At a glance the quick version
European standard via Wikipedia. Bantams: cock up to 1.3 kg, hen up to 1.0 kg. Lafeber gives 4.5 to 6.5 lb (about 2 to 3 kg) for large fowl; Oklahoma State about 6 to 7 lb.
Looks how to spot one
Soft feather, partridge pattern
A neat, upright, medium-sized bird with a single comb. The classic red partridge colouring gives cocks a rich red-gold neck and back over a black breast, while hens are softly pencilled in warm browns. Hens lay large, dark terracotta eggs that are often freckled with darker spots.1432
Personality what they are like
Bright, curious and friendly. Welsummers are busy, alert birds that usually get on well with people, though they tend to be more interested in exploring than in being carried around.43
Daily activity how busy a day looks
An active breed that loves to forage, so it does best with daily access to a run or garden to explore.34
Grooming and care the hands-on bits
Chickens keep their own feathers in order by preening and dust bathing, so the main jobs are a dry dust-bath area, clean dry bedding, daily flock checks and regular egg collection. Hens lay roughly 160 to 200 eggs a year, about four a week.341
Home where they are happiest
A secure, dry, well-ventilated but draught-free coop with perches and nest boxes, plus a fenced run with a patch of dry soil for dust bathing. The RSPCA suggests about 1 m² of indoor space per bird where possible.56
Food basics what goes in the bowl
A complete commercial poultry ration is the base: chick starter, then grower, then layer feed once hens begin laying. Provide insoluble grit, oyster shell as extra calcium for laying hens, and constant clean water.56
Company who they like around
Chickens are flock animals that forage, roost and dust bathe together, so keep at least three birds that get along.5
The story where it all began
The Welsummer was developed around the start of the 20th century near Welsum from a mix including Partridge Cochin, Partridge Wyandotte, Partridge Leghorn, Barnevelder and Rhode Island Red. Dutch breeders fixed a standard in the early 1920s and the breed was shown at the 1921 World Poultry Congress. Birds reached Britain in 1928, prized for their eggs, and entered the British standard in 1930.123
Fun facts for the dinner table
- 1
The Welsummer is often said to have inspired Cornelius, the rooster on the Kellogg's Corn Flakes box.3
- 2
Welsummer chicks are autosexing: female chicks show a dark stripe running from the eye towards the back of the head, while males have plainer light brown heads.1
- 3
Bantam Welsummer hens can lay about 180 eggs a year, slightly more than the large fowl at around 160.1
- 4
The breed made its debut at the World Poultry Congress held in the Netherlands in 1921.3
Recognised by the official bits
- The Poultry Club of Great Britain
- Standardised breed, classed as soft feather light; added to the British standard in 1930.2
- American Poultry Association
- Recognised in one variety, red partridge.4
- Entente Européenne
- Lists three plumage colours for the breed, while only red partridge is recognised in the Netherlands.1
The care rhythm Furry Diary remembers it for you
A typical home-care rhythm for a Welsummer. It is our own starting plan, not a vet's advice, and you can change every line in the app.
- Fresh food and waterevery day
- Egg collectevery day
- Coop spot cleanevery day
- Coop full cleanFresh bedding and nest boxesevery month
- Mite checkLook under the wings and around the ventevery 2 weeks
- Dust bath checkKeep a dry dust bath spotevery week
- Free rangeDaily time outside in a safe runevery day
- Vet check-upFind a vet who sees poultryevery year
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Where this comes from
Every breed page shows where each fact comes from. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are pet people, not a science magazine. Tell us at support@furrydiary.app and we will fix it.
- Welsummer - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.orgused for origin, history, recognition, weights, egg numbers, autosexing, lifespan
- Welsummer - The Poultry Club of Great Britain poultryclub.orgused for classification, ancestry, UK import, egg description
- Welsummer - Lafeber lafeber.comused for temperament, egg numbers, weights, lifespan, Corn Flakes fun fact, 1921 debut
- Welsummer Chickens - Oklahoma State University Breeds of Livestock breeds.okstate.eduused for APA variety, weight, temperament, laying rate, hardiness
- Keeping chickens as pets - RSPCA rspca.org.ukused for general chicken housing, social needs, feeding
- Care of the Backyard Chicken - Lafeber Vet lafeber.comused for general chicken space, perches, diet stages
Checked 2026-09-30. Text is written in our own words from these sources.