Dominique

I really don't have a bad thing to say about this breed because 1) they exceeded expectation as backyard layers (2) I don't have much experience with chickens.

My spouse and I got 6 chicks which all survived and thrived in the heat of Birmingham, AL. The chickens did well in a SMALL backyard with the exception of a few escapes before having their wings clipped. We enjoyed watching the chickens scratch in the yard. On days when we were home, we'd let them into the unfenced front yard and they always stayed close. They always produced plenty of eggs for us, and we frequently gave eggs away by the dozen. The girls lived and produced eggs well into their fifth year before we had to give them away.

I'd happily take them again.

Dominiques. They're gorgeous. Their feather pattern is white and black, making a beautiful chicken. Don't forget the chicks, though! They have little white caps on their heads until they grow in their adult feathers, and it is adorable! Everyone should get a Dominique, for eggs and beauty.

These chickens take me back in time to my childhood on my grandparents farm. Grandma always had Dominiques in her flock. They're beautiful birds with a wonderful disposition. Love em.

I'm the lucky owner of one dominique hen and I absolutely adore her. Personal experience as soon as I intergrated her she flogged the rooster and beat up the lead hen " dominique was still a pullet". She quickly took over lead postion amonst the hens. I had no issues at all with her as she behaved like she had known me forever the first day I got her. I've had her a year come August and she's laid a medium sized brown egg nearly every day with no issues. My little hen actively hunts squirrels and other things she probably shouldn't but that's just her. She's vocal and absolutely beautiful, even with all the quirks I'd highly recommend this breed.

Our one dominique chicken, Lady Cluck (pictured here letting the newcomers know who's boss), is the leader of our flock. She's a robust, good laying bird (about 5 a week) who's also the most people friendly (though she can be a pest about getting treats and also likes to escape the yard and forage in the driveway occasionally).

But she likes being petted (and occasionally picked up) and adapted very well after her brood sisters passed away and we brought in new chickens. Asserting herself, but never being vicious, she's stayed as alpha chicken, even though she's one of the smaller ones and treats the new chicks well, too.

I heartily recommend dominiques to all chicken raisers, new and old!

I ordered my Dominique, Mabel, on a whim from MPC to round out my order. I'm so glad I picked her, she is such a fun chicken. She was the first to do everything-escape the brooder, sit on the water bottle, perch, eat treats, jump on your hand, roost, and lay eggs. She is so inquisitive and follows me around like a dog. I cannot get her to leave me alone when doing "coop chores". She has to be right with me sticking her nose into everything. She's really sweet and quite a pretty bird as well.

I don't have room for more than 4-6 hens at the moment but as soon as I make my country escape I'll be adding more of these gals to my flock. Great layers, sweet personalities. Like puppies-into everything!

I've had my Doms for almost a year now. I've never had any aggressive cockerels or hens. They make a great dual-purpose breed and would be an excellent addition to anybodies flock.

I had one for a little over a year and really liked her.

I got my doms from a breeder when they were a few days old. I currently have 5 hens and a rooster and they are about to turn a year old. These guys are such a good fit for me and what I'm looking for. I live in a colder climate and these guys thrive in it. One day this past winter it was -45 F (-54 with the wind chill) and these guys were out in their run like it was nothing. Their hardiness is astonishing. They are very calm and easy-going. Mine don't mind being picked up and held, even my rooster. They all love to eat out of my hand and immediately come flocking over if they see me sticking out my palm. Just like everyone else has said, these guys are vicious foragers. They really do make other breeds look lazy. I have a few australorps (who are decent foragers as well) and the doms outwork them in the foraging department. It's clockwork to them. They are VERY good layers. I get at least 4 eggs a day from 5 hens. The eggs are starting to get bigger although they are usually medium in size. They aren't the biggest birds around, the cocks are somewhere around 7 lb. while the hens are 5 lb. That doesn't matter to me though, these guys are such wonderful chickens and a piece of history. I'm very grateful that those handful of Dominique flock owners in the 70's got together and decided to keep these guys going, otherwise I wouldn't be as happy as I am today. Not much else I could say that hasn't been said already...Dominiques forever baby!

My hens are named Treasure and Special.... That is how I feel about these amazing birds.

I picked up two hatchery doms to round out my mixed breed flock. Got them for the feathers and didn't expect much, but they have become almost my favorites. These guys are super friendly with me and all the other chickens, and seem to resolve disagreements involving between the more temperamental welsummers by enticing everyone else to sunbathe. They have taught the rest of the flock a lot of foraging behavior too. My one dom trills the whole time she prepares the the nest to lay an egg; it is the most adorable thing and I'll bet she would make a good mom. Also I was surprised to see that they lay very pink, and not tan eggs!

I think Dominiques are underrated. Very docile, intelligent birds. They wander and work hard for their meals, foraging all day long. At first I thought the black and white pattern would be dull, unexciting, but after owning them now for a few months, they are quite beautiful after all. If handled frequently from the time they are hatched, when they mature, they actually seem to adore the attention and want to be held and petted from time to time. The only negative thing I could say is about the egg size, they have produced small to medium sized eggs so far which has been a bit of adjusting.

I highly recommend this breed. A wonderful all around bird!

We added a couple of Dominique pullets to my first order of chicks 3 yrs ago. We were interested in a heritage breed that lays brown eggs, are good foragers, and predator resistant. We haven't been disappointed in our choice. The girls are talkative, friendly, and good layers of large, medium brown colored eggs. They are assertive, but not aggressive in the flock. As pullets, they loved roosting quietly on us. Some people think their pattern is mundane, but we think it looks pretty, especially against green grass. I would recommend this hardy breed for first time backyard chicken farmers.

Of my 12 chickens my dominique was my favorite. She always came to greet me outside and pecked my boots to get my attention. She was fun to watch and beautiful to look at. She was also a great layer. Yesterday however a coopers hawk attacked and killed her. Their small size and barred feathers make them easy targets for aerial attacks. Im so sad to have lost her. She will be greatly missed.

Where do I start with this chicken. We got our first egg today and I'm pleasantly surprised, it's about a large size egg, just a tad smaller than our store bought extra large eggs.

This chicken is the goofball of our flock. Always the first out of the coop, first to run up and get a treat. Even as a chick, she was the first to perch, first to find her way out of the bin we had them in, first to jump up on our bathroom counter. She would jump up on us if we got to close and try to perch on us like a parrot. She is always the first to figure out something new.

She has the "I don't care what anyone thinks of me" attitude, but in a good way. If she wants to see something or do something, she will do it without hesitation.

My only complaint is she is not very "holdable." She is absolutely not shy in the least about coming for a treat, she's always the first, but if you get your hand anywhere near her, she will jump and squawk. She comes right back to get more treats, but she doesn't not like being caught or held. She is quite vocal for a few seconds when you do catch her. She relents though and lets us hold her once we have her. She likes to do her own 'thang' her own way.

Very fun bird. Just not the cuddly type. I would definitely have a couple of these in a large flock. They will give you lots of enjoyment if you like watching your chickens.

Great birds that you don't have to fuss over too much like some breeds. Our hens lay consistently, eggs are small at first but increase in size after a month. Very curious and love to watch what you're doing in and around the coop.

Our rooster is a gentleman and with some basic training to learn his boundaries with us, he's respectful of anyone he knows coming to the coop. He takes good care of his girls. Young roosters crow a lot at first then will mellow out to crow in morning and late afternoon.

I have a cute little Dominique named Pilot. I named her Pilot because of how good at flying she is. She once flew up on my shoulder while I was standing. She lays nice brown eggs almost daily even at 2 years old. She finds many bugs in our yard.