The chicken that would rather be wild.
Ottofowl is a composite breed built for one thing: birds that thrive when you leave them to it. They forage all day, roost in the trees at night, and read the sky for hawks. Bred on a real farm, by a kid who means it.
A tough, pretty bird — bred by a kid who means it.
Otto Wolki started with a bucket of Egyptian Fayoumi — an ancient African breed that forages like a guinea fowl and melts into the scrub the moment a hawk swings past. He was hooked. Then he started adding: a Barred Rock for frame, an Araucana for blue eggs, a Naked Neck for grit, a Sicilian Buttercup for the comb. Interesting genetics, one careful cross at a time.
He named the composite after himself, set up two brooders, and started keeping a ledger — income, expenses, even a line for his own unpaid hours. (Tight-arse dad makes him account for the electricity.) It's a real little enterprise, run by a kid who does his chores and knows his birds.
Breeding for hardiness and a true natural expression of the species — just like his dad.— Wolki Farm
The birds free-range all day and haven't been lost to predators. They've taught themselves to roost up high, and they forage hard. Ottofowl isn't finished — Otto keeps folding in whatever genetics add value to the tough, good-looking bird he's chasing. That's the whole point of a landrace: it's never done, it just keeps getting fitter for the place it lives.
Every bird is a blend
Otto picks genetics for what they bring — hardiness, foraging, egg colour, heat tolerance — not for how they'd place at a show. Here's what goes into the mix.
Egyptian Fayoumi
- Forages like a guinea fowl — feeds itself
- Hyper-alert, strong flyer, fox & hawk savvy
- Famously disease-resistant & heat-hardy
- Roosts high by instinct
Barred Plymouth Rock
- Hardy in heat and cold alike
- Reliable brown layer, good size
- Calm, confident, good mothers
- Steadies the composite
Araucana
- Blue & green eggs, colour right through
- Rumpless — breeders say it dodges predators
- Rugged and weatherproof
- Keen, energetic forager
Naked Neck
- Fewer feathers = serious heat tolerance
- Tough constitution, natural disease resistance
- Enthusiastic free-range forager
- Extra hybrid vigour to the cross
Sicilian Buttercup
- Distinctive cup-shaped crown comb
- Flighty, heat-hardy, active forager
- Adds looks without losing toughness
…and more, always
Otto's on the hunt for the next interesting bloodline (Pekins are on the list). A landrace is a living project — the flock keeps evolving toward tougher, prettier, more self-reliant birds.
"Fit for purpose" genetics are a huge head start to any enterprise.
It's the same thinking behind our African cattle (Nguni) and African sheep (Damara): hardy, early-maturing, low-fuss animals that thrive on the land as it is. The Fayoumi — another African breed — was the obvious place to start a chicken that could do the same. Then Otto ran with it.
Resilience you can't buy in a feed bag
Forages its own dinner
Works the paddock like a guinea fowl — insects, seeds, greens. Barely touches the feed bin. Your grain bill isn't the business plan.
Reads the sky
Alert, flighty, switched-on. Cruises the paddock, clocks the hawk early, and lives to lay another day. Free-ranging all day — and none lost to predators yet.
Roosts up high
Trains to sheds, rafters and trees at dusk — off the ground and out of reach. Keep them under cover a couple of weeks and they pick the high ground themselves.
Vigorous health
Hardy stock with real hybrid vigour — Fayoumi disease resistance, Naked-Neck grit. Bright combs, bright eyes, and the constitution to thrive with minimal fuss.
The "survival chicken" playbook
A mate recommended Jake a book that put words to what Otto was already chasing: Free-Range Survival Chickens by Florida Bullfrog. It's about breeding back the tough, self-reliant farm chicken that thrived free-range before the modern coop-and-feed-bag era. We're big fans of the approach.
- Let nature cull. Predators and disease remove the weak — only the smart and tough breed on.
- A lost bird is often a defective bird. With the right genetics, losses point to weak stock, not bad luck.
- Genetics over infrastructure. The right bird carries its own defences — less coop, less babysitting.
- They feed themselves and roost high. A flock that lives a little like wild turkeys — less coop, less fuss.
Curious what good genetics can do? Type "Rooster vs Hawk" into YouTube and watch a proper bird handle itself.
Bring some Ottofowl home
Fertile eggs ship Australia-wide with free postage — the easiest way into the flock from anywhere. Live birds are farm-pickup at Woomargama, in seasonal batches. Get on the list so you don't miss a drop.
Fertile eggs — a hatching dozen
The easiest way to start your own Ottofowl flock, wherever you are in the country. A mixed dozen straight from the free-ranging flock — a surprise of blue, green, tinted and brown — packed carefully to survive the trip to your incubator.
Order a dozen — $120Day-old chicks
Straight-run, mixed sex, off the heat and ready to raise. The cheapest way into the flock — and the most fun.
Pullets
Grown-on young hens, already learning to forage and range. A head start toward eggs.
Cockerels
Young roosters — flock guardians in the making. Otto breeds some good-looking (and gloriously ugly) birds.
Hens & roosters
Proven breeding stock from the flock, offered as they become available. Good to handle once caught.
Getting your birds
Order online
Grab your birds or eggs through the shop. Live birds are pickup-only; fertile eggs can be posted.
We're in touch
For live birds we'll sort a collection time at the farm. Eggs get packed and posted straight out.
Collect at Woomargama
We send the exact address and a collection window in your order confirmation. Bring a box or crate for the trip home.
Raise them wild
Give them room to range, a high spot to roost, and let them do what they're bred to do.
Life on pasture
Images pulled from the farm's photo library.
Before you bring some home
Why a composite instead of a pure breed?
Are they friendly? Can the kids handle them?
Do they really roost in trees?
What do they eat?
Can you deliver live birds?
Are the chicks sexed?
What colour eggs do they lay?
When can I get some?
Get first word on the next drop
Ottofowl comes in batches, and the good birds go fast. Join the list and we'll let you know the moment chicks, pullets or fertile eggs are ready to go.