Help choosing a flock to manage..

[Stephine]

I hate being a downer, but I do want to relate my experience. I just went through my first batch of 4 (2 Australorps and 2 Rhode Island crosses). They had a 9x12 pen you can see in my profile images. No free-ranging, but we made A LOT of effort to provide enrichment. 7 months later, I have no chickens. They all turned on each other, likely from being stuck in close proximity.

Search for my thread “Breeds for Confinement”. Orpingtons are a popular choice. But from my experience, I would make the enclosure much larger, or find a way to contain them with electric poultry netting. A chicken’s purpose in life is to search for food, and limiting that will result in unhappy birds that injure each other.

Best of luck getting started with your flock.

That is unusual. I wonder what else might have been going on. I started out with a flock of 15, coop 60 sqft, run 80 sqft. They free ranged some, not a lot because the guard dog was still in training. Then we burned down and the chickens had to get evacuated to a friends farm for a couple of months, then moved back to their coop and run. So lots of stress. Then they had to be confined to this set up for about three years. We had no trouble at all. These were RIR, Wyandottes, Welsumer, BR, SS, SFH, Brahmas. I tossed an armload of greens in the run every morning and that was all the entertainment they got.
The only time they turned on each other was right after the fire before we could get to them, when they were locked in a hot coop with little feed and no water for three days. Two hens were pecked bloody when we finally got to them, but that was extreme stress. Your set up sounds very adequate space wise for 4 hens.

 

[Stephine]

A bit late to the party, but just in case you are still up for input:

Get chicks ( from a hatchery, immunized for Marek‘s) - they are so cute, fun to raise and you don’t risk getting birds that are already harboring some illness. They will also be easier to handle than chicks raised with less human interaction.

It’s totally fine to get different breeds - I found it actually works better for the peace of the flock to have one of each breed, not two.
With a small flock you’ll likely be happier with hens that don’t go broody. It’s a pain to break a broody and if you can’t give her eggs to hatch, that’s what you’ll have to do. Also they don’t lay while broody. Hatcheries usually indicate if a breed is known for broodiness or being good setters. Orpingtons are famous for going broody a lot, so I would rule those out.
Look at which breeds are known to bear confinement well, are calm, docile, friendly. Generally those are the dual purpose breeds. Many people find that Wyandottes are bullies in a mixed flock, so I would stay away from those.

I can recommend Speckled Sussex, Barred Rocks, Faverolles, Marans, Cream Legbar (not a dual purpose, but low drama) and Easter Egger type mixes, the ones with muffs and beards. Love my Green Queen. Also love my Basque, but those are hard to come by.
Barnevelders are supposed to be a chill breed, too.
Have fun picking and choosing!

 

[Debsci]

If your looking for egg production, leghorns tend to be greatest producer. I have a mix of leghorn, white autrolourp, buff orphingtons, calico princess, California grays and an easter egger. 12 hens 1 rooster, they all get along pretty good. They just need to get their pecking order down when younger. All lay nice large eggs.

 

[thecatumbrella]

That is unusual. I wonder what else might have been going on. I started out with a flock of 15, coop 60 sqft, run 80 sqft. They free ranged some, not a lot because the guard dog was still in training. Then we burned down and the chickens had to get evacuated to a friends farm for a couple of months, then moved back to their coop and run. So lots of stress. Then they had to be confined to this set up for about three years. We had no trouble at all. These were RIR, Wyandottes, Welsumer, BR, SS, SFH, Brahmas. I tossed an armload of greens in the run every morning and that was all the entertainment they got.
The only time they turned on each other was right after the fire before we could get to them, when they were locked in a hot coop with little feed and no water for three days. Two hens were pecked bloody when we finally got to them, but that was extreme stress. Your set up sounds very adequate space wise for 4 hens.

Thanks for relating your situation. I'm trying to plan out our next flock now, but it's nerve-racking. Part of me wonders if the low numbers contributed to the situation. We made it 18 weeks with 4, then a couple months with 3, and only a couple weeks with 2. Intending to start with 6-8 this time. I'm impressed your Welsummer did so well; I've heard they are on the active side.

 

[Stephine]

Thanks for relating your situation. I'm trying to plan out our next flock now, but it's nerve-racking. Part of me wonders if the low numbers contributed to the situation. We made it 18 weeks with 4, then a couple months with 3, and only a couple weeks with 2. Intending to start with 6-8 this time. I'm impressed your Welsummer did so well; I've heard they are on the active side.

The Welsumers are a bit more reserved than others, but they caused no problems. One of my two was definitely the head hen back in the day… Now I still have the other one left - she is eight years old this spring. When I gave my roo away last year, she started crowing. So they definitely are willing to be in charge and lead. But they haven’t been bullies. My GLW on the other gand has been wearing pinless peepers since her pullet years (she’s also eight now), because she pulls out others feathers for fun.
You need to figure out what the culprit was for such mayhem in your flock, because that is very unusual. You are sure you didn’t have multiple roosters, right? Please don’t be offended, but I‘m trying to cover all the bases…
Next, what were you feeding? Did they have ample access to feed (food out for them at all times and enough space for them to each eat unbothered). Same for water. Checking these first because food issues are the biggest stressors on a flock.
Space is not your issue, but it would be good to get some pictures of your setup just in case. Heat makes chickens crabby, so cooling is important. Did you check them regularly for mites and other pests that can cause red skin and sores that invite pecking? Any wound on a chicken needs to be treated immediately and the chicken removed until it is healed and no longer attracting attention. Chickens will peck at others‘ wounds and happily eat another flockmate alive - an awful truth about our beloved fluff balls… So this is crucial.
Nestboxes need to be somewhat dark and secluded. Offer 2 for your 4 hens, though they will likely want to crowd into the same one no matter what. Finally roosts are a cause for squabbles. Since hens prefer higher roosts it is best to have all roosts the same height - one less thing to fight about (plus no one gets pooped on from above).
Finally breed selection: look for calm, docile, happy in confinement breeds. Dual purpose, not layers. And I advise to stay away from Wyandotte and RIR. Don’t get just one that stands out - like just one crested bird. Fine to get all different breeds or all the same. I‘d avoid two and two.
I think a Speckled Sussex, an Easter Egger type, a Brahma and a Barred Rock or a Marans or Orpington, for example should get along just fine.

 

[Stephine]

Thanks for relating your situation. I'm trying to plan out our next flock now, but it's nerve-racking. Part of me wonders if the low numbers contributed to the situation. We made it 18 weeks with 4, then a couple months with 3, and only a couple weeks with 2. Intending to start with 6-8 this time. I'm impressed your Welsummer did so well; I've heard they are on the active side.

I forgot one thing: did you get yours as chicks? Brooder mates tend to get along better since they don’t know anything different. Also if you get chicks, use a heat plate, a ceramic (not light emitting) heat bulb or a nice dark red heat lamp. Having a white, bright light on chicks in the brooder has been found in some study to make chicks more aggressive for life.

 

[DLA]

Hello all.. hope everyone had a nice holiday!

We are new to chickens and need help on how to decide which breed(s) of chicken to get. Just recently finished our coop/run that has enough space for 6 comfortably. At this time we are only interested in egg production and do not want a rooster. I was planning on skipping the chick raising process and look for young hens.. but would this be a mistake? Is it better if we raise them from chicks so they become accustomed/friendly to us or more easily trained to the surroundings? Are some breeds easier than others to handle? Are there any that are more proficient layers in the winter? Our thought is to get 2 each of 3 different breeds. Does this make sense?

The most popular choices I see out there are Rhode Island Red, Buff Orpington, Australorp. Is this the direction we should go as newbies?

Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated! Thanks....

I have rhode island red hens that I got as chicks from Mt. Healthy Hatchery in Ohio and I love them, they're friendly and interactive and want attention, not much upsets them. They lay a lot of eggs. I've also found them easy to train. They do very well in our climate here in PA, they can take the cold and the heat with no issues. White leghorns have a better feed to production ratio but the bigger combs can get frostbite and they're a lot more flighty and not as friendly.

 

[Stephine]

I have rhode island red hens that I got as chicks from Mt. Healthy Hatchery in Ohio and I love them, they're friendly and interactive and want attention, not much upsets them. They lay a lot of eggs. I've also found them easy to train. They do very well in our climate here in PA, they can take the cold and the heat with no issues. White leghorns have a better feed to production ratio but the bigger combs can get frostbite and they're a lot more flighty and not as friendly.

I am sure lines can vary… mine were from Meyers and very active, loud and feisty, and I have read that from other chicken keepers, too. Glad yours are so nice! Definitely wouldn’t get Leghorn for a small backyard flock. They have been bred to lay above all else and are, like you said, flighty.

 

[thecatumbrella]

The Welsumers are a bit more reserved than others, but they caused no problems. One of my two was definitely the head hen back in the day… Now I still have the other one left - she is eight years old this spring. When I gave my roo away last year, she started crowing. So they definitely are willing to be in charge and lead. But they haven’t been bullies. My GLW on the other gand has been wearing pinless peepers since her pullet years (she’s also eight now), because she pulls out others feathers for fun.
You need to figure out what the culprit was for such mayhem in your flock, because that is very unusual. You are sure you didn’t have multiple roosters, right? Please don’t be offended, but I‘m trying to cover all the bases…
Next, what were you feeding? Did they have ample access to feed (food out for them at all times and enough space for them to each eat unbothered). Same for water. Checking these first because food issues are the biggest stressors on a flock.
Space is not your issue, but it would be good to get some pictures of your setup just in case. Heat makes chickens crabby, so cooling is important. Did you check them regularly for mites and other pests that can cause red skin and sores that invite pecking? Any wound on a chicken needs to be treated immediately and the chicken removed until it is healed and no longer attracting attention. Chickens will peck at others‘ wounds and happily eat another flockmate alive - an awful truth about our beloved fluff balls… So this is crucial.
Nestboxes need to be somewhat dark and secluded. Offer 2 for your 4 hens, though they will likely want to crowd into the same one no matter what. Finally roosts are a cause for squabbles. Since hens prefer higher roosts it is best to have all roosts the same height - one less thing to fight about (plus no one gets pooped on from above).
Finally breed selection: look for calm, docile, happy in confinement breeds. Dual purpose, not layers. And I advise to stay away from Wyandotte and RIR. Don’t get just one that stands out - like just one crested bird. Fine to get all different breeds or all the same. I‘d avoid two and two.
I think a Speckled Sussex, an Easter Egger type, a Brahma and a Barred Rock or a Marans or Orpington, for example should get along just fine.

100% hens. They had all day access to crumble, and several pellet dispensing toys. I did make the mistake of not having more than one crumble feeder (though the primary could accommodate up to six chickens). Didn't think resource guarding would be an issue as all four were raised together from day 1. We kept the pen cool in the summer with shade cloths, multiple fans, hosing the roof, cool treats, etc. Minimal panting. Bi-weekly health checks for mites, no wounds. VERY dark nest box, but it's a communal style that holds 2 chickens at a time. Our roost situation was unique with the Omlet, but no bedtime squabbles on camera.

First problem was our Golden Comets, which were supposed to be a NH x White Rock cross. Found out they were actually 100% Rhode Island mixes. I avoided this breed for exactly the reason you said, but somehow ended up with two. One became a bully and was re-homed before causing damage or stress. We chose the Black Australorps because they were repeatedly toted as a gentle breed that did well in confinement. That clearly wasn't the case. Both ended up resource guarding at point of lay, and one even became aggressive towards us. The remaining 3 were rehomed because the Australorps would not let anyone eat, with the new secondary feeder going unused.

I have several threads about it if you're interested (photos of our setup are in the WWYD). The whole thing was a disaster.
At wits end with biting chickens...
Resource guarding at POL: WWYD
Only two hens left, bully behavior, what would you do?

I do really appreciate your rundown and breed suggestions. We brooded them under a heat plate in our basement, which has minimal daylight. I did use soft white lighting on a dimmer to simulate sunrise/sunset... which is the best I can really do in our current home. Hopefully that will be enough for round 2.

Also, sorry to hijack your thread OP. I think we just had a string of bad luck, but I do want to caution anyone that's not able to free-range. Losing my girls, likely because of my own ignorance, has been traumatic.

 

[Stephine]

100% hens. They had all day access to crumble, and several pellet dispensing toys. I did make the mistake of not having more than one crumble feeder (though the primary could accommodate up to six chickens). Didn't think resource guarding would be an issue as all four were raised together from day 1. We kept the pen cool in the summer with shade cloths, multiple fans, hosing the roof, cool treats, etc. Minimal panting. Bi-weekly health checks for mites, no wounds. VERY dark nest box, but it's a communal style that holds 2 chickens at a time. Our roost situation was unique with the Omlet, but no bedtime squabbles on camera.

First problem was our Golden Comets, which were supposed to be a NH x White Rock cross. Found out they were actually 100% Rhode Island mixes. I avoided this breed for exactly the reason you said, but somehow ended up with two. One became a bully and was re-homed before causing damage or stress. We chose the Black Australorps because they were repeatedly toted as a gentle breed that did well in confinement. That clearly wasn't the case. Both ended up resource guarding at point of lay, and one even became aggressive towards us. The remaining 3 were rehomed because the Australorps would not let anyone eat, with the new secondary feeder going unused.

I have several threads about it if you're interested (photos of our setup are in the WWYD). The whole thing was a disaster.
At wits end with biting chickens...
Resource guarding at POL: WWYD
Only two hens left, bully behavior, what would you do?

I do really appreciate your rundown and breed suggestions. We brooded them under a heat plate in our basement, which has minimal daylight. I did use soft white lighting on a dimmer to simulate sunrise/sunset... which is the best I can really do in our current home. Hopefully that will be enough for round 2.

Also, sorry to hijack your thread OP. I think we just had a string of bad luck, but I do want to caution anyone that's not able to free-range. Losing my girls, likely because of my own ignorance, has been traumatic.

Gosh, I am so sorry! I don’t see anything wrong with your setup as explained here. You have put so much thought into it. Where did you get your birds?
I don’t like the Omlet coop, I think it is too small and also doesn’t have good air circulation - that is the only issue I can find you might want to change.
Will look at your other threads to stop hijacking this one! Sorry!