The Illustrated Guide to Chickens covers the 100 most familiar breeds of chickens in Europe and North America. The breed profiles are written in engaging text that covers the history of each breed, its main characteristics, and information about looking after them. Each breed has been illustrated with delightful paintings by the author. Introductory sections contain practical advice about poultry-rearing and husbandry, and outline the differences between breeds, including the pros and cons between pure breeds, hybrids, bantams, game fowl, etc., and layers or table. The foreword has been written by HRH the Prince of Wales.

Reviews

" Great to look at, fascinating to read, even if you're not fowl-minded "--Saga Magazine (April 2010)
'The whole book is peppered with some of the best contemporary illustrations of popular breeds that we've ever seen...but this certainly isn't just a picture book...There's plenty of useful text included too, covering breed introductions, buying advice, housing. common ailments, feeding etc.' --Practical Poultry, June 2010
'This beautifully illustrated book is a great starting point for learning more about hens.' --Garden Answers, July 2010
'a beautiful book'--Country Smallholding, August 2010

Table of Contents

1 Introduction: bantam, hybrid, pure breed, etc 2 Key 3 Cocks 4 Combs, feathers, feather diagram, wing diagram 5 Housing and fencing 6 Buying hens or eggs 7 Feeding 8 Broodiness and incubating 9 100 breed profiles 10 Common ailments 11 Culling 12 Breed type list 13 Quick Reference Guide 14 Useful websites 15 Acknowledgements 16 Glossary 17 Index

Author Biography

Celia Lewis is an accomplished artist and is passionate about chickens. She is the co-author of a bestselling book on rearing chickens.