Do you want to know all about Sapphire Gem chicken? They are also known as Sapphire Blue Plymouth Rock and Blue Sapphire chicken.
Sapphire Gems are sex-linked chickens Popular for their unique appearance, striking color, and egg production. You will love the blue and lavender color of this chicken breed.
If you want to raise a few Sapphire Gem chickens, this guide will help you for that. Here you will get all information like history, lifespan, temperament, eggs, size, color, appearance, and care guide.
The Sapphire Gem Chicken
The Sapphire Gem chicken is a hybrid or sex linked chicken which is mainly used for egg purpose. They have a lovely and unique appearance.
Most of the chicken raisers recommend this chicken breed only because Sapphire Gems are very easy to tame. They are human-friendly and love to sit on your hands and thighs.
They have the heritage blue gene, so people breed them for their beautiful appearance. Poultry raisers mostly raise them for their high egg laying capacity and appearance.
History of Sapphire Gem chickens
The Sapphire Gem chicken has the blue gene from a few popular blue color chicken breeds. It carries the genes of Andalusian, Plymouth Rocks and Barred Plymouth Rocks.
APA has still not accepted Sapphire Gem chickens as a recognized breed. As it is a new chicken breed, people are still learning and experimenting with the quality.
Firstly, they are bred in the Czech Republic, but now this chicken is seen in most western countries. They are the mixed breed of Plymouth Rocks and Barred Plymouth Rocks.
Lifespan of Sapphire Gem chickens
The Sapphire Gem chickens gave a good life expectancy as compare to other sex-linked chickens. They have a good lifespan of about 6-8 years. With good feed and coop arrangement, they may live up to 10 years.
Temperament
The Sapphire Gem chicken is one of the best chicken for beginners. They are easy to tame and friendly in nature. Both the rooster and hens of this breed are calm and live well-mannered with children’s and other pets.
They are alert chickens and always aware of predators. If you are newbie chicken raisers, Sapphire Gems are best to raise. They are quiet chickens and lovely foragers, like Plymouth Rocks.
There are some clicks of the Sapphire Gem chickens which say how calmly they rest in the arms and hands of their adorable master. These fowls love to cuddle and are one of the sweetest varieties of chicken for the kids.
Egg Production
The specialty of the Sapphire Gem chickens is they can lay large size, brown, eggs, and it is a common misconception that this chicken lays blue eggs.
The reason is that the Sapphire Gem hens are often confused with other Sapphire chickens, which are small white birds that lay bright blue eggs.
A Sapphire Gem hen can lay up to 290 eggs per year. You can tell that her purpose is to produce eggs, and this breed is not usually used as a meat chicken.
The Sapphire Gem hens rarely go broody, so if you want to hatch their eggs, you may need a good quality incubator.
Here is our list of other chickens that lay lots of eggs.
Color, Size, Appearance, Characteristics of Sapphire Gem Chickens
Color
The color of the Sapphire Gem chicken will amaze you. They are seen in gray to light gray plumage.
You need to remember that the gray to light gray plumage is referred to as blue or lavender feathering in the chicken industry.
The color of the egg is slightly brown. Also, they are found in white color as a new breed.
Size
As per the British standard, a mature Sapphire Gem rooster weighs between 5 and 7 lbs and a mature hen’s weights between 4 and 6 lbs.
They are medium-sized birds. Their feathers make them bulkier when you notice them. An average adult Sapphire Gem chicken requires about 4 sq. feet area inside the coop and 12-15 sq. feet for free ranging.
Appearance
The farmers who wish to keep these chickens to add some beautiful looks to their flock, they are right. You will love exotic colors in your flock, and they will catch your eye with their lavender & blue feathering.
The Sapphire Gem roosters are characteristically blue with a white dot on his head. On the other hand, the Sapphire Gem hens are mostly blue, with a necklace-like ring of gold or gray decorating her neck.
The demand for these colors is extremely high among the breeders. These fowls seem to turn up their noses. So, their appearance seems to be mixed.
Just like a Plymouth Rock, the Sapphire Gem also has an upright appearance. The appearance is due to its genetics, and she sports a single comb atop her alert little head.
Characteristics
This Sapphire Gen chicken breed is an excellent egg layer and a great forager. They can lay up to 290 eggs annually.
This particular breed does not give a good experience when it comes to the production of the meat. They do not go broody, so if you want chicken for breeding purposes this is not for you.
Benefits of Raising this Breed
Here are some wonderful advantages of adding Sapphire Gems to your flocks:
1. Can hardy chickens
This chicken breed handles well in all climates, with reports of withstanding cold winters with grace and without decreased production.
A wise move for their protection is to keep them away from frostbite during the colder months. It helps to prevent their combs from falling off near the end of the season.
2. Love to roam around without giving any headache to farmers
This breed’s chickens are wonderful free-range candidates if you like to let your chickens run free. The Sapphire chickens are outstanding foragers and have no trouble finding the tastiest morsels in the yard.
Farmers need to keep them in a safe courtyard as they need a separate place from the predators. It makes them even better off if they have the run of the yard.
3. Attractive plumage
The feathers or plumage of these is slightly bluish. It helps this bird to build a special appearance among other breeds. They love to cuddle in human arms which make them more attractive.
4. High egg production
This breed is particularly known for its egg-laying nature. A breeder can keep them if he or she is interested in egg farming. The Sapphire Chicken will not disappoint you when it comes to egg production.
5. Great foragers
They love to hunt their food by roaming in your courtyard. They can search for their food so that they are great foragers like other forager breeds.
6. Pleasant personality
The sapphire fowls are very calm and quiet. When they find a place between human hands, they start to cuddle, which is a sign of their pleasant personality.
7. Easy to care
Not so much burden to take for this breed. The sapphire gem chickens are very firm from their growing stage. They can manipulate any habitat, area of the courtyard, and other factors which may be the drawbacks for the other breeds.
Problems in Raising Sapphire Gem Chicken
- They can’t survive in extremely hot conditions
- These birds are not good for meat production
- Higher expenditure for farmers who live in hot climate regions
Care Guide For Sapphire Gem Chickens
To raise the breed of the Sapphire Gem chickens, you will need to provide plenty of shade and cool water for your birds.
- You can use electric fans to provide a gentle breeze. The fan layout may be present inside or in a backyard enclosure. You need to consult some producers of quality animal feed to provide them for your chicks and the grown-ups. Also, you have to provide ice for them in any format, for your chickens.
- The Sapphire Gem chickens love to stand near to the ice blocks. These ice-boxes help them to keep cool. Otherwise, they may choose to drink the ice-cold water as it liquefies. You must provide frozen pieces of fruit for your chickens as it will reassure them to stay hydrated.
- The cold environment might be helpful for these fowls, but do provide indoor shelter. Also, for the benefit, you have to aid plenty of warm, clean nesting material for your hens. You may also use the heat lamps or small coop heaters during cold bouts in particular.
- For the entertainment of the Sapphire Gem chickens, you can deliver several amusements. Additionally, a rolling treat dispenser or a suet block can be used as a way of keeping hens busy and happy, particularly during the months of winter. Some expert breeders also suggest the addition of ladders, perches, and mirrors to the coop for their entertainment.
Conclusion
Those who wish to buy Sapphire Gem chicken can get from the domain breeder. As we mentioned earlier, this fowl breed is very fond of egg-laying.
The massive egg-laying capacity makes this breed a very special attraction for farmers. It is very easy to find Sapphire Gem chicks near your location. The average price of Sapphire Gem chickens is $4-5.
There are so many choices obtainable for those who are eager to sell this breed. Sapphire Gems are the best type of breed for farmers who want to make plenty of eggs. Many farming companies keep Sapphire Gem chickens.
I’m in WV How Can I find out what rooster to cross with my sapphire gems to keep their color and characteristics?
This is hard to tell, breeding with which rooster keeps the characteristic of the sapphire gems.
So, it is best to breed always with the same breed rooster.