a poultry farmer with a BS in Poultry Science, in her article “Controlling Mites in Your Poultry Flock,” the following index can be used to estimate mite infestation levels within your flock:

“Detecting and monitoring the mite population level is an important factor for effective control. A minimum of 10 randomly selected birds should be examined for mites weekly. Infestation levels can be estimated by blowing on the bird’s feathers and counting the mites that are immediately seen. The following index can be used to estimate mite infestation levels:

• 5 mites counted = Bird may be carrying from 100 to 300 mites

• 6 mites counted = Bird may be carrying from 300 to 1,000 mites (light infestation)

• 7 mites counted = Bird may be carrying from 1,000 to 3,000 mites – small clumps of mites seen on skin and feathers (moderate infestation)

• 8 mites counted = Bird may be carrying from 3,000 to 10,000 mites – accumulation of mites on skin and feathers (moderate to heavy infestation)

• 9 mites counted = Bird may be carrying 10,000 to 32,000 or more mites – numerous large clumps of mites seen on skin and feathers; skin pocketed with scabs (heavy infestation)”

The heavier the infestation, the harder it will be to treat and defeat these pests.

Natural remedies can usually solve a chicken lice and/or mite outbreak. The most useful and popular organic treatment is Diatomaceous Earth (D.E.).

Neem Oil made from the fruit and nuts of the Neem Tree in India is another preferred method of organically treating lice and mites on your hens and in the coop.

On the Urban...

4H Poultry Clinic in Boise Idaho – June 2013

What do Johnny Cash, Jackie Kennedy Onassis and Orville Redenbacher all have in common? 4H – they were all members of 4H in their youth.

Wyatt with Shoelace the Chicken

It was suggested by one of my guests in a recent episode that one of the main reasons that people go into keeping backyard chickens is for the benefit of their children. These folks want their children to grow up with a better understanding of where their food comes from and to develop responsibility and compassion through the care of a few family hens. Keeping backyard chickens is a terrific way to help your children learn invaluable lessons and skills. But my thought is — why stop there?

Jessica with her rooster Cowboy

Why not take the experience of raising and keeping chickens to the next level and have your children enroll in their local 4H chapter? 4H is an American organization that is over 100 years old. The name, 4H, represents the four personal development areas of focus for the organization: head, heart, hands and health. The mission of this group is to teach children leadership, citizenship, responsibility and life skills through experiential learning. The slogan of the organization is, “Learning by doing.”

Quiz station at the 4H Poultry Clinic in Boise

Though 4H now has many different areas of skills that it teaches (e.g. archery, sewing, ecology, rocketry, science, math, public speaking, etc.) the most core and traditional focus of the organization is teaching children about agriculture and livestock. Through 4H, children ages 6-18 across America learn how to care for and show animals at their county fairs. Chickens are one of the most popular livestock animals for children to show. Moreover, chickens are an animal that children living in urban and suburban surroundings could raise on their own property and still participate in 4H.

Zach with his “crazy” Frizzle

On today’s show, we go to a local 4H poultry clinic where children were being taught skills to prepare them for their upcoming county fairs and chicken shows. These county fairs will start in the next couple of months. I interview several kids who are at this clinic with their pet chickens that they plan on showing at their fairs and ask them to share their candid opinions about 4H and showing chickens. They are best advocates for the benefits of this organization.

Hailey, Jessica and Stephanie at 4H Poultry Clinic

Also on this week’s episode, we discuss a mysterious “fowl murder” in Detroit, Michigan and talk about a recent public radio interview of Erica Strauss concerning her recent article arguing that some people should not get backyard chickens. You will recognize Erica as being the author of the NW Edible Life website and the her article was the subject matter of the Urban Chicken Podcast’s main segment in episode 10.

4H kids being shown how to handle their birds at the fair

Show Resources:

• Detroit local news coverage of chicken, goats and cat murders VIDEO
• Detroit Free Press news coverage/article about animal murders VIDEO
• CNN article on the animal murders in Detriot ARTICLE
• Daily Press story on the heinous Detroit animal murders