The ISA Brown is a hybrid type of Sex Link

Sex Link

Sex-links are cross-bred chickens whose color at hatching is differentiated by sex, thus making chick sexing an easier process. Sex-links come in many varieties, few of which are a true breed...

 chicken

Chicken

The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...

, which is the result of crossing Rhode Island Red

Rhode Island Red

The Rhode Island Red is a breed of chicken . They are a utility bird, raised for meat and eggs, and also as show birds. They are a popular choice for backyard flocks because of their egg laying abilities and hardiness. Non-industrial strains of the Rhode Island Red are listed as recovering by the...

s and Rhode Island White

Rhode Island White

The Rhode Island White is a breed of chicken originating in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Despite their very similar names and shared place of origin, the Rhode Island White is a distinct breed from the Rhode Island Red...

s. The ISA Brown is a hybrid, not a true breed

Breed

A breed is a group of domestic animals or plants with a homogeneous appearance, behavior, and other characteristics that distinguish it from other animals or plants of the same species. Despite the centrality of the idea of "breeds" to animal husbandry, there is no scientifically accepted...

. It is known for its high egg production of approximately 300 eggs per hen in the first year of laying.

History

ISA stands for Institut de Sélection Animale, the company which developed the breed in 1978 for egg production as a battery hen. In 1997, the ISA Group merged with Merck & Co.

Merck & Co.

Merck & Co., Inc. , also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme or MSD outside the United States and Canada, is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. The Merck headquarters is located in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, an unincorporated area in Readington Township...

, forming Hubbard ISA, so the breed is sometimes called Hubbard Isa Brown. In 2005, Institut de Sélection Animale (ISA) and Hendrix Poultry Breeders (HPB) merged. Institut de Sélection Animale SAS, France (ISA SAS) is now an operational centre of Hendrix Genetics. In March 2005, Hubbard was purchased from Merial Ltd

Merial

Merial is a multinational animal health company. It was formed as a joint venture between Merck & Co. and Sanofi-Aventis in 1997. Merial is now the animal health subsidiary of Sanofi-Aventis. Merial is a company leader in innovation, and provides an ample range with products to improve the...

 by Group Grimaud La Corbiere, SA.

As a pet

The cross is a friendly pet

Chickens as pets

Keeping chickens as pets has become increasingly popular over the years among urban and suburban residents. Most chickens are kept on farms for the agricultural production of meat and eggs but some chickens are kept as pets for entertainment and educational reasons, along with homegrown eggs and...

, very confident and not afraid to go first but when it gets older it becomes a little bit pecky and eats a lot more . They are very good layers.