Orpington

Buff Orpingtons were the first chickens I ever raised. With 6 kids, there was constant chaos and "child involvement" with the chickens, and the Orps took it all in stride. One of my daughters used to carry one around under her arm all day, and on more than one occasion I discovered an Orp up in her bedroom at night sleeping in a doll's crib! Plus, the eggs were great quality and the hens laid through the New England winter.

I do not have hens yet, but I do have a Buff Orpington Rooster. I was given my BO rooster as mine had died. I did not have him as a chick only as a cockerel (3 months old). He stands above my knees (when he was only 7 months old) and is extremely handsome. He is very sweet and took to my hens almost immediately (within 10 min) no fighting at all. He's very gentle with them. No issues with him and dogs/kids. Great at going out free ranging with the hens and always returns back to the barn with them. If my BO rooster sees me walking outside he always will run to me seeking treats. If anyone needs a rooster I would highly suggest either a Buff Orpington or a Barred Plymouth Rock. I have read that BOs are too sweet to protect hens, but I have witnessed some mild aggression (when necessary) toward my dogs.. like when the dogs go bursting down the middle of calm hens eating. My BO rooster will also view surroundings and find the tallest landscape to stand on to view for possible predators. I have had different breeds of roosters and these 2 breeds are by far the best!

I've had a buff who has three hatches and takes good care of her chicks.

Orpingtons are possibly the most charming poultry breed I've ever kept.

I've never met an aggressive Orpington--not even one that was a little nippy--regardless of sex, age, quality, or apparent health. While hatcheries tend to mangle a breed's characteristics in an attempt to sell more birds (ie: allowing subpar specimens to breed), Orpington disposition has remained consistent regardless of which hatchery or breeder I've acquired the birds from. Particularly in the much lauded buff color, hatcheries will send out astoundingly poor specimens of the breed, and even these Orps typically have the most placid, friendly, non-aggressive temperaments.

My first Orp was a hatchery girl with an asymmetrical face (one eye was farther back on her face than the other, so she looked like two different birds depending on which side I was looking at. Weirder yet, her pupils were fixed such that one was always more dilated than the other) who was a terrible specimen of the breed according to conformation, but she had the sweetest temperament and was a bonafide lap bird every chance she got.

I've since kept Orps in other colors, from other hatcheries and breeders. They're an exceedingly charming lot. Roosters don't tend to be top guy in mixed flocks when they have to compete with other, more assertive breeds. They've often pretty chivalrous guys (especially if they're past that crazy hormonal stage or don't have much competition).

As a breed, they tend to be a very healthy lot, and the only health complaint I've ever had is that their tall single combs and large wattles tend to get frostbite. Mine never get sick, though some of the guys have been lazy bathers, so they end up with unwanted many-legged "friends". As fluff is profuse, some breeders have better fertility in hatching eggs after trimming excessive "butt fluff" for spring breedings.

They're overwhelmingly an easy breed to catch if they need to be rounded up for transport, medicating, what-have-you. They're typically slow and not generally scared of much so they don't run away like other, far wilier breeds. This is a pro and a con because, if you have a Fort Knox coop and run and/or no major predators around, easy breeds like Orps are great, but if you end to let birds fend for themselves over large areas unsupervised in areas with predators like hawks and coyotes, Orps are too dumb and slow to be your best breed for that job.

Another con is that, as a dual-purpose breed, Orps are an "eating bird", but I've never had it in me to process one. Mean, ugly, rape-y guys are the easiest to process, and Orps are overwhelmingly none of these. Big, fluffy, silly, sweet-natured, cheerful, friendly, guys who are good with their ladies are really difficult to process, so be prepared to fall in love with pretty much all of your extra boys and have a hard time saying good-bye to them.

We have 3 Buff Orpingtons. As everyone else says, they are like the Golden Retrievers of the chicken world. They are very lovable little chickens and don't oblige too much to being held! They are great for those who want to train their chickens also, I've taught my 21 week Orp pullet to ring a bell, come when called, fluff up when you call her a pretty bird (Well, she kind of taught herself that one) and she just learned to walk on a harness and leash. I'd definitely recommend them for any flock!

I absolutely love my Buff Orpies. There egg production is better than adequate and their dual use makes it worth the compromise on egg production. I love them because they are down right cuddly. Truly wonderful gardening companions. But, they wonder far and wide if allowed...and when not allowed. I would say one in every 5 hens is "independent." They aren't the best at defending themselves against predators (hens and roos) and for that reason I don't clip their wings. As a result they get out of confinement regularly...I have 8' fencing around a very large and accommodating chicken run area (think football field of fruit tree shaded wild garden). No matter they climb fences, tunnel...even climb trees and fly over. (Its a Husky with feathers and wings). Incredibly smart and entertaining but very frustrating. I'll be attempting to train a flock guardian dog after the new year...they are so worth it!

Our youg Buff Orpington was the best hen we ever had! She gave us eggs everyday and loved "us" mostly my Hubby. She was his little Girlfriend. Every day she would wait in the driveway for him to come home. She would fallow him everywere she could and would run up to him as fast as she could every time he opend the door. She would only come to me like this if i had food lol and she would beg! Too cute!

Docile around kids. Hard to find. Expensive. Tender meat. Can have low fertility without fluff trimming. Sweet birds. Regularly lays, though not daily, eggs medium. Cold resistant. Grows very slowly and matures after the 1 year mark. Rooster protective and watchful but far from a terror and tolerates my kids well with no attacks to date (going on two years on this bird). Red Cuckoo English Orpingtons make amazing color crosses as well as hybrids. Planning on sticking with Red English Orpingtons for a long time. Good longevity of lay.

I love this breed of chicken. Great sized eggs and awesome personality!

Had some good and some less experience with this breed especially buff yet 1 bird was so determined to get a HUGH by pretending to die or get a stroke ! once picked up to have a look it layed the head on my shoulder and did not want to be putted back nor to be let go ! Deceptive in this way ,yet poor defend in flock and not social with other members only with the owner trying to involve, good bird for kids and as a petted pet but not in a flock with less docile breeds. Sold them due their wish to get petted and not having that amount of time, also relies on owner if others peck it and just call out on you to the rescue.lay good large eggs and meat seems tender yet is not as tender as expected

My orpington was my favorite bird for the first 2 months. She suffered an injury at week 3 (was trapped under a water feeder that tipped over and almost died) and I was so attached to her for surviving. She was very handle friendly until she was moved outside to her permanent coop. Now she is always my last one that I catch and very sassy. All my other chickens actually are very submissive and easy to pet (except for my orpington).

Buff Orpingtons are the BEST choice for beginner chicken keepers;
The big, rich eggs, sweet and gentle personality, Gets along with other chickens FANTASTICALLY and is a very good broody mama if you want to hatch eggs! If I HAD to pick a con about them, it would be...they eat a lot... Best choice of chickens I've ever made! I would give them 5,000,000 stars if I could!

Buff Orpingtons are mellow, but they aren't particularly friendly/affectionate. They're also very loud. Mine are too young to lay eggs, but I've heard they're good layers. They also lay in the winter, which is awesome. Overall, they're not my favorite. I don't dislike them, but I definitely don't like them the best.

Our Buff Orpington is probably the sweetest, calmest girl we have right now. She's not small by any means -- maybe even the biggest? -- but her personality is extremely mellow. She lays well, and her eggs are consistently large and pretty medium brown. She also goes broody pretty much like clockwork each spring, so this year we finally gave her a clutch of fertile hatching eggs to sit on and some day-old chicks to adopt on Hatching Day when a small disaster meant most of the eggs would probably not hatch. She sat on those eggs so dutifully for 3 looooong weeks, and bonded with both the hatched and the foster chicks instantly... sooo sweet. She's now mothering them, tucking all 5 under her wings at night still, showing them how to scratch and forage and roost, and doing an incredible job at it. Her mothering abilities make her priceless to our flock, so regardless of how long she lays, we'll be keeping her around.

My Orpington is the top hen in our flock and she is as sweet as they come when it comes to being in charge. She is literally like a dog stuck in a chicken's body. She loves to be picked up and carried around, and once she's on my lap, she's there to stay. She started laying extremely well (6 eggs per week) but now at almost 2 years old she's only laying 1 egg per week on average with a high quality feed and no other health problems. All the other orpington charm still makes her a five star bird, though

I never had chickens before I got my Buffs but I couldn't have any other breed! They are hilarious. Quiet, which is a huge plus for me. They are big on greeting you and following you around. Very social and make the cutest coo sounds. I don't have children but I think it's a great bird to have with children because they seem to be very relaxed. Easy to handle. No regrets here.

My friendly,buff Orpington came to us as a chick. She was handled from the start and to this day comes running to see if we have a treat & to be held. She knows that dogs and cats are generally safe but hawks & owls are not. She's a good runner if needed. They do well foraging for themselves year round but we do leave feed out. The eggs are really large with nice brown color and sturdy shells. They love mealworms and most other fruits scraps!

Sadly I just lost my Buff Orpington, Cora, but she was hands down the most wonderful pet. She wasn't quite a lap chicken, but she ran to greet me at the gate when I got home each day and would also run to me when treats were to be had. She also liked to be picked up and carried around the yard. She consistently gave me 6 eggs a week.