Barred Rock & Buff Orpington

I just got two EE's on Saturday, they're about a week old - and they were both sweet and friendly from the moment they got here.

Be careful with the chicks though - last year when I started planning I decided I would only want to have 2 or 3. Now I've got 11 in the brooder and 11 more coming May 20. So much for 2 or 3!!

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yeah I only wanted two when my hubby said I should get three...so that lingered in the back of my head, I only got two at the feedstore, because I am VERY SURE I want different colors/looks, all friendly docile breeds, nothing flighty...and since I am not going to get a TON from a hatchery, I'm somewhat limited to what my local feed stores and farm supply shops are getting in...which is nice in keeping my numbers lower...LOL

I am leaning towards a silkie and a frizzle if they farm supply shop gets them in...I could easily get a RIR, but am reading too much about them being aggressive and that I don't want with my little kids in there with them! so the RIR lost my love...

And having them a week or two difference in age, means I have to have a couple brooders and that takes up too much space...so I MIGHT (don't really know yet) just wait until these chicks no longer need the brooder and can move into the coop first before getting more chicks???

m2wandc - congrats on the new babies! they grow VERY fast! mine are 3 weeks old and my friendliest chick is actually a blue andalusian.

i have some BR and BO hens...my BO's seem to be a little more mellow and easy going overall than my BR's (my BR's have a range of personalities). and one of my BO's adopted some of my hatchery chicks! she has been very good with them.

as far as flying over the fence goes....my BR and BO seemed to try to fly more when they were younger. once they get older (and fatter! ) they don't seem as interested in flying up.

enjoy your new peeps!

We have two BO's and three BR's. Our BO's are by far the sweetest. Our babies are now six weeks old and are about to go out to their new coop. Our biggest BO, named Cinnamon, crowds the cage door and jumps onto my arm every time I open the door! She works her way up to my shoulder, and promptly roosts there! One time, she was sitting in my lap and I decided to stretch out on the sofa to watch tv. She made her way up to my neck, and settled on my shoulder, nestled into my hair and snuggled on my neck. My husband fell over laughing. He didn't grow up with chickens like I did, and never knew they could be so cuddly!

The BO's are little piggies. The BR's are more active and curious, and show a bit more smarts, in my opinion. They are a little more cautious, especially when they are outside in the back yard. They squawk when we pick them up, but then settle down. The BO's seem to live for cuddles. The BR's seem to tolerate it as part of their duties. But we love them all. They each are a little different, and they are certainly amusing and entertaining. We all just keep saying, "Thank God, they don't grow to be six feet tall, we would be in serious trouble!" They can already raise a whelp that hurts pretty bad when they peck you by accident looking for food.

They found the strings for some mini blinds that were in the corner of our sunroom that we are remodeling, and they started pulling the strings. The first to make the string discovery were the smart chickens, the BR's. They played with the strings for about ten minutes before the BO's started calling for them, having finally realized that three were missing from the fun in the yard. The BO's finally made their way into the sunroom, and got in on the action of pulling the strings. They would grab a string, take off running with it like they had just found the longest worm in the world. The others would give chase, and about 18" later, the one with the string in her mouth would suddenly be jerked when the string went no farther!!! Then, another chick would grab the string, run, get chased, then jerked, then loose the "worm," and repeat over and over again. I laughed so hard, and the girls and my husband laughed as well. My husband's comment: "They aren't the sharpest pencils in the box..."

I know you will enjoy your little peeps. Have fun. Your kids will love them.

Thanks for the BO/BR story, HandyMom - the image of the clucks with the miniblind string "worm" cracked me up!

I have BO & RIR, no BR. My BO are much more enjoyable than the RIR. The Reds are good, the BO are just that much nicer. Kind of like home made jam is just better the store bought.