Scots Dumpy Chickens

The Scots Dumpy chicken is a very old poultry breed that is purely of Scottish extraction. Historical and
archaeological evidence suggests they have existed for over 700 years. They have been known by the names Bakies, Creepies, Daidies, and Crawlers. It is believed they were used by the Picts during the time of Roman invasion to warn of strangers approaching their camps. The breed nearly died out in the mid-1900s but were fortunately saved by a few breeders.

Their distinctive characteristic is a gene that causes some of them to have legs much shorter than normal which causes a waddling duck like gait. That same gene can also cause issues with chicks dying in the shell. This makes successfully growing and maintaining a flock a bit of a challenge. Shorter legs limit the amount of damage they can do to your garden compared to standard leg lengths. The most common colors are black and cuckoo but are also seen in white and blue.

The breed is rare but ultrarare in the United States and proven quite difficult to obtain. So far, I’ve only found two other flocks in the US. There may be others, but I have not been able to locate them. Of the 3 that hatched from the fertilized eggs I purchase, all are roosters. Hopefully, this spring I’ll be able to bring hens to the farm for Douglas, Lockerbie, and Feisty to continue growing the flock of Dumpies.