Sebright Chicken All You Need To Know: Color Varieties and More…

Sebrights are loved all over the world because of their flashy laced feathering.

There are truly only a few chicken breeds that are as stunning as the Sebright chicken.

These little bantams are bursting with personality and love a good adventure. You will often find them foraging or hanging out on tree branches.

If this little bantam has charmed you and you are considering adding them to your flock, then keep reading. In this article we explain their plumage colors, egg laying and much more…

Sebright Chicken Overview

The Sebright Chicken is one of the most popular bantam breeds around.

They have a long history dating back to the 1800s and are one of the few true bantam breeds.

Sebrights are not known for their egg laying and are often kept instead as an ornamental breed. Their beautiful lace plumage makes them great show birds. They come in two main colors, Silver and Golden, but recently more exotic variations have been created in Buff and Black.

They are active and independent chickens, but are still friendly and kind. Sebrights are very inquisitive and love to explore every corner of their surroundings.

Despite their small size, they are actually fairly cold-hardy and you can treat them as you would your standard-sized chickens. However, you should take care to watch for predators such as hawks if you are not keeping them confined.

Their adventurous nature and potential health issues mean they are not well-suited for beginners.

Appearance

The Sebright is a stunning breed to look at.

They are best known for their fancy laced feathers, which are tight, rounded, and edged with black. Sebrights are also notable for the fact that males are hen-feathered. This means the roosters do not have any of the long sickle feathers typically associated with roosters.

Although they are small they carry themselves with an attentive, upright stance.

Their wings point downward which compliments their rounded chests – this all makes for a sleek little chicken.

Sebrights have bright red rose combs. Males will have a much larger comb and wattles than the hens. Both males and females have red earlobes.

Their legs and skin are a blueish gray.

Size

Sebrights are true bantams.

This means Sebright chickens have no standard-size counterpart.

Roosters weigh around 600g and hens weigh around 500g.

Sebright roosters are larger than their female counterparts. They also have larger combs and wattles. Hens tend to be smaller in every way.

Colors Explained

Sebrights come in a few distinct colors, although only the Silver laced and Golden laced are officially recognized varieties.

Golden
The Golden Sebright is the original. The specific shade of gold will vary depending on the strain, but the breed standard specifies that the shade of gold must be consistent throughout the body.

Silver
The Silver Sebright is the only other recognized variety.

They are a cross between a Golden Sebright and a white Rosecomb. Their standards are similar to that of their Golden cousins: an even shade of pure-silvery white, laced in black.

Buff
Buff Sebrights share many similarities with the gold and silver varieties, but there are a few important differences. They are a light yellow color and have some golden flecks around their eyes. However, their feathers are laced with a light cream color. They retain the mulberry rose comb and slate gray legs of the breed.

Black
The Black Sebright is very rare.

They share the same physical characteristics with the other varieties, but the striking contrast between the main color and lacing is absent. Other than that, their small stature and bright comb color is still present.

What Is It Like To Keep A Sebright?

Sebrights are active and adventurous chickens that love to roam around.

A typical day for a Sebright will involve choosing a place to explore for the day and thoroughly inspecting it. They are not big foragers but they will still peck around. Sebrights are bundles of energy and cannot sit still for very long. They are not cuddly lap chickens, but they will give you the time of day if you ask for it.

Towards the end of the day, when other breeds will head back to the coop, Sebrights like to get up high and will fly up and perch on trees. Because of this, lots of people prefer to keep them in a run with a cover.

Personality

Despite their small size they are bursting with energy.

They are known for being fiercely independent and curious.

Sebrights can be a little flighty and are not particularly known for being cuddly. Despite this, they can be tamed with the right care and attention. Make sure to handle your Sebrights regularly and give them treats to earn their trust.

These peppy birds are known for being social and they tend to get on well with other breeds.

Sebrights won’t cause trouble among a flock but they may find themselves getting into trouble thanks to their tendency to wander. Make sure to keep them in a safe environment to accommodate their adventurous spirit.

Eggs

If you are looking for a great egg layer then the Sebright is not the breed for you.

She is a very poor layer and tends to lay around 1 egg a week. Depending on the genetic line there are stories of Sebrights only laying 10-12 eggs a year!

These eggs are very small and white or cream-colored.

You can expect them to start laying eggs at 16-22 weeks of age. This can vary depending on when they hatched, but they tend not to lay until the subsequent breeding season.

Sebrights are also not known to go broody. If you try to breed your Sebrights, you are better off incubating the eggs or giving them to a surrogate mom.

Noise

Sebright hens tend to be fairly quiet.

While their noisiness can vary based on individual personality, roosters are known for their ear piercing crow.

Sebright Chicken Care Guide

Sebrights have their own quirks that any potential owner should understand before adding them to your flock.

We have outlined them below so you can better prepare yourself for what your Sebright chicken needs to be happy and healthy.

Health Issues

Sebrights are generally very healthy chickens with the exception of Marek’s Disease.

Unfortunately this little breed is particularly susceptible.

Marek’s Disease is a highly contagious viral disease. Sadly, once a chicken has it they are infected for life. Although not every infected chicken gets sick, those that do will develop tumors and die. The good news is that Marek’s Disease is preventable by vaccine so make sure to vaccinate your flock.

Sebright chicks have a high mortality rate due to their susceptibility to Marek’s as well as the lack of maternal instinct in Sebright hens.

Because of this you will need to take extra care and monitor them more closely.

Feeding

Because they are bantams they will eat significantly less than your standard-size chickens.

Sebrights tend to eat about 2lbs of feed per month. Adults should be fed a high quality 16% layer feed. If you have layer hens make sure to provide calcium for them in addition to their feed. It is your own choice whether you want to have scheduled feeding times, or allow them to free-feed.

Coop and Run

Sebrights are very small chickens which means they need less space than the average chicken.

In the coop they will need 2-3 square feet of space per chicken. You should give them each about 6-8 inches of roosting space so they can rest comfortably.

Because they lay eggs so infrequently, they will only need one nesting box for every 5 Sebrights.

For your run you should have around 4 square feet per chicken.

However, because they are natural-born explorers you want to make sure they have lots of space and enrichment.

Breed History

Sebright Chickens are one of the oldest British bantam breeds.

The breed was developed by Sir John Saunders Sebright and this is where they get their name from. Sir John had a love for animal husbandry, and bred chickens and cattle. He made it his personal goal to create his own breed that was both small and had iconic lacing.

Sir John traveled extensively looking for breeds that could be used.

The genetic origins of the breed are unclear, but it is believed the gold Sebright is derived from the Nankin bantam, a Hamburg, and an Old English Game bantam. Following this Sebright created the silver Sebright by taking a gold Sebright and crossing it with a white Rosecomb.

Shortly after this Sir John founded The Sebright Bantam Club in 1810. It was notable for setting the precedent for creating single breed associations in the chicken world.

In 1874 the breed was added to the first Standard of Perfection of the American Poultry Association.

Today the breed is well known and enjoys massive popularity as one of the most popular bantam chickens.

Demand for breeding pairs is very high.

Their popularity has led to the development of new varieties as Sebright breeders try to innovate. These new varieties are yet to be officially recognized but include Buff and Black.

Summary

Sebright chickens will stand out among any flock.

They may not be good egg layers but their looks make for a great ornamental and show chicken. It is easy to see why this breed has continued to be popular among enthusiasts across the world.

Curiosity and adventurousness are synonymous with this breed.

They love to get into trouble around the yard. Despite this, they are very sweet and will get along with other breeds just fine.

Sebright chickens are not beginner friendly, but if you can handle their fierce independence then you will be rewarded with a beautiful chicken.

Do you raise this flashy little chicken? Let us know in the comments section below…