Amberlink Chicken: A Backyard Favorite

The Amberlink chicken is not only a champion egg layer but also incredibly easy to keep, even if you’re new to chicken keeping. They will bring you loads of eggs, a bunch of personality, and great backyard company.

How They Look

The Amberlink chicken is in a league of its own. It has pure white feathers covering the entire body, a red single comb and wattles, and yellow legs.

Its upright stance and alert posture give it a robust appearance. The dense white plumage contrasts with the bright red of the comb and wattles. The chicken’s tail feathers are held high.

The Amberlink is not a heritage breed but a hybrid chicken created by Dekalb Poultry Research Inc.

Egg Production

Amberlink chickens have an impressive egg production. You may expect it to lay around 270 eggs yearly; that’s one egg daily!

Originally, these chickens were created with the egg industry in mind, not for backyard chicken keepers. As laws and times changed, the egg industry sought a chicken breed suited for more ethical, cage-free systems. And the Amberlink copes well with this extra elbow room!

Their efficiency and docility make them great candidates for such systems. They have the potential to produce up to 500 eggs over their lifetime.

But they’ve turned out to be just as awesome as backyard chickens. They love to roam around but don’t need an abundance bringing you a lot of eggs!

Pullets start laying earlier than most heritage breeds, at 140 days old, or around 4.5 months.

Personality

Picture this: a friendly and docile chicken that doesn’t mind where it lives, is happy with almost every weather condition, and still lays eggs like a boss. That’s the Amberlink for you.

Keeping these chickens is no rocket science; they are incredibly easy to keep. They only need a comfy place to sleep, enough space to stretch their legs, and good nutrition containing plenty of calcium.

They are not picky eaters, but because they are real egg machines, they will need the best mix of grains, extra proteins, and calcium for strong egg shells.

Next to that, they are sociable, easy to manage, and tend to do well in mixed flocks.

Hardiness

Amberlink chickens are hardy in both warm and cold climates. Their good feather retention helps them adapt to different climates, and they resist cold very well.

The breed is known for its strong health and ability to thrive in a free-range setting where they can forage.

Just give them a place where they can shelter during extreme weather and additional water during heatwaves, and they will be happily clucking around in your backyard.

About Amberlink Chicken

As mentioned before, the Amberlink chicken is a product of Dekalb Poultry Research Inc, and also goes by the name ‘Dekalb White‘.

The company used secret parent stock to create Dekalb White and Dekalb Brown chickens. The breeds used to create the Dekalb chickens remain a secret, but it’s believed the White Leghorn was involved.

The Dekalb chickens have nearly seventy-five years of history and are renowned for their performance as laying hens.

It all began with the Dekalb Agricultural Association’s exploration into applying hybridization techniques used in corn to poultry in the 1930s and ’40s.

Today, Dekalb laying hens are celebrated globally for their high egg yield, docile nature, and excellent livability.

Summary

The Amberlink chicken has an impressive egg production, with the ability to lay around 270 eggs per year. Originally developed for the egg industry to thrive in cage-free systems, this chicken is well-adapted to more spacious environments, making it suitable for backyard chicken keepers.

They are efficient and docile, capable of laying up to 500 eggs over their lifetime. Their hardiness, combined with their friendly nature and minimal space requirements, make them ideal for commercial and backyard settings.