Pros: Calm, friendly, good family bird Cons: None I can think of
We have three Orpingtons, one Blue Orpington hen, one Blue Orpington rooster and one Blue/Buff Orpington rooster. We've had to separate the Blue rooster from the Blue/Buff rooster as they started fighting. The Blue/Buff rooster is gorgeous, he loves taking care of his mixed flock of seven hens. I really like their personalities (except for the Blue rooster who has decided that I am his enemy - this is after I nursed him back to health after almost dying this past summer! Up until then he was a wonderful guy too.) I would definitely get Orpington's again!
Very nice birds...(I have only raised the buffs) very pretty buff color, hardy and good layers of medium to large eggs. Seem to have no fear of humans and are at the top of the pecking order. I always have a few Buffs in my flock.
Absolutely great birds. I have one Buff Orp hen named Amulet, who is THE sweetest thing alive. She'll sing back to me when I break off of singing silent night. Her and my australorpe, Pepper, get along very well. She's the leader of the two, half skittish, but very, very sweet birds over all. I love ya, Amulet!
Pros: Great lawn candy Cons: My girl is not the lap chicken I expected
Wish I could agree with the friendliness aspect that everyone is raving about. My girl is not as easy to catch and didn't eat out of my hand until a week ago when she started laying. I suggest getting these as chicks if breeder quality, or from someone that has kids who handle them. I got them from someone who never handled them, and my girl was quite apprehensive regarding humans.
Pros: Cuddly, Friendly, Protective, Smart Cons: Can be Pecky
My Buffs are gorgeous, sweet, love to cuddle, and very intelligent. They are protective of the flock, the most watchful, etc. Only problem is a couple of them like to try and "preen" me with the same vigor they do the other chickens. Sweet, but Ow!
Pros: So big that medium and small predators are not an issue. Extremely friendly! Good layers. Cons: Not heat tolerant. Can’t move fast or fly well to escape K9s
I have a lavender Orpington rooster who is the best roo ever. He is friendly and takes great care of his hens. The hens are so freindly they defintly fit the term "lap chicken".
Pros: Sweet, easy starter birds Cons: None I can see (yet!)
I love my Buffs. That is correct - they stand out in the rain, getting wet. Not too swift. They are really great, tho. Very friendly - my daughter plays with them all the time, and they put up with it :-). I can pick all of mine up. There is one, Zoey, who like to run away, but they are all pretty docile. I am getting great pinkish/brown eggs - all pretty good sized, but someone is laying whoppers, like, between goose to duck egg size. They started laying late last year, and I am still getting eggs everyday, like, 5 at least. They seem to be hardy - we are having a mild winter this year in New England, so I haven't seen them in consistent below freezing temps. I would highly recommend them to someone who is just starting out with hens.
Pros: Beautiful feathers, great to look at, and nice! Cons: Sometimes they don't lay well in the winter.
My Buff Orpington, Sandy, is very stunning and beautiful! She lays a nice big (In the summer I got double - yolkers from her almost every time she layed an egg!) light brown egg, and is friendly!
My buff girl is a big marshmellow, and the only true lap chicken of my original flock. She'll peck at your pants leg until you pick her up, and has been known to chase other birds off my lap so she could hop up there for some lovin'. She looks like a fat chicken, but it's all fluff (proven by getting caught in a rain or molting). She's just a big, fluffy pillow. Other than their size, I think they'd do well around children, because they're pretty gentle. I think the buttery coloring is beautiful. When she was younger, she laid 5-6 eggs per week (usually 6), but since molting, she's taking this winter off.
Pros: Quiet, pretty, great egg-layer Cons: Incredibly shy
My BO is a really nice bird. Out of all my hens, she's the only one who's still chugging out an egg nearly every day (the others have slowed down since it's winter). She's quiet--no loud clucks, just kind of little clucks like she's talking to herself. I especially like BOs' shape, they're just so plump-looking!
(You can see my avatar in the background.)
The only problem--and I don't know if this is necessarily a problem--is that she's really, really shy. I'm one of the only people she'll allow to pick her up, and even then she complains a lot when I do. She'll run away from everybody except me pretty much. That's ok though, it's good to have a shy chicken or two I think.
Pros: Great layers, friendly, pretty Cons: Can be broody, bossy, loud!
I only have one of these girls, and her name is Nimby Nugget. She is a very nice girl and an early layer - started way before my heavy layers were supposed to. She has a beautiful buff color and is one of my fiancee's favorites. She squats for pretty much anyone and is very easy to pick up and cuddle since she's so relaxed. She does tend to boss some of the others around and has been known to test her boundaries with the flock (ninja kicking the rooster and picking on the boss brahma twice her size) but is gentle with chicks. Her eggs are plentiful and a pretty tan color. I really like this breed.
Pros: Good mothers, good layers, cold hardy. Cons: May brood when you don't want them to, I haven't found them to be very heat resistant, though none have died.
I have only raised the Buff Orpingtons, and I have found them to be the best all-around breed for the average home flock owner.
If it's a breathing incubator you're looking for, the only one I have seen that can top this breed is the Silky. I have had one Buff hen go broody three years in a row before she died, successfully hatching out a brood of chicks each year. One year she hatched chicks, raised them, then took two weeks off before going right back to her nest for round two!
They're very cold-hardy birds, also, and mine have withstood temperatures of up to -20 degrees F, not counting windchill, although they were in their coop for the worst of it, shielded from the wind.
They aren't great chickens to have if you have very high temperatures in the summer, but they aren't bad, either.
Egg production is average, as they are a dual purpose heavy breed, and not bred exclusively for eggs. However they do lay well when in their prime.
Orpingtons are from England and are for both meat and eggs. I have two hens that are so sweet,tame and hardy. They lay good sized brown eggs. They are very docile and somewhat affectionate with there handler's. I love my buff orpingtons.
Pros: Large breed, fair dual purpose, excellent exhibition choice, great with children, gentle. Cons: Fair dual purpose, large breed and needs more space.
There are several different type of birds that are all listed under Orpingtons.
Large Fowl and Bantams (minatures).
Exhibition type bred to the American Standard of Perfection.
Hatchery type bred for production.
English type. These are new colors imported from England and Europe that are bred to the British Standard.
What you wish to use them for will determine which type you acquire. If you just want yard art any will do. If high egg production, go with the hatchery type. For exhibition, you want those bred to the American Standard of Perfection. Not much space? Try the Bantam version. They are about 1/3 the size of the large fowl; are very gentle; and excellent layers.
The American Standard of Perfection recognizes Orpingtons in large fowl and bantam in Buff, Black, Blue and White. The Blue will produce Splash. Some breeders are also working on new colors like the Self Blue (aka Lavender), Golden Laced and Lemon Cuckoo. A Brown Red Orpington was shown at the Crossroads of America Joint National Poultry Show in October 2011.
The English type have been imported in Chocolate, Jubilee, Lemon Cuckoo, Black, Blue, Splash, and more colors are planned in 2012.
Pros: gentle, good layers Cons: get beat up by aggressive breeds/hens
I think they would do okay with other docile breeds like Black Australorps or Easter Eggers, but I would be very hesitant to put them with more feisty breeds. I've heard some people will just get Buff Orpingtons just to avoid that dynamic all together. I really like having a mixed flock, so they're not really a good fit for us. Ours was killed by a dog but prior to that she was constantly picked on to the point I was like..... if you're not going to fight back at least run or something..... walk away? No? The other hens would sometimes grab her by the comb and drag her around. Ours took docile to a whole new level.
Pros: Winter hardy, sweet and docile, good egg layers Cons: large birds, hard to tell apart without leg bands, bumble foot a concern
I love our buff orphingtons. Each hen provide us with about 5 large brown eggs a week. They are super friendly and allow the kids to carry them around, even though they are rather heavy. They tend to associate with their own kind and ignore my silkies with a regal turn of the head. Our birds are confined most of the time and they get along very well. All three of my buffs control the top tier of the pecking order, but do so with only a peck or two. Keep the perches low to avoid bumblefoot in large bodied birds like BO. They are very winter hardy.
Pros: winter hardy for sure Cons: Tend to pick up banties by the head and swing into the air.
My BO'S are great birds to cuddle and pet, the only down side is they like to chase the smaller birds and if they get a chance will grab them by the head as if trying to breed them , then chuck em in a circle into the air. Until my king austrolorp sees what's going on, then the buffs back off and fear the big black fella. My austrolorp is at 14 lbs. When he speaks or moves, every bird in the flock reacts quickly. My buffs are just food vaccuums, and sometimes wannabe bullies. This spring I want to cross my austrolorp with a jersey giant to see if I get an even larger rooster in the end, my hens should be larger as well. Can't wait.
McMurray hatchery even asked me to send the specs on the results of the cross every 3 weeks. Height weight, attitude, right up to full grown and then egg production and size. I think I got a project started here.
Pros: They sit often Cons: They stop laying when they sit
I have about ten Buff Orpingtons with a bit of lemon cookoo strain in a few. They have made great layers, though they don't lay as many eggs per year as the newer breeds. The best part is that you can hatch eggs with them since they go broody often. I've got a biddy on a cluch of eggs right now, in fact! Only 19 days to go!
Had a flock about 1 month ago laid every day, Great layers of brown eggs. Even shown a hen and rooster hen won best of breed rooster got 2nd in show. Lost my whole flock to racoons :(
Pros: Good broody hen, cute chicks, good egg layer, nice, and fluffy! Cons: none!
I this is the best breed I've ever had. I love them so much. they are very tame, though I've never been so lucky as to actuallyhave one follow me around, though my friend had one that was like a dog. The roosters are nice as long as you don't put them with other roosters, at least that is my experiance.
Pros: sweet, good layer, loves people, Cons: goes broody often
Orpingtons are a great breed for beginners! They are sweet, loving, and very good with children or anyone! They lay well and I have had only 1-3 orpingtons go broody. Great breed!
Pros: Tough, Perky, Beautiful, Colorful Cons: lose feathers quickly, i don't have a rooster!
I love these birds! They are amazing! I love how they bring color to my flock! I love to show off my coop becasue they make it whole! The only thing that I regret is not buying more! Every time I go up to my coop now I regret getting a rooster! hahaha Thankyou to the orpingtons!
I have a pair of lavender orpingtons and they are both very nice.They will fly up onto my arm,head,or shoulder and will follow me around wherever I go. They are getting big and I wanted a big bird! I don't know about egg production though since the hen hasn't started laying yet.
Out of large breed chickens, this is my one of my favorite breeds. They are an excellent breed for new chicken keepers due to their gentle nature. They are dependable layers of 2 oz eggs. Mine laid about 4 eggs a week on average. Like many folks, I kept the buff variety. They are so pretty, like a Strawberry blond color.
Pros: Beautiful, good layers, sweet disposition Cons: none
We have two buffs in our flock of nine, and they are the favorites. They lay as reliably as the RIRs, but are just so fluffy and beautiful and sweet-tempered that they have stolen our hearts.
Best possible choice for the backyard chicken keeper; sweet and mellow, doing well even with the noise of the city surrounding them. Neighbors love watching them, and their gentle disposition makes them perfect for a family with children new to chickens.
Pros: Friendly, Rather Quiet, Cold Hearty, Good sized eggs Cons: Broody, I sort of don't like how there eggs are a bit pinkish brown
I got these birds after the overwhelming hype I kept hearing. For the most part I would say that it was true they are great very friendly birds. I've only been keeping these guy for a couple of years but have noticed that they go broody alot. While most are friendly and will jump in your lap a few have been really shy.
Pros: Reliable layer, friendly, gentle, amusing, good flock overseer Cons: None so far
I've had my Buff Orpington for about six months and love her! She was the sole survivor of a raid lasting 2 nights; we lost 5 other chicks and pullets those two nights. She then came to sleep inside until I could provide her with secure outdoor housing. She had perfect house manners (minus the pooping part), was gentle and loved to sit with us. My three-year-old regularly picks her up, carries her around and gives her hugs and kisses.
She's since proven to be a reliable layer, prefering her kitchen nest to lay in; fussing at the back door until I let her in to lay. Then she walks around the house making her little crowing noise until she spots me. That's her way of asking to go back out.
She's taught the rest of the flock to spot and avoid hawks and avoid other predators and to be 'chickens'. She's definitely the flock boss. No one messes with her. But they all still jockey to snuggle with her at night.
Ok, so that's the "pet" part. I consider her a pet. The others are production birds and aren't named. Someone else may know more about how the BO's fare as meat birds or just plain ole production. OH- before I forget, she came in at 81% for January and for Feb- well, today's Feb-1 so she's at 100% :)
I bought 4 - 3 days old chicks. They lived in my kitchen until old and large enough to move outside with a heat source. I live in Vancouver Canada where the nights are cold even in the summer.
Of the 4, 3 have survived. The runt lived for about 4 months then just quit eating and died. She was just feathers and bones when she died but had no other symptoms. ??
I think one of the survivors is a roo as his comb is much redder and his tail is shaped different. He hasn't started crowing yet. If he does I will have to sell/trade him as we can't have roos in Vancouver. Yes, silly, I know.
They are such affectionate chicks. Very soft and fluffy with pale lavender gray feathers. Truly beautiful girls. If you are going to have chickens you may as well have beautiful chickens!
They are very intelligent and affectionate. My 11 year old grandson carries them around tucked under his arm.
They have not yet started laying, but it is Feb. so very cold and the days are short. I have my coop on a timed light. 12 hours on, 12 hours off. My other older hens have laid all winter.
2 Buff Orp Hens got out sometime at the tail end of a big storm - foot of snow w/ up to 2 foot drifts. Glanced out the window and saw one pushing a path through the snow -- wind still high, temps abt 10 degrees, flurries. Ran out and got her, returned her to the pen - counted, and yep, another one missing. Tried to search but - nothing but a clear field of snow. Followed her tracks and they 'ended' half way between where I found her and the pen---- a hollow and wing marks--- looked like she was tired, bedded down, and while she rested her tracks obliterated and she was covered with snow, flapped to get free. Kept a patrol and an eye out, but no sign of the other hen all day. Next morning at dawn saw a golden blob on top of the corrogated plastic roof - 5 degrees, that roof was COLD. Ran out and sure enough, it was the missing hen, her feathers crackly with frost. In my other hand I had their hot oatmeal, and she gobbled it down as I carried her back around to the door and put her inside under the 3-sided straw bale shelter they use. Two weeks later and both are fine, they never missed a beat. I was looking for hardy hens, and it looks like they are! Hope they stay put, though, and don't try that stunt again. Clipped their wings, and they're staying inside now...
Update: 2/3/12 Hens are 6 month old today, and to commemorate it one of the Buff Orpingtons laid a 2.95 oz egg! At six months! Ouch! If a Large is 2.25 oz, a Jumbo is 2.5 oz, what do we call a 2.95 oz egg? That's almost two sizes bigger!
Pros: REALLY FRIENDLY!! soo cute and fluffy and lay huge eggs even in winter
These are the cutest breed ever! My two are sooo friendly like giant cushions, and they are always willing for a cuddle! They lay huge eggs even in the winter and make really sweet noises as they strut around the garden!! Would recommend to anyone!
Pros: Great layers, great foragers, great mother hens, great meat birds. Cons: Eggs can be scarce during the summer months when many of the hens are too busy trying to hatch eggs or raise chicks.
Buff Orpingtons are very good layers of large light brown eggs.
They go broody often and make excellent mother hens. My Orpington hens have hatched chicks, ducklings, poults, and keets with very high hatch rates (100% is not uncommon). The Orpington's large size and profuse feathering allow them to incubate many eggs at once.
Contrary to what I've read, my hatchery Buff Orpingtons have proven to be my best foragers, voluntarily foraging widely in search of bugs and seeds and other tasty tidbits, thereby cutting down on feed costs and producing healthier eggs compared to hens fed a higher percentage of grain. I've seen them foraging as far as a 1/3 of a mile away from their coop, though typically they're not more than five hundred feet away from their coop.
They do well in many climates with their heavy feathering and light coloring.
They don't have feathered legs, which can track mud and dirt into the nest boxes, dirtying the eggs. They also don't have crests, which can limit a chicken's vision and their ability to free range.
Extra roosters grow out very well for meat, Orpingtons are one of the biggest and meatiest of the dual purpose breeds.
Buff Orpingtons do have white skin, instead of the traditional yellow skinned chickens Americans are accustomed to seeing at the grocery store. This doesn't bother me, but for those who want a traditional-looking chicken, this may be a negative. Then again, a butchered Orpington will never look like a Cornish franken-chicken anyway.
Buff Orpingtons are also fairly common and easy to find, with many hatcheries selling them at an economical price.
As an extra bonus, Buff Orpingtons are also beautiful, with their large size, glistening golden plumage and big fluffy butts! :)
Pros: Sweet, friendly, healthy birds, good layers, great pets, and non-flighty Cons: Not good house chickens..... LOL, but that's about it.
We LOVE our buff Orpingtons. Mine are only hatchery birds, but they are so beautiful, sweet and friendly, they have won us over for sure. As long as I keep a layer flock, Orpingtons will be on the top of my list. I love their big fluffy bodies, my kids love to hold them and hug them. I get lots of perfect brown eggs from them. My Orpingtons have not gone broody in two years, but I don't get a lot of broodies in general. I think they all have too much fun ranging in the yard to want to sit for 3 weeks. If and when I'm able to expand my layer flock, I'd love to get some quality Orpingtons from a breeder.
I will say, though.... My two Buff Orps, are my wanderers.... They are fenced in the backyard, but they have an escape route, and I regularly find them on my front lawn. I think they've recruited my little Old English Bantam rooster too, as an accomplice and bodyguard. At least they are staying on my property...
Pros: beautiful, sweet, docile, wonderful mothers, great producers of brown eggs Cons: not enough colors readily available in the US!
Every year, my elementary school would have a hatching project with chicken and duck eggs. It is one of the only things I remember from such a tender age. My sister, three years behind me, also got to experience the hatching project, and won a buff orpington chick out of it.
Knowing what I now know about chickens, I would never have raised her the way we did, but back then we knew no better. She had no coop, no flock mates, and no nest box. She DID have a 45lb dog for company and protection though. In the winter, Sandy (the dog) would snuggle under warm blankets. "Stupid Bird" as my dad called her (who was not so dumb as her name suggested), would climb up on top of the dog, and snuggle down in the blankets for warmth.
She was an absolute joy to have around. She came when she was called, knew all kinds of neat tricks, and was a fantastic egg layer. She lived in that yard for 9 years before my dad got a job with the state department, and we could not take her with us. By age 9, she had developed quite the set of spurs, but she still gave us a couple of eggs a week.
If you want a big, fluffy, beautiful bird with an absolutely charming personality, and wonderful propensity for egg production, Orpingtons are the way to go!
Just remember, different lines of birds will be different in personality, build, and egg production! I still keep orpingtons in my flock, and some of my most memorable birds are my wonderful buff orptingtons.
Pros: Active, Friendly, Smart, Mothering, Enjoy being pet Cons: NON!!!
Orpingtons have become one of my favorite breeds of chickens. They are ideal for a home stead and even ideal for that family that wants to try something new. They are very friendly birds and rarely get angree or sparatic. My hens will eat anything and everything you throw their way so I must be careful. Over all, best bird I've raised.Although they to fall in second place right behind the Buff Brahma!
The Buff Oropingtons were one of my first chickens and two years later I still have them. They are gentle with the children and great layers. Below is my rooster:
We have 4 buffs rescued from a flock that had been over-roostered and over-crowded. Eventually they began to get comfy with us. For several months they were pitiful looking, half their feathers missing, low weight, etc. After they molted last fall, all their feathers grew in and they finally looked like the photos we'd seen online of fluffy, soft poultry. And they even acted like they knew how pretty they'd gotten! They follow us around in the yard like puppies, are very curious, come when called, and we get 3 to 4 large/extra large eggs a day. They don't use the nest boxes as the bathroom so their eggs are very clean. Ours eat layer mash, cracked corn, oyster shells, enjoy a flock block and love the kitchen detritus. I recommend them to anyone getting chickens for the first time or who has never had this breed before. We can't pick ours up but i think if we'd had them from chicks we'd be able to do that.
Pros: Pretty, Good egg layers, Does well in mixed flock Cons: Skittish, unfriendly, Bully others
I have the buff orpington bantams and most of them were MEAN. We only have one sweet hen. She is very skittish and fast, but once you catch her, she doesn't mind being held. They don't like to be held, nor touched.
Pros: passive, brooding Cons: slow to mature and begin laying
I loved my Orpinton hens more than any of the others. I had a mixed flock of hens, but my Orpington hens were quite docile and they seemed to cope with the the extreme cold of South Dakota's winter. I chose them for another characteristic though -- their broodiness. I want a breed that would become my off-the-grid incubator and so I have decided to always have a few Orpington hens as well as bantam hens for hatching out other breeds of birds.
Pros: great egg layers, beautiful fluff and great temperament. Cons: slow to mature
I have blue, black and splash Orpingtons and they are great. Love to be handled especialy if they are raised by hand and their fluff gives them a resemblance of a walking pillow. Great layers nearly every day even through winter. Very talkitive with huge eyes.
Pros: Calm, friendly, beautiful feathers Cons: None so far
I love my BO rooster. He protects the girls well with his huge spurs but has never hurt any of the hens during breeding. He also never comes after me. Both reasons for me deciding not to cut his spurs. He is the most people friendly chicken I own. He is noisy but I do not see that as a con. It is what roosters are supposed to do. His crow is a little strange though. I will defintly get another Orpington rooster after him.
Pros: calm, large eggs Cons: tendency to broodiness
we have had many dual purpose breeds over the years on this property. we like a calm flock of well adjusted birds with little daily drama in the cliques. our buff orpingtons are among the best birds and this is one breed we replenish with new stock and breed. we have two types currently larger ladies who are good layers and small ladies who lay more often. bigger birds were cackle hatchery chicks sent through mail. smaller birds ideal poultry chicks from feed store. birds we have bred with our ameracauna rooster for meat have produced excellent chicks. broody birds are great sitters and i have not had one abandon a nest yet.
The orpington were my 1st egg layers. They are easy to care for and I get between about 4 eggs per hen a week out of the 2 ladies. They are older hens. I am a newbie and they were a good start.
I've had my pair for almost a year, about to become hens. I have around 25 birds give or take in all, and my orpingtons (buff) are by far my most favorite two. Always the first to come and see me, always following me around, love to be held, lay large brown eggs nearly every day. They're the sweetest birds I've ever owned, I recommend them to anyone just starting to raise chickens.
My Buff girl is a sweetheart. She is not aggressive, but does not like to be held, either. She is a dependable producer of about one large, dark brown egg a day. Drumstick (her name - long story), is a good example of an easy going hen who is low maintenance.
Pros: good layers, very friendly, beautiful color Cons: I haven't come up with any yet. Only some are really broody
I bought hatchery Buff chicks almost 4 years ago and still have 15 of them and most of them are still laying. At the present time I have Buff, Lemon Cuckoo, BBS Orpingtons growing out that are about 8 weeks old. I also have Buff Orpington (Clevenger/Coulter lines and a few Jim Hall lines in incubator right now due to hatch out in March 2012. I also have one pair of the Imported Blue English Orps. I really do like the Orpingtons.
Pros: sweet natured, easy to handle Cons: large, smaller eggs compared to size of bird
This is by far my favorit breed of chicken. Ive been through many breeds and yet i keep getting more of these girls because theyre so fluffy and loveable! I do have to admit that the egg size does vary from bird to brid but they run on the smaller side even though this is a bigger chicken.
Last year I decided I would like to own chickens again. I no longer live in Florida were I originally had chickens in the early 80's. I currently live in a suburb of the Chicagoland area, called Ottawa. I researched the county ordinances as well as the city and found that there were none about chickens. I then proceeded to ask my neighbors how they felt about me having some chickens, and to my suprise my immediate neighbors gave me the thumbs up. I checked with my local Farm and Fleet strore and they also informed me that I could indeed have chickens in my back yard, so I ordered six: 2 Buff Orpintons, 2Australorps and 2 Araucanas. Of the six chicks, who are now grown layers, the buff orpintons are my favorites. They like to be pet, follow me around and run to me when they see me coming :)
They are doing real well and I get about an egg a day from my hens. We have had a mild winter here this year and they have gotten out a lot this year when the weather permits. I did my research and found that the breeds I selected are hardy and can tolerate cold winters fairly well and tend to not be aggressive. I keep my hens in a coop I purchased and then added heat lamps for the winter.
If you are new to raising chickens I would recommend reading the book "Chick Days" by Jenna Woginrich. It is light hearted and an easy read with good starter information. I found it to be fun and helpful as it shows all the growing stages of your birds.
In closing I can say... keep your coop clean, give fresh water daily ,provide a variety of foods and your chickens will be happy to produce eggs! PS...they do like to get out and dust too!
Love this breed, very hardy, not too picky about food. Great egg layer! Although I notice that when she gets stressed in any way she will not lay an egg for that day.
So this is a nice breed, we have one, shes very nice but is a little flighty, we got her as an adult though so we dont know if she was handled a lot. They go broody a lot which can be good or bad. Our orpington has a bad butt so i dont know if its cause of her or the breed gets poo butts easy. I would recommend this breed for a begginer or someone who wants a cuddler breed
Pros: Sweet, Easy, Lovable, Family Oriented Cons: Loud
I had 15 Girls and 1 morning woke up to a slaughter by a family of coons that got into my coop and brooder and trapped and killed 10 of the 15 girls. After 2 days 3 more died from injuries and the 5th went a few days later now all were gone but my 1 Buff Orpington, BLONDIE. She jumps into my arms and lets me pet her and love her and runs around most of the day with me as I work outside. Well it got crazy having a 6 month old BO have no one other than me so we, my grand baby and I bought a flock of assorted chicks. Blondie got PI$$ED and killed of the largest of the group we ran to go get a box to separate them and then when we were ready to get them in a box to separate them all the other 2 week old kids where under Blondie and she took them in and went Brodee and raise all the kids. Why with the other? Blondie became a mommy in a matter of minutes. Why she killed 1 and took in the other 9 is beyond my understanding or do I want to try and figure it out. Well 8 months have gone by and she is it at the top of the pecking order when it comes to the leader of the pack but her and her kids is a wonderful story.
Pros: hens are calm, docile, w/ decent production. Cons: Males unpredictable. Hens never went broody.
My experience with Buff Orpingtons was a mixed bag. The hens were very calm, quiet at laying time, and did a decent job hustling their own feed (free range). Being so docile does make them low on the pecking order, and they are very receptive to repeated breedings, so they end up with bald backs (rooster to hen ratio was 3:35). Their production was average in the flock, with the black stars, barred rocks, and rhode island reds out-laying them, and the BS and BR's producing larger eggs.
The primary reason we added the BO's to the flock was to get natural, broody hens who would hatch eggs for us, and it was a bonus that the breed is known for its good temperament. We were disappointed to see that in 3 years, none of the 12 hens went broody even once...they had no interest in hatching any eggs. And two of the cockerels we kept back as relacements were unpredictable as to temperament. One we had to cull when he took to launching sneak attacks on any men on the place. Overall, the BO's just could not justify a place in my homestead flock. We had far better production, as well as the most broody hens, from our black star girls, with the black australorp a close runner up.
Goldie is my snuggle girl. She doesn't even mind my loud, goofy 5 and 7 year old boys' attention. She'd probably plop on my lap for hours if I let her. When my 4 girls were attacked by a hawk (through some team work and a very persistent Golden Sex Link, they are all fine), Goldie's feathers were everywhere. It looked as though several chickens had been de-feathered all over my lawn and my living room (that's a funny part of the story). The amazing thing was Goldie didn't look like she lost a single feather at all. There is something to be said for a chicken with a snugglie personality and oodles of snugglie feathers to back it up. She's a charm.
Pros: Calm, stay close to home, great layers. Cons: None
Buff, Black, Blue, White - we have a real mix of them. The buffs are the babies we bought after picking up the others at a farm in Montpelier, VT. They wanted to get rid of them because the thought the flock was "spent"... interesting enough they are still laying for us.
Included with the VT chickens were a couple of Sex Links. Very aggressive compared to the Orps and remind me a bit of the RI Reds we had years ago.
The Orp Rooster is very passive w/people unlike our RI Rooster who use to attack us if we went anywhere near the eggs.
Great breed for New England as they don't seem to mind the cold and lay through the winter. They follow us like puppies around the yard and love their "treats" which is how we get them back in at night.
Pros: Fluffy, Great Moms, Excellent layers, docile, beautiful :) Cons: None I can list :)
I absolutely love Buff Orpingtons. My Buff, Cindy, is at a friends house who needs her for laying but she is so sweet. When she was younger, she was so calm and loved to be held and have her wattles rubbed. My previous Buffs, I've had 4. 2 no names, 1 also named Cindy and one named Lucy. Were my 2nd best layers (after my Rhode Island Reds), and Lucy was a great mom. I would definitely recommend them to a novice chicken owner or someone who wants a perfect starter bird.
Very pretty bird. I will be keeping them in mind when I order new birds! I am looking for friendly, good layers and they sounds like the bird I need! :)
Pros: Heritage breed, friendly, gentle, good egg producers (even in cold winter months), winter hardy, beautiful in coloring. Cons: None. This is a MUST HAVE breed for every flock!
Buff Orpingtons are so friendly, do well in winter, and are a "Heritage Breed". I honestly believe that anything hybridized has been compromised. Heritage breeds are more hearty than production or hybrid breeds. They display more traditional chicken behaviors, like foraging for food, being good setters (going broody easily), and roosting. Heritage breeds lay eggs for more years than the poor hybridized production birds, but at a slower rate. Buff Orpingtons are a heavy breed which means they get large. They also become heavily feathered so they do very well in winter. They tolerate confinement well which is also good for winter since it is not really very safe for them to free range when there is nothing for them forage (it only puts them at risk for hungry predators). This means that they will handle chicken run and coop confinement quite well while winter passes. I keep our chickens food and water in the chicken run. This brings them outside from the coop every day no matter what the temperature. Even in the cold of winter, they enjoy being outside rather than in the coop. They are considered a dual purpose bird (good for both eggs and meat). Our girls of course are for eggs. I just couldn't ever imagine them on our dinner plates! We love them so. . . . .
Now those are all very important factors to considered while researching the breed you want, but what really put me over the top, was their personality. They are said to be docile, friendly, and social birds. They like to be held, petted, and will follow their owners around the yard. They are great with children and very social. I mean really! With a spec sheet like that, why look anywhere else!! Suffice to say, we ❤LOVE❤ our precious Buff Orpingtons. When we decided that we were going to take a stab at the world of chicken raising, I had imagined that I wanted a really colorful egg basket. I thought I'd like some pretty blue eggs, mixed with some dark brown eggs and light brown eggs. I'd get a variety of birds so as to have a variety of egg colors. Well, I can tell you from the heart that I don't care what color my eggs are, as long as they all come from Buff Orpingtons, because they are the only breed I ever want to own. Buff Orpingtons lay large eggs which vary in color from brown, light brown, to pinkish brown.
Our hen's were handled and loved on every day since they were day old chicks. As a result, they are so fun and a big part of our family.
Here are some pictures of this very special, productive and lovable breed:
Because our hens were all the same breed, and I knew they would be pets, I decided to use colored zip ties to identify who was who. They day they came home, 3 of the girls were assigned a color and as they grew, I just used a little pair of wire snips to change a new zip tie. It worked wonderfully. I got the zip ties at Home Depot.
Did I mention that they are absolutely WONDERFUL with children? Well, they are!
Buff Orpington's will come when called by their name, and can learn tricks like jumping for treats...
...and swimming in the pool!
Chickens are even fun in the winter!
My girls are trained to come when I call them, so they can be safe in their run when I have to leave the house. Check out this video as I call them into the chicken run.
I almost forgot! If you have cats (we have 2 who are outdoor and fully clawed.) your hens will establish a pecking order over the cats and they will live in harmony with the cats being submissive.
In this photo, our kitty is wishing she had eaten them when they were just little nuggets:
And in this photo, our other cat was cowering in submission as the little pullets kept charging her.
Eventually, the cats will accept their submissive role and give the hens the respect they will demand. If your cats are like mine, they may even join in on a dust bath!
Or share some treats with Them!
Their feathers are shiny and absolutely striking against the green of summer foliage.
Aside from bringing your newly hatched chickens home for the first time, there is nothing more exciting than finding that very first egg!!
Isn't it just beautiful?
A little known fact is that chickens are great inspiration for Halloween Costumes:
Yes, those are rubber glove feet!
It is my hope that every chicken owner who does not have a Buff Orpington, will consider getting at least 2. You will be so happy you did!!!!
Pros: Sweet, fluffy, reliable egg layers Cons: My rooster is kind of bratty
I love my Orpingtons! The girls are so pretty--and they're all sweet! My roo, Chunky, can be kind of bratty but is mainly just a ball of fluffy bravado. They lay light brown eggs that are good sized. My girls are only ~7 months old so they are crankin' out the hen-fruit.
I got them from Cackle Hatchery and have no complaints.
Pros: laid back, sweet,friendly Cons: can be broody, picked on by others at times
This is my favorite breed of the four breeds I have (also RIR, BR, EE). These ladies are sweet and friendly and are good, reliable layers. They do tend to get a bit broody, but their sweet personality is worth the temporary lapse in egg production. I will definitely get some of these girls again!
I had a hen for three years. She layed five days a week on a daily basis. she died so i got a new one hoping to replace her but it was a cockerl and he is a nice bird overal i recomend this breed Cant belive it!!! my cockerl juste attacked my magpie drake!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Pros: Friendly, easy to care for and very smart Cons: They are to sweet to eat
I have had chickens for one year now. During this year I raised 4 RIR hens and 1 Americana hen, the reds have been amazing with their egg production, the Americana not so much. The reds are indifferent with me 80% of the time; they only have an interest in me when I have snacks. The Americana is erratic in all situations; she might take a snack, but would run into a wall to get away from me. This year I added 13 Orpingtons, 12 hens, 1 rooster, plus 13 RIR’s, 12 hens and 1 rooster. The new batch will be 7 weeks old this Saturday and the Orpingtons are amazing!! My brooder is a 6x9 enclosed trailer, which gives me the ability to open the back ramp door allowing the little ones time to play outside. The Orpingtons stick to me like glue, they follow me everywhere I go, and they’re underfoot whenever I stop. When I sit in the trailer with the chicks I’m covered in Orpingtons, who also never tire of being played with. The RIR’s stay in a group and have zero interest in anything other than snacks. In the event all my Orp’s go broody and my egg production drops, it’ll be fine by me, that’ll just give me more of these little guys, this is truly the breed for me!!
Pros: beautiful, calm, sweet Cons: tendency to go broody
These are such sweet hens - I don't know how I got my current flock without Buffs. I would be happy with nothing else. My Buffs were not as tame as some here have found. I think different breeders or areas of the country have slight variations. However, if my Buffs were in trouble they would make a beeline to me.
Pros: Friendly, Calm, Curious, Good Layers Cons: Strangly Horny!
I have three Orpingtons I ordered as chicks from My Pet Chicken. They are so docile and tame! They enjoy being petted but I don't appreciate how quickly they go into mate mode as if I were a rooster! I can barely walk by without one of them squatting as if to say "I'm ready!" On the up side they've been good errr practice for my young roosters who struggle at balance; what patience they have!
Pros: friendly, quiet, calm, very soft feathers, great layer
Love my Buff Orpingtons! I have 3 and they are fantastic with kids. We have a small backyard coop with a couple of other birds, but these are my favorite. They don't mind the cold winter of the midwest, and with extra light, kept laying most of the winter except when it was really cold. Great one to start with.
I have one of these and she is my oldest chicken but seems to the lay more eggs than my 1 year olds. She is also quite sweet and nice to all my other chickens. These chickens are sweet and lay lots of eggs. I love my Orpington!!!!!!
Pros: good layer, good pet Cons: keeping the comb from frostbite
We have a mixed flock and do love our buff! She is always the chicken under foot, and could be mistaken for your shadow. When gardening I have to push her away, as she gets right in the middle of what I'm doing looking for worms I stir up. She has been a good forager scratching away looking for food. She has always been gentle and more of a lap chicken!
We did not raise her as a chick but bought her a as a 5 month pullet. The farm she was bought from had many many chickens, and I'm sure non were hand raised. This is a good testament to the mild and people friendly temperament of the chicken.
It was a bit of work/maintenance through the winter to Vaseline her comb and keep it from frostbite.
We just bought four little girls for our chicken raising addition to our efforts to live more independently. They are sweet and lively little things. Any advice would be appreciated. We did a lot of review before deciding but felt they would be well suited to our situation and we would be well suited for them. The review is out for a while on our dog Kiki, Catahoula lepoard dog. We are carefully introducing them and nipping any unwanted attitude in the bud, while encouraging her to be gentle. We are excited and at the same time a little apprehensive about this new journey. Thanks for all the comments here, they have helped build our confidence. My rating is based on how cute they are now as we all get to know each other and gain experience, I will be back to post! It's funny how each one already seems a little different.
Pros: Big size, warm brown eggs, good health, calm demeanour
Orpingtons are the best birds I have ever owned. I have several of the buff variety, and they are so adorable. They lay gorgeous almost cinnamon coloured eggs and can withstand our cold Canadian winters. I highly reccomend them.
Pros: good egg layer, friendly Cons: too friendly to predators
I just bought one last year, but she is a lover. I have to keep her in the coop though because she is too friendly. I am afraid she'll just go up and say hi to the dogs.
Pros: Everything about her is pro, she is polite and waits her turn for everything. She loves to be hugged and she loves to snuggle. Cons: Can't say a bad thing about Contessa!
We bought Contessa when she was only 4 days old and she has been a sweet bird. She was the first one to learn that when the lid of the brooder was open that she could jump up and roost. The others just watch her and can't figure it out! She loves to snuggle with me and loves eating vegetables. I couldn't ask for a sweeter bird to add to our flock!
I adore my Buff Orpington. She is gorgeous and is so gentle. I like her so much, I ordered a dozen mixed Orpington eggs just so I can have more like her.
these are the sweetest little things! We are beginners and a buff lover was (luckily) shopping at the same time we were when choosing a breed. She said they were hardy and kid friendly, good layers too. They have already remembered me and every time I leave them, I hear them cheeping for "mama" ! Keeping them in the kitchen in a brooder box for now, coop design underway. Excited!
Pros: Extremely handsome bird, Very Hardy Cons: Sterotypical Chicken
I have no actual cons for the Orpington. I own one Orpingotn rooster. He's the big bird on the farm. He protects and cares for everyone. He's a great rooster and he's won several shows and as even been asked to use as stud. Orpingtons are those birds you almost always see on the farm, and I thinks it's because of how hardy and good looking they are.
Most of my Buffs are sweet, including my Rooster. He takes great care of the whole flock. He is a great daddy too. I have 6 laying hens and 2 of them lay for 2 weeks before they take a day off. The others lay 6 days a week. They make great mama's too. My rooster has taken on 2 hawks. He is the best rooster. He truely is a blessing. I am hoping his son's are just as good as he is.
I love my Buff orps. One thing though, because they're so docile, they're usually at the bottom of the pecking order. I have four buffs, but some are higher in the pecking order then the others. Goldie is pretty high up there, Spice is kinda in the middle (she'll get a good peck on the head if she gets in someone's way), and Pumpkin and Nutmegan are at the bottom. Poor things have almost no feathers on their wings. Overall, I give this breed an A++
Pros: Beautiful, great foragers, tame personality, cold and heat hardy, sick hardy, friendly birds, great fluff and feathers! Cons: larger bird, bantams might not do well with the breed, roosters can be harsh on smaller hens, mites are attracted!
These birds are one of the most awesomest and prettiest birds I have owned. I currently only own 1 and her name is Pancake, she is the sweetest bird there is, her heavy weight does not stop her form foraging and getting along with the other hens and roosters, these chickens can make great moms, egg layers, etc. They are also easy if you have an unwanted rooster, there is meat on them. Great birds, very recomended, and easy to care for, maybe not for the smaller coop but just think every 3 regular birds you could have probably about 2 of these fully grown!
Pros: Friendly, Mellow, Great Layers, Meaty, No Flying Cons: Nothing
We have had our "Buffys" for years and I love them. They are friendly (sit in your lap to be petted), have never been aggressive with my young son, and are consistant layers of great big brown eggs. No complaints at all.
She's adopted my ducks, comes over to their run every day, and sticks her head in to drink their water and swipe feed if the bowl is close enough to the edge of the run ;-) She's snuck in with me a couple of times, and I have to shoo her out (mild chicken allergy, and I'd like to keep it that way! lol) Otherwise, she is keeping them company during the day... hehe
Pros: Sweet, friendly (great with kids), soft, fluffy, good brooder Cons: Can get broody, not an overly productive layer
We have a mixed flock (Marans, Ameraucanas, Orpingtons, a Silver Laced Wayandotte, a Black Australorpe, and Barred Rocks), and of all the birds, the Orpingtons are sweetest in temperment. They will come right up to you and let you pet them, hold them, love on them...you get the picture. They are super soft and fluffy, which the children love!
So far this spring, my favorite orpington lays about five days a week? But I know them to get broody (which I think is a benefit, frankly--brooding chicks is a pain in the rear, why not let a Mama who WANTS to sit on them do the work for me!?), so if you're looking for a production style layer, she is probably not it. They are LOVELY to look at, especially with the darker birds in the flock!
Pros: gentle birds, beautiful coat, good moms Cons: not great layers, maybe too passive
We had 5 buff orpingtons - all extremely gentle birds which layed relatively small eggs. One went broody and hatched 3 eggs - she was a very protective mom
Pros: Friendly, Gentle roos, great egg layers, Perfect starter chicken. Cons: I really can't think of one!
I just love my 2 buffs. They are sweet, great egg layers. Awesome babysitters that took to new chicks like they had hatched them. My friend has a buff roo that I love too. He's got a low mellow crow and he is good with the hens! He's protective with predators, but will let any person fool with the hens. I LOVE Buffs!
Overall they are great first starter chickens and my hen even comes to her name! (sometimes!)
She'll sit in my lap and let anyone fool with her! I really like my buffs. Totally would tell ANYONE to get
Pros: Nice, Friendly, Positive and F-U-N. Cons: ......
We got ours a few weeks ago. We got them from our local Cal-Ranch, and they are great. Not laying yet, they are still too young, but we love them. They're built big, but are so sweet. I recommend these to anyone. Whether you have 214246454546438409245024762365424546423454664 chickens or are just starting to want some, Orps are the way to go. <3.
Pros: Friendly, great personality, social, cuddles, likes to be held Cons: Can be a bit over protective of me towards the other chikens
My BO is named Buckbeak. He was originally bought in the Fry Pan Bargain from Meyer hatchery. I had no intentions of keeping other than for food, BUT he quickly changed my mind. He was one of the first chicks to warm up to me. As he grew he began to seek me out. When I am doing yard work he will come and forage right by me or walks up to me and stares at me. lol Thats his way of telling me he wants to be picked up. All I have to do is put my hand down and he climbs right up. When I bend down to fill the food or water containers he perches on my shoulder the entire time. He also comes when called. By these behaviors he saved himself from the chopping block and has now become my keeper rooster. I diffinitly plan to get more BO's in the future. Buckbeak is now 7 weeks old and I love watching him grow. The only downfall I can think of is he sometimes doesnt let the other chickens near me. On a few occasions he has flapped his wings and chased them away from me.
Pros: Good layers, friendly with us and visitors Cons: Roosters can be roosters - rough on the girls
We have purchased 3 groups of 25 each - 5/2009, 9/2010, 11/2011 from McMurray - very happy with them even though the last order of females included 6 of 25 that were males. The exotics that were included were a pair of Carmines that are a delight.
We have a long list of people waiting to buy eggs - the girls have two acres of pasture. Which helps to make the introduction of new chicks easier - we wait until they are 4-5 months before we combine them.
Pros: great layer Cons: very loud, frantic, not a thinker
this would be a good chicken for a farm, but shes not fun for the back yard.. the least favorite by far of my 8 chickens. she's a great forager and layer, but causes a lot of problems in the garden, with the neighbors, and is the least personable. wouldn't recommend to have at home.
Pros: Even temper, good producers, hardy. Cons: Ummmmm
Have several Budd Orpingtons. They are even tempered, healthy, good egg producers, heat tolerant, cold tolerant. dog tolerant, Barred Rock tolerant. Feed store chicks with never an issue.
This is my favorite breed, I have 13 breeds currently. We show animals in the 4H & FFA, this is always a Grand Champion. I have 1 hen and 3 pullets. Good egg layer, med tan. Demeanor is wonderful, sweet natured, mild manner-not flighty. Though very curious & smart. Okay all my girls(chickens) are spoiled, but Fuzzy Butt, Goldie, Flau & Loppy are far the worst.
Pros: Super large eggs, extrememly friendly! Cons: Not the sharpest pencil in the box
Very docile hens, roos are like any breed, at times can be aggressive, but generally very sweet. Great layers and are soooo sweet. They jump up and down when they see me coming with the feed bucket. But need extra attention when it comes to shelter, predators, they don't have tons of 'survival' instincts, they are truely domestic.
Pros: Friendly, Dual-purpose, good broodies and moms Cons: Not as good layers as others, but lay longer
As stated above, they are friendly, and docile birds. Easily contained. If I have to leave them in the coop for a day, they don't mind. Overall, I like them and would go with them again.
Pros: Friendly, laid back, easy going, brave, beautiful, good with kids Cons: I have found none, with the exception that whe it gets very hot in VA, they do seem to not tolerate the heat and humidity well
I love my Buff Orpington rooster Chief. I would recommend this breed to those who wish to have a good rooster who is not mean at all.
Pros: Gentle, calm and patient, beautiful, Cons: Can be rather broody at times
I think by their docile, calm manner buff Orpingtons make great birds for people who are just starting out raising backyard chickens. They are very sweet birds and grow up nice and large. Since the mothers go broody very easily you can have a set up where the flock reproduces and continues for many generations. They are very cold hardy birds and will and lay well through cold winters. Nice layers of large brown eggs.
The buff orpington makes a great addition to a starter flock. It is friendly and docile - so it is good with children. The ones I have are also good free-ranging birds.
I have two sweet lavender chicks and they are so precious they are rare in these parts anyways probably other places too. But the eggs were shipped from overseas and the breeder has developed them quite well. They are awesome and so beautiful.
love love this bird. I have hens and a rooster. My roo protects me from some very mean roosters that I have, he chases them and stands guard over me. He also dances and woo's the ladies! He just plain makes me smile daily! If you don't have this chicken get it!!
Pros: easy to raise, sweet, docile, hilarious, friendly to child, pretty Cons: they poop, which is good for my garden
I am a beginner at raising chickens for eggs. I honestly never thought of myself having chickens or cared about them as pets. Now I have twelve delightful chickens that I raised from 12 hour old chicks. They are so much fun! I recommend them to anyone! Bonus! As yet, they have been wonderful with my 3 year old!
Pros: Weather hardy, great layers, dual purpose, docile, BEATIFUL! Cons: None I've found
I have Orpingtons and LOVE them. They are big, fluffy birds that lay well. They do great in harsh weather. Laid back disposition. Make great pets and very dual purpose. I cant say enough good about them. I have blue, black, splash, buff, lavender and lemon cuckoo. I have American standard, English and part English. I plan on adding another color this year. Just great birds to have.
The Buff Orpington is a great breed for the beginner and experienced handler alike. This breed has a friendly disposition and easily adjusts to changes in their environment. If properly accustomed as chicks, through daily handling, the Buff will be a very tame & trusting bird. If we could apply human traits to chickens, I would say that they seem almost happy to see the owner and will come at a run when they see the handler enter the yard. They are a talkative breed, clucking continuously to each other and the handler as they forage and go about their daily business. Because Buffs have fairly good forageing skills, they make great workhorses in the fall if allowed to enter the garden after harvest. A few of these birds can turn-over an amazing amount of debris in the garden, as they root around for leftover produce and grubbies.
They are reliable layers of large brown eggs when provided with a proper diet and care. The breed is known as a good layer during the winter months and is quite cold resistant; these are wonderful qualities in a chicken breed. The Buff is simply a pleasant animal to maintain.
The breed, however, is not a strong grower, but will gain weight at a consistant rate. If confined to a run & feed only a commercial feed they will gain quicker, but these birds do enjoy their freedom to roam and forage the confines of teh property. The finished birds are heavy framed, and could serve a dual purpose. If purchased Strait-Run, the Cockerels could easily be intended as meat birds while the Pullets are retained for egg production. Again keep in mind that they are not a fast growing breed, but they are steady in their growth.
Buffs are not very good flyers, as are some of the lighter breeds. This makes it a simple matter to fence off gardens and areas where you don't want the birds to scratch about. A simple 3 to 4 foot high fencing should work in most cases.
The trusting charactor of this breed can easily be destroyed and lost if the birds are chased or mistreated at all, but that could easily be applied to most any breed. Chickens don't like to be run ragged.
If you are looking for a solid reliable chicken breed for your home flock...there is a Bonus to found in the Buff Orpington.
Pros: Calm, Nearly flightless, Broody. Cons: Very slow to mature - compared to Leghorns, tho.
I got these girls in hopes of having hens raise my replacement chicks instead of *me*. So far, three have thought about it, and one is currently sitting. She is relatively tolerant of candling interruptions, and doesn't actually peck at me, just coos and makes the motions. Her mothering behavior has yet to be demonstrated, but I'm optimistic.
They are much calmer than the Leghorns, no panics when I enter the pens, but they also don't follow me around like the other breeds do and while they come when called, they take their sweet time doing so (which is both good and bad).
Their laying rate, once they finally started, is much greater than I expected; they're on par at this time to go over 250/yr and I'm seriously considering adjusting my future flocks to be mostly BO's
These are the best chickens. We had four. One turned out to be a roo so we exchanged him at four weeks for another chick. Even the roo was sweet but we can't have them in my neighborhood. The ladies are very docile and friendly and have been hand raised. They definitely think of me as their mother and follow me about. I have a feeling there are more of this breed in our future.
I love my Buff Orpingtons. They are a quiet, good egg producing chicken. None of them have ever really gone broody on me. We had chickens when I was younger but we got rid of them. About 4 years ago we decided to get chickens again. We could not decide what we really wanted so we got some BO, RIR and ended up with a PBR that no one at the feed store wanted. The BO's were the greatest. We have since got rid of all but the BO and are continuing with them. We live in the Northeast and even in the winter we have plenty of eggs. They are so sweet and gentle and great us when we come down to the coop and in the summer we let them out in the yard and sit and watch them. They are a great breed and a good addition to any farm.
Pros: Friendly, good layers when not broody Cons: go broody way to often
We have a few buffs in our flock and while they are good layers sporadically, I have noticed some issues with them. They seem to go broody way to often, multiple times in a year, also I have noticed that they tend to stay close to the food and eat themselves into a robust state that then diminishes their egg laying rate.
I have 2 buffs they are about 3 monthes of age they seem like there very docile chickens will eat out of my hand they get along great with my rocks and hampshires i dont know about eggs yet cause there not laying yet but im EXCITED..I heard there not good mothers but i guess time will tell !
Our Buff Orps have been absolute sweethearts from Day 1. When hatched they were these pretty yellow fluffy chicks, now 3 months later they are beutiful sweet chickens. If you have children who are timid with animals or are a first timer, these are for you! Our rooster is the most gentle bird I have seen. When my husband is around Mr. Roo, Mr. Roo wants to be held and pet like a lap dog. Mr. Roo is gentle with us and the other birds. Our hens are quiet timid birds and they all get along very well with the rest of the flock. I am so blessed to have these sweethearts in my flock.
Pros: good layer, not flighty, docile, relaxed, plump and pretty Cons: none yet
I have a Buff Orp roo who takes very good care of his girls. He is very relaxed when I visit the coop. His crow isn't deafening. My hen gives me big brown eggs at a rate of 5 to 6 per week. I also have 3 chicks that are now fully feathered and getting bigger everyday. The chicks are inquisitive and come right up to me. I have really enjoyed this breed of chicken and plan on always keeping some in my flock. Plus, I love the way they look! Who couldn't love those big plump feather butts they have? :)
Pros: Consistent layers, free ranged stay close to home Cons: Not as personable
These are great all around chickens. We have three buff layers and they will consistently kick out about an egg each day. They have taken kindly to new chicks we've added to the flock, but we as humans have kept our distance. They've never shown aggression, but are just a bit standoffish. If you're looking for birds that will free range close to home, and go indoors by themselves to roost at night, you've found your bird.
Pros: Excellent Huge Brown Egg Layer, Fairly social, Completly Non-Aggressive, Excellent Free Range OR confined !! Rooster is very watchful over his hens! Cons: Not very Broody when laying or are with fertile eggs--Which may be a plus if you are not wanting baby chicks and only lots of good eggs!
These were our very 1st chickens-We purchased from a wonderful poultry farm in Greensboro,NC. We bought 5 - Ten month old hens and one Year old Roo-These gals (and guy) have been the BEST group of now 4 differnt breeds that we have as far as being "best-All-around". If You are looking for HUGE tasty brown egg layers This is the breed for you! My hens lay at LEAST 1 egg per day -PER HEN EVERYDAY!! We were a little worried about possible predators and were told that a single grown rooster was the best protection for these girls (even though we may take the chance of our brood multiplying!) However, They are not (at least not yet been the least bit interested in "brooding" so for us that is a PLUS! But if your wanting biddies from all these eggs then you may want to look at some other breeds unless you decide to use an incubator. The Orp. Roos are Great ,too because he is soo sweet and gentle with people (like the hens) but he keeps a tight protective leash on his 5 hens and literally puts himself in harms way so that no hen gets any where near danger! Great, GREAT Breed!!!
Pros: Docile, Friendly with Others, Wants to jump on your hand
The Buff Orphington Chicken is my favorite bird. On the first day I got the chick, I made her a cardboard castle out of shoe boxes. I put the castle in her brooding area, and she climbs into it sometimes. I also have a Brahma, and they get along well with each other.
Pros: Great year round egg production, gentle and friendly toward people, and beautiful. Cons: Can't think of any cons.
I used to have Buff Orps years ago and now I have Lavender Orps. I love these chickens. They are friendly, great egg layers, beautiful to look at, lay year round even in cold climates, easy keepers and both meat and egg chickens.
My Buff Orpington, Butter, is a very laid back hen. She doesn't like human contact, but she's so docile I often forget she's there. She's an okay layer.
We have just started with ours, but they are pretty darn cute. they love to roll in the dirt, and eat flies. They also hang out together with the Ameraucana's we have, and sleep together all cuddled up. If we move them to the coop from the backyard, and leave one, that one starts crying for it's gal pals. So far, so good. No eggs, since they are just little girls.
We ❤ our Orpies! One is the sweetest chickie ever, named Ginger. One is a mini Hitler who terrorizes the other chickens, she's the youngest and smallest, her name is....Honey. So as a whole I❤Orpies! But not Honey......
Pros: Hardy, Good egg layers and *can* be friendly Cons: None
This is a very nice bird, it lays nice brown eggs and is hardy in cold/hot weather. But I have noticed they aren't the brightest birds... when it rains they will stay outside and sometimes sit in the rain, not caring if they get wet. Their feathers are not rain resistant and they will get a chill if not put inside to dry off.
As for being friendly and docile... its all about how you raise them up. 1 of my buff orpingtons is a complete sweetheart and will run to you when called... the other buff orpington will run to you when called but won't let you touch her. I can pick up the none friendly one on occasions, but she wasn't held enough as a chick by her previous owner.
i highly recommend this breed
