Future thinking of being an organic chicken farmer :) Need help in deciding

[breege]

Have you considered Dominiques? They are a dual-purpose heritage breed with small rose combs and not a lot of fancy extras. They lay a large brown egg. I have 3 in my flock and they lay almost every day - better than my ameraucanas, and are a much denser/meatier bird. They are also pretty smart about foraging and the first in my flock to figure out new puzzles - like when I move the entrance to the coop or make some other change. Oh and they are auto-sexing.

I'm in Canada so we can get extremes at both ends of the temperature spectrum.
I've had my Ameraucanas for just over a year now & I've noted a few things:

- They started laying 12/17/16 in -22F weather & didn't stop all winter - roughly 6 eggs/hen/week (we had to check for eggs every hour because they froze within 10 minutes)except for 2 who only started laying this spring & only about 1 every 3 days. Our coop is unheated, but it is insulated. They all did well.
- They lay all day long, so we're checking for eggs throughout the day. We've had them @ 6:00 a.m through to the latest this June @ 8:00 p.m.
- Whenever we get a hot day, eggs drop by about 1/2 the # the next day (we do run a fan in the coop)
- Maybe because this summer has been so wonky, but they seem to be doing a very long, slow molt which has also played havoc with eggs.
- I have 3 hens in this group who go "pretend broody" then leave the nest at the end of the day. They are part of my most reliable layers , even in the heat - We'll see what happens next year
- I've 9 grandchildren who visit regularly (Ages between 7 & 1). The craziness associated doesn't seem to affect the hens either way. They remain friendly, curious & put up with them all, nor does it seem to affect egg production.
- They learn quickly. We have a huge dog - imagine a a full sized Great Dane with a black coat similar to a golden retriever. They know him, & when they hear a certain bark from him, they all run into the coop screaming warnings to each other all the while. We lost one hen to the neighbour's dog & our dog lets out that bark whenever she comes nosing about.

How do the Dominiques do in summer? Because of the summer slow down, I was considering adding some in. I would also love to know how Buckeyes deal with summer

 

[mockingbird]

I'm in Canada so we can get extremes at both ends of the temperature spectrum.


How do the Dominiques do in summer? Because of the summer slow down, I was considering adding some in. I would also love to know how Buckeyes deal with summer

My Dominiques began laying in January at 5 months of age and continued to lay all winter and spring. They did temporarily take a break during a week long heatwave in the summer (High 90's for a week straight with no nighttime cool-down), but so did my Ameraucanas. They are back on track now. Typically I get an egg from the Dominiques every day. Occasionally one will skip a day. Mine have never gone broody.

 

[breege]

Thank you Mockingbird for the info - Really appreciate it!