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Barred Rock Chickens: Complete Breed Profile

barred rock chickens

The Barred Rock chicken is a hard-working member of the backyard chicken flock. She is a beautiful, calm, and productive member of any flock.

One of Americas’ first and finest poultry creations, she has been a worldwide success for thousands of poultry breeders, enthusiasts, and backyard ‘keepers for well over 100 years.

Read on to learn more about this underrated and often overlooked hen to see if she fits well with you and your flock.

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Barred Rock Chickens

History & Background of The Barred Rock Chicken

This is one of Americas’ oldest breeds, first putting in an appearance in the mid-1800s’.

The first barred specimens seemed to disappear from the landscape despite being shown at the Boston, Massachusetts show in 1849.

The breed reappeared in 1869 when a Mr. Upham of Massachusetts bred barred roosters to Java hens to create the prototype of the Barred Rock, although others lay claim to the breed.

At this particular time, the Dominique hen (also barred) was a top-rated and winning poultry show.
Dominique Winter Chicken
At this time, the standard for Dominiques and, eventually, Barred Rocks was a bit lax.

Breeders could exhibit Dominiques or Barred Rocks in both breed categories and win both categories because the comb could be either rose or single.

This seemed unfair to many breeders, and eventually, the New York Poultry Society set the standard as a rose comb for Dominiques and single for Barred Rocks.

Needless to say, this upset a few people and confused the owners of either bird.
Eventually, things settled down, and the two breeds became separate entities in competition.

The Barred (Plymouth) Rock hen became the basis of the broiler industry until World War 2, when Breeders had produced more productive breeds of hen.

They were almost single-handedly responsible for keeping meat, protein, and eggs in the American diet through the time of rationing.

They remained popular as backyard hens because of their hardiness, docility, and productive traits.

In the 1930s’ the Barred Rock ‘production bird’ was introduced to breeders and farmers alike.

The production breed excelled in the eggs and meat areas and nearly drove the purebred heritage hen to extinction.

Fortunately, the heritage bird has enjoyed a resurgence of popularity and now is listed as ‘recovering’ by the Livestock Conservancy.

Barred Rock: Appearance & Varieties

The first of the varieties appeared in 1884 when Mr. Frost exhibited his white-barred ‘sports.’ The Plymouth Rock Club was formed in 1897 to promote the breed.

In 1890 R.C. Buffington exhibited Buffs for the first time.

The Partridge variety made its’ appearance in the Madison Square Garden show in 1910 and was accepted to the APA in 1914.

Shortly thereafter, the Columbian rock appeared in exhibitions and was accepted by the APA in 1920.

In 1922 the silver penciled emerged and was duly accepted into the APA.

Silver Pencilled Barred Rock
Silver Pencilled Barred Rock

The blue variety was the last to be accepted by the APA.

The overall appearance of the Barred Rock hen is a large, vaguely triangular-shaped body with sharply defined barred black and white feathers.

It should be a hearty-looking bird with a 5 pointed single red comb and face. Eyes should be bright and alert.

Full breasted with a long back. The bird gives a lot of meat to those interested in raising them for table fare.

Once the birds get to know you, they will be friendly creatures, often tapping you for treats or affection!

They are great with children as many of them enjoy being picked up and cuddled – lap chickens in the making!

Barred Rock Chickens

Standard

APS accepted the Barred Rock to the American Poultry Association standard in 1874. In the US, seven varieties are recognized.

Only five are recognized by the Poultry Club of Great Britain in Britain, but the Entente Europeenne d’Aviculture et du Cuniculture recognize ten varieties.

Disposition

The Barred Rock is a friendly, sweet, and docile bird, partly why it has been a favorite hen for so many years; they are not known to be mean or bad-tempered.

It suits backyard life well and is easily integrated into a modest family setting.

They are inquisitive and love to forage their food, a skill that they are very adept at.

They have a very unfussy demeanor and will be at home in confinement if they have sufficient space.

Eggs & Broodiness

The Barred Rock is a layer of an ample amount of light brown medium-large eggs. She will lay in the region of 4 eggs per week or 200+ per year.
Barred Rock Hen With Eggs
The production strains will lay well for the first couple of years then the output will start to decline.

With the heritage strain, laying will go into the third or even fourth year but be less overall per year.

Although not overly broody, you can persuade them to brood if you keep a few eggs in a nest with the hope of encouraging them.

They make good broodies’ once they get the hang of it and are good mothers too, by all accounts.

Chicks feather in pretty quickly, too, so they are ready to go outside quite early.

They weigh well over the first few weeks/months and be considered broilers by 8-12 weeks.

Health Issues

This is a healthy, strong bird with a great genetic background, so she has no real health problems to speak of.

The combs of the roosters may need some care during severely cold weather, and of course, internal and external parasites need to be monitored.

Otherwise, she is a fairly maintenance-free bird.

Is The Barred Rock Breed Right For Me?

Barred Rock Chickens

If you have a small backyard enterprise and want a quiet, docile, friendly egg layer, the Barred Rock may be your bird.

They are not very noisy (except for the egg song) and would make a good addition to an urban flock.

They adequately provide the egg department for a mid-sized family, and hens will reach around 7.5lb. And make a well-proportioned table bird. Roosters will be about 1lb. Heavier than the hens.

They are not pushy or overly assertive. Barred Rock’s would rather walk away from a confrontation, although they will stand their ground if pushed.

They pair well with other breeds such as Dominiques, Barnevelders, and Faverolles.

They tolerate confinement well but shine in the foraging department if allowed to free-range. Their distinctive barring gives them some camouflage against aerial predators.

The roosters can protect their girls, so be cautious with small children, especially during the breeding season.

However, the roosters have also been known to sit on the eggs to give Mama a break and are generally more laid back than most other roosters.

Those folks who have kids interested in a 4H or farming projects could do much worse than using bantam Barred Rocks for the kids.

They make for a valuable, non-threatening, and relatively cheap endeavor into the world of self-sufficiency or farming.

Our Choice for All-In-One Automatic Chicken Coop Door

Run Chicken

  • Works Rain or Shine so you don’t have to let them out in inclement weather.
  • Go ahead and get those extra hours of sleep or go on vacation, our door has you covered.
  • Protect your Chickens from Predators with our self-locking feature

Our Choice of Treats for Our Chickens

Happy Grubs: More Calcium Than Mealworms

  • Increase Egg Production
  • Stronger Egg Shells
  • Healthy Feathers

Final Thoughts of The Barred Rock Breed

The Barred Rock is a hen suitable for many locations from larger farm operations to small backyards – wherever you need a quiet, dependable egg layer!

The quietness of the bird bodes well for an urban setting where neighbors are always a consideration.

The plumage gives reasonable cover from predation if they are allowed to free-range, and a rooster can be kept as an ‘early warning system’ to alert you to danger.

Of course, livestock guardians, whether canine or otherwise, can certainly help in this respect.

The Barred Rocks I have kept have always been quiet birds who have gone about their business with fanfare but enjoy human interaction – especially the occasional treats!

A few Barred Rocks hens will keep a small family in eggs with some to spare each week, so they more than pay for their keep-in product and entertainment.

All in all, the Barred Rock is well suited for life as a backyard hen with low maintenance needs and high productivity – what more could you ask?

READ NEXT: 15 Most Popular Ornamental Chicken Breeds

Barred Rock Chickens- Complete Breed Profile

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22 thoughts on “Barred Rock Chickens: Complete Breed Profile

  1. I have two 1 year old Barred Rock Hens and I would like to put another full grown chicken in with them but they picked on her. is there a way to get them to except her without her getting hurt? They have been along side her cage for months now but still won’t let her be in there run with them. Help………

    1. My understanding is to never add ONE chicken to your flock, always at least TWO at a time to divide their attentions. I was also instructed to add them at night so when they wake in the morning they realize that they have all survived together unaware of the other without incident. This has worked fairly well for us though we are always in the mix to encourage peace. It also can take up to a solid week before they fully accept each other into the flock as members.

    2. I had three I was adding to an existing flock of 4 and did the add ‘em at night thing and they got picked on. So I just continued the add them at night, and took them away after about an hour or so together in the morning, let them see but not get to each other during the day and then put them together at night. I did this for about 2 weeks and then gradually increased the time they were together in the morning with more and more things to hold the flocks interest while they were together. Extra hay or treats to keep their attention and I added extra peaches so the little ones could get away. It took awhile, but eventually it way ok and now they are one big happy flock. The smaller ones still get chased from time to time but no injuries. So be patience, flexible and observant is my advice.

    3. they truly are a self contained hierarchy and new chickens are difficult to introduce into a flock. I have never seen any issues with picking on little ones if they born to the flock and mom introduces them. I have had better luck when i have a side pen and the new chickens talk through the pens and get to know each other. As well, I would let them mingle in the free range yard for some time before I pen them together.

  2. We have had 2 of our Barred rock hens die in the past few days-find them on their sides in the coop over night-no trauma, bodily fluids, etc with any evidence of what happened. They are @ 5 years old. Any ideas of what caused their deaths? We have 2 left of this breed and age group. All others are healthy as well. Thanks

    1. Have you seen any oddities in their droppings in the local vicinity? This can tell you alot.
      Claire

  3. Dominques don’t have any specific health issues.  They are a solid heritage breed for backyard flocks and small farms, especially if you are looking for good mothers and prolific egg layers.

  4. My daughter is doing chickens for 4-H she is getting the Barred Rock breed and the Buff Orpington breed we get them May 6, 2020.

  5. How high can barred rocks fly? Is it ok to clip wings? I have a 4 foot fence around my property. Wanting to free range…

  6. My Barred Rock has begun laying tiny eggs. One did not concern me but she is laying one tiny egg a day for 4 days. Is this ok?

  7. I kept my new flock of 3 separate but where the older rock of 2 could see them. I did this for a week and there’s was very little picking when I finally allowed them to be together.

  8. I purchased 6 barred rock chicks a week ago. My understanding was that they were days old. Not true. I have had them 1 week. They are flapping feather wings and tail feathers are starting to poke out. They are roosting and jumping out of the brooding box. How old are they? Very disturbing as I thought I had a few weeks before coop time. I am a first time chick owner. Disappointed I did not get the chick experience of four weeks?!

  9. Barred rocks are really nice chickens and always make me think of when I was a kid and so many people had flocks of these birds. The white and buff rocks are just as nice, I have kept both, actually all three. The picture you have posted of a silver penciled rock is actually a silver laced (I think) Wyandotte. The most aggressive rooster I have ever seen was a barred rock. He was with a flock outside a restaurant. He attacked the car door and we couldn’t get out. I have seen and had human aggressive roosters, but this guy took the prize. I would like to see you do articles on New Hampshires and black Minorcas.

  10. I have Barred Rocks from the heritage chicken program at our local University. I love them, they are totally sweet and great egg layers. My rooster is a doll and beautiful as well. They follow me around in the yard but are happy to run back to their coop when told to “go home”. I really enjoyed the article, thanks for writing about my chosen ones!

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