The same age of the twenty-first century chicken cross Hercules has practically fulfilled the century-long dream of the poultry farmers to have chickens who carry eggs more often and larger, and roosters who would give the meat bigger and tastier. And while still the bird was undemanding in the care and less sick. How the Kharkiv breeders managed to do this, only experts know, but the fact remains that these impressive-sized and good-natured chickens are increasingly populating poultry farms and rural farmsteads.
A bit of history
In the early 90s of the last century, a team of researchers led by Professor Y. Bondarenko, who worked at the Borki Research Institute, located in the Kharkiv region, decided to create an alternative to the famous broilers.
The task was as follows: while maintaining growth rate and solid dimensions, eliminate the disadvantages of broilers in the form of increased susceptibility to diseases and noticeable wateriness in the taste of their meat. 
After almost a decade of hard work, Kharkiv breeders managed to bring out a hybrid that met all the specified requirements.
Did you know? Many scientists believe that today's chickens are direct descendants of dinosaurs. Based on this, they argue that the tyrannosaur meat tasted like chicken. So using chicken, we simultaneously enjoy the dinosaur.
Characteristics and features
The result was a nice chickens of different colors, looking because of their size against the background of their usual neighbors somewhat cumbersome and awkward.
Exterior
On a large body of Hercules there is a medium-sized head with orange-red eyes, a yellow beak, red catkins and a bright red comb, which in roosters is cut into the teeth and hangs slightly to one side. 
Birds have a broad back, massive chest and a slightly bulging belly. The legs are of medium height, the tail is relatively small, but it is decorated with long tail braids.
Chickens are dressed in thick feather coats, which are significantly warmed with abundant down. 
Weight differences rooster and chicken
The average weight of the cocks of this cross is 4.5 kg. Chickens per kilogram lighter.
However, there are cases when roosters reached a weight of 9 kg.
High rates of meat and egg productivity are distinguished by such crosses as brown, master gray, highsex, hubbard, and fox chic.
Color
Since hercules is a hybrid, it absorbs the colors of several chicken breeds used in breeding.
The result was five main colors that are:
- white;
- golden;
- silvery;
- pockmarked;
- black and white.
At the same time, it is noticed that white chickens are gaining more weight, but golden ones are more active than others. 
Temperament
These solid birds usually dominate in the house, although they do not undertake anything for this, differing peace loving and appeasable character even the roosters. Simply, the large size and important appearance automatically predetermines their primacy, among other things, the smaller chicken population.
Puberty and annual egg production
These chickens begin to lay eggs at the age of five to six months. Laying can produce up to 220 eggs with an average weight of 70 g. 
Pullet Chicken Egg The one-year-old rooster gains weight up to 4.5 kg, and the hen of the same age is one kilogram less. 
Chicken weight In addition to high egg production and solid weight of eggs, their high quality is also noted, which is expressed in a large amount of yolk.
Hatching instinct
Out of layers of cross-country oat-flakes hersy mums turn out. In every way they shirk from their maternal duty, not wanting to hatch eggs. And even in those rare cases when they sit down on eggs, they very quickly find things that look more important to them than to just sit on egg lay. 
Therefore, when breeding these chickens have resort to the services of an incubator.
Did you know? Chickens are able to recognize spoiled eggs. Usually they push them out of the nest.
Conditions of detention
One of the valuable qualities of this cross-country chickens is their undemanding to the conditions of detention. They easily adapt to their possible changes.
Coop Requirements
The solid dimensions of these birds require a more spacious chicken coop. In no case should chickens be crowded. 
Again, a large weight of chickens causes another feature of the arrangement of the house for hercules. Since the weight of the body does not allow them to take off, in the hen-house for them perches do not.
This circumstance makes it necessary to pay due attention to the floor on which the birds spend their entire time in the hen house.
Learn more about the arrangement of the chicken dwelling: the choice and purchase, self-production and arrangement of the chicken coop (placement of nests and nests).
Therefore, it is covered with a thick layer of straw, sawdust or hay, which must often be changed to maintain the necessary sanitary conditions in the house. 
Courtyard for walking
The yard designed for walking these chickens should also be spacious. Birds need enough space for walking.
It is very useful for the walking yard to plant grass species valuable for birds, such as nettle and clover, so that chickens can peck fresh greens in spring.
Since the oat-flakes are very bad flyers, the fence around the walking yard is not necessarily high.
Feeders and drinkers
The main requirement for the bird feeder is to prevent the chicken from climbing into it, which will scatter the food and spoil it with its feces. Therefore, the feeders set at a height at which chickens can get food, but not climb in it.
Read also about how to make drinkers and feeders for chickens with their own hands.
On some feeders make special bumpers or covers that hide most of the food, leaving a gap in which chickens can push only the head. 
It should be borne in mind that the feeders must be periodically cleaned and disinfected, and they should be installed so that absolutely all the inhabitants of the house have access to the feed.
On average, an adult bird needs half a liter of water during the day. This amount varies depending on the time of year, the conditions of food and the ambient temperature, but in general it is necessary to make a start from it, arranging drinkers.
It should also be borne in mind here that chickens tend to jump into the drinkers standing on the floor, thus contaminating the water. In addition, in the floor drinking bowls in winter, the water may freeze.
Therefore, devices for feeding water to birds raised above the floor are most often used. They are prefabricated of various designs, but very often made by the poultry houses themselves. Most often for their device used plastic bottles and pipes.
The most functional are currently considered nipple drinkersthat give out water only after exposure to a chicken beak. Water in such drinkers is not subject to pollution and retains its hygienic properties for a long time. 
An important condition for the installation of the drinker is its availability for chickens from all sides.
How to endure cold and heat
In addition to all other advantages, another very attractive quality of hens is the hercules manifested in their resistance to low temperatures.
They calmly withstand fairly hard frosts, they can do without the coop without heating, and with visible pleasure in the winter they dig in the snow.
Important! But if the temperature in the fresh air falls below -20WITH, then letting chickens out on such a frost should not.
No less calmly carry the chickens summer heat.
The only problem with the arrangement of the hen house is the need for good ventilation in it, which would not be accompanied by drafts. 
Moult
For all the ugliness of a bald type of hen, this is a natural process that is common to all chicken breeds.
Although egg production in chickens falls during this period, they do not experience any discomfort during shedding.
After a month and a half, the dense plumage of birds acquires the same condition. But while Hercules need some help. For a more active recovery of plumage, chickens should be given food with fat, feeding them with meat or fish broth.
What to feed
These birds are highly susceptible to the quantity and quality of food. They are predisposed to the accumulation of excess fat, and in this regard, it is preferable to feed them with combined feed specialized for meat and egg breeds, and for birds intended for fattening, it is necessary to feed the feed containing at least 21 percent of protein. 
Adult flock
The easiest way to purchase ready-made combined feed. But it's easy to do it yourself. If the whole mass of the required amount of feed divided into ten parts, then for its manufacture will be required:
- 4 pieces of corn grain;
- 3 pieces of wheat;
- 1 part of sunflower meal;
- 1 part flour made from bones or fish;
- 1 part of minerals.
These substances are lime, chalk, coquina, or nitrogen-containing elements.
We advise you to read about the preparation of feed for laying hens and the norms of feed for layers for a day.
Top dressing from vegetables and greens, as well as from yeast, pine flour and flaxseed is very relevant in the winter. 
Youngsters
For the first three to four days after birth, the chickens feed on crushed eggs with the addition of crushed corn grits every two hours.
Then begin to add to the feed:
- cottage cheese;
- greenery;
- millet;
- crushed wheat;
- barley;
- oat and barley flakes;
- wheat bran.
Learn how to feed the chickens from the first days of life.
Ten days later, sunflower oil cake is introduced into the chicken ration. It is very useful to add oatmeal to young chickens in the diet. minced meat products:
- carrots;
- Luke;
- nettle;
- dandelion leaves.
Chalk and seashells are also useful as mineral additives.
The main condition during this period is an adequate amount of feed for each chicken. 
Propensity to disease
This chicken cross is distinguished by a strong immune system and, as a result, resistance to many diseases.
However, unfortunately, nobody possesses complete protection from diseases. Including strong hercules. Sometimes they are subject to diseases:
- typhus-pulloz;
- salmonellosis;
- colibacteriosis;
- pasteurellosis;
- bronchopneumonia;
- worms.
In order to prevent the diseases of birds, you should follow simple preventive rules:
- In the same coop should not keep both young and adult birds at the same time due to weaker immunity in chickens.
- At the slightest manifestation of signs of illness in the bird, it must immediately be removed from the hen house.
- When a sick chicken is found, the house must be sanitized.
- Often, the imbalance of feed is the cause of chicken diseases.
- One of the main sources of disease is unsanitary conditions.
Important! Therefore, the house should be cleaned as often as possible.
Advantages and disadvantages
Explicit pros Chickens Hercules appear in:
- the rapid growth of chickens;
- large weight of adult chickens;
- large eggs with bulky yolk;
- peace loving character;
- excellent immune system;
- good taste of meat;
- cold resistance.
Cons significantly less. They are:
- propensity to obesity with improper diet;
- deterioration in the condition of the breed in the second and subsequent generations.
Video: Hercules in the household
Reviews of hercules cross
If the excellent qualities of chickens Hercules, manifested in the first generation, would not change in the second and next, it would be the perfect chicken. The current active presence of Hercules in many poultry farms and in the poultry farms of the villagers, however, testifies to the great popularity of this successful cross country.
