Show NEW STRAIN OF LEGHORNS SOLVES SEXING PROBLEM leghorns Leg horns are good egg producers but because they are smaller than most other breeds they are not in demand as a meat breed for this reason poultry men prefer sexed leghorn chicks so that they can get more females hatchery reports in fact show an increased demand for sexed chicks however only an expert can determine the sex of day old oid leghorn chicks at the agricultural research center beltsville md poultry I 1 geneticists of the federal bureau bur au of animal industry are working on a strain of golden leghorns Leg horns of good production qualities with the added advantage that the day old chicks may be sexed by down color the female chicks are darker in color than the males the new strain came from a foundation cross of superior rhode island reds and white leghorns Leg horns selections are being made for egg production egg weight and body weight charts showing the progress in breeding these birds were exhibited at the recent worlds poultry congress the average body weight of the golden leghorn heri hen is slightly more than 4 pounds compared with 4 pounds for the white leghorn hen this new variety is still in the formative stage and no hatching eggs or 1 breeding stock are available for distribution by the department |