A BElgian d'Uccle? A Silkie? A Pekin?

An Orpington would definitely be a good choice

x2! Orpingtons are one of my all time favorites, and they come in such pretty colors! Nothing better than a huge, fluffy, friendly bird! I LOVE my orpingtons. I live in Texas. It gets freezing in the winter, and blazing in the summer, and my orps handle it all with grace, dignity, and beauty!


By the way, an australorp is basically the Australian version of an Orpington...though my australorps always seem smaller, and not quite as in-your-lap as my orpingtons and easter eggers.

You want a d'uccle pullet for sure!  Mine do fine in the heat because they are smaller and do fine in a good coop in winter too!  Plus she'll be your best friend, talk to you often, want to cuddle, and perch on your shoulder.  They don't brood as often as silkies so you'll still have edible eggs.  And they don't mind being held if they are treated gently growing up!  Come visit the d'uccle thread or see what feathersite has to say about these Belgian bearded bantams!

you want just one for a pet? all right, i have to tell you, having just one chicken is a bad idea unless it can live inside and be a house chicken and get A LOT of attention. chickens are really social animals and if you plan to have it live alone in a coop outside, you're sure to have one stressed, depressed bird who won't lay well. if she's to be inside, get her a diaper (they sell 'em on mypetchicken.com) and by all means let her have the run of the house as long as no predetory animals can get at her (dogs, cats, etc) for a house chicken orpingtons are great because they're big enough you won't step on them they're pretty good layers too. you could also try have a serama or two in a cage as long as they get attention, but they aren't exactly superb layers. my house chicken is a five year old, crippled black mottled d'uccle hen who lived the first part of her life outside before she started going blind. she looked ready to pass on, but she's my favorite so i brought her in  and after some intensive care she started getting better. she's been inside for over a year now and is the healthiest of them all! beautiful full feathers, healthy weight, ect. she still doesn't lay except when she goes broody,  but then again, she never really did she has a rabbit type cage in my room because she won't wear a diaper but i let her out often and while i read at night i always open the cage top and she flies onto my bed to sleep on an old towel there. 


so, what is your plan for your chicken if you must get only one? you'll need to think about this kind of stuff before you even start looking for a bird.  best of luck!

-- CG

oh good! then i say, get three different breeds! i just love my partridge silkies, d'uccles and bantam cochins (pekins) but i don't get many eggs from them. ameraucanas (i mean pure ameraucanas, not easter eggers) are great too, especially john blehms lines. very friendly and awsome layers. i have a very friendly rooster from there who i hand raised. he follows me all over the yard!

the other thing to think about: will they be free ranging or in a covered run most of the time? i don't recommend that most bantams be free ranged full time if they are close pets. hawks will easily pick off small birds, in particular crested varieties like silkies who can't see well above them. the only bantams i'd be comfortable free ranging are old english, ko-shamo and other hardy english and asiatic games.  for free rangers i love barred rocks or dominiques (they have "hawk" patterning which makes it harder for hawks to see and track them), large orpingtons and jersey giants (which predators can't easily carry off), standard old english and other game types, and pure araucanas and ameraucanas which are both medium sized, hardy, vigorous birds. with both of the last ones, be sure not to buy from commercial hatcheries as they are easter eggers you are buying, whatever they may call them. true araucanas are rumpless which means they lack a "parson's nose" or tailbone, and have no tail feathers which makes it harder for predators to catch hold of them.

-- CG

Agreed ^.^ I LOVE seeing all the wonderful colors of my mixed flock running around!

I think a Pekin is a duck, actually. I want one of those, too, but since ducks need water I don't think you can easily keep them with chickens.

I have a Buff Orpington, a Silkie and a Mille Fleur d'Uccle. My BO is calm, but not especially affectionate. She's been a great layer and is at the top of the pecking order of my current flock.

I love my little Silkie and d'Uccle - they're only four months old so I'm still working on befriending them. Both are calm when I hold them. The d'Uccle is a little bird with a HUGE personality. She is really something!

The friendliest of my flock is my two-year-old EE. She begs to be picked up and cuddled and will sit on my husband's lap in his library for long periods of time. However, the other EE I got recently does not seem to be very personable at all, so maybe it just depends upon the bird.

Silkies!!! They are the best and most calm breed ever! I just love my little partridge girl and she is only 4 months old.

Happy-Hens