Star

I wouldn't ever spend good money on these birds again. They're 'friendly' to the point of aggression, even taking chunks out of my legs if I don't keep an eye on them. They lay poorly after their first year, and the eggs they do lay after that point are too large to fit in cartons. They are very prone to reproductive disorders, so they often just drop dead or turn up ill one day. I've euthanized several of mine due to EYP or similar disorders. Don't buy these, get a heritage bird that needs help surviving. Or, if that's not an option, Leghorns are a less-endangered breed that are thrifty on feed and lay for a longer period of time.

Edit: I feel I should correct my original statement. If you happen to be keeping a flock of layers that you eat at a year and a half of age, then by all means, go ahead. That's what they were developed for.

i like my star, but shes a boring chicken... her name is Princess Baked,

I am really NOT impressed with the ISA Brown chickens or any related forum of them.

The Red Stars are my least favorite breed that I currently have. Sure, they laid great their first two years. However, I have one that continuously lays a soft egg and no amount of calcium or calcium pills have helped. I'm seriously considering culling her, due to her bullying nature. They are incredibly aggressive to other members of the flock. The high rate of egg production is just not worth the amount of issues that they have.

My red star hens are the worst hens in my flock, they will come up and bite you at feeding time, attack other hens, avoid the rest of the flock and people, and will scream until other hens get off the nest or they attack them to chase them off the nest. These are free range hens on five acres, I have no problem with my Easter Eggers or Barnevelders so there is no reason for them to act this way.

Curiosity killed the cat. It hasn't killed my black stars yet, but I worry that eventually they'll wander somewhere they shouldn't have. Many a day I've found they've made it around 6 ft wood fencing and into the front yard/neighbor's yard/garden. Strong personalities. They try to pick on my Rhode Island Reds, who fortunately have a few years on them. I don't expect them to take kindly to newcomers. Not lap sitters but not entirely opposed to neck scratches. I think they're attractive birds, and they're the only chickens laying through the winter at a pace of 1 egg/day.

I personally prefer breeds with diversity so that they can easily be identified, Stars tend to all look the same, they are also quite shy and pretty flighty. on the bright side they lay a big egg every day and they are color sexable.

I have 3 red stars with other breeds. They are bullies to the other breeds. I know there is a pecking order, but they take it a bit too far. They band together as one, and peck other hens away from water and food at times. They don't go as far to hurt or injure another bird, but the constant bossiness is annoying-it means I have to provide more roost space than they should normally need and provide additional water and food. The pros are that they are sweet to me, they love treats and are easily trained to come, and they truly do lay a large brown egg every single day, even when it was dark and cold.

The wonderful thing about red sex-links for people new to chickens would be the ability to confidently know for sure what gender you are buying. If you only want hens then this might be a good choice for you. We have 6 of these wonderful birds, all females. They are calm and GREAT large brown egg layers! Many hatcheries create their own brand names for sex link chickens.

I have 48 Red Stars they are housed in a 12x48 space. They are 6 months old and have lots of room to run outside and inside. Lately they are pecking on each other to the point of killing each other. I am not sure why, they get plenty of food and water. Anyone have any ideas. I am beginning to not like this type of chick at all.

The first flock I helped raise was comprised of five red star hens and one rooster. The rooster was my sweet boy, and by far the best rooster we have ever, ever had. I miss him constantly. The hens were incredibly personable and sweet (for the most part, Jackie was a feisty girl!) They were all very calm and easy to handle and pick up. In fact they were so relaxed and friendly that trying to move them anywhere without carrying them could be difficult since we would have to just physically push them. Our sweet flock of six got us hooked on chickens with how wonderful they were. Our birds were totally free range and did very well with it, we never once lost one of our stars to a predator. They were always in their coop on time at night, and boy, that rooster was a beast when it came to keeping his girls safe. The downside was their lifespans being shortened by high egg production. We had each hen until her final moments, and they all made it to at least five years old, with two making it to six. The girls slowed down a lot in their age, but none of the other birds we eventually added ever dared question the authority of the stars. Sweet, wonderful birds, I'd recommend them to anyone.

these are great dont get me wrong, everything is perfect except, i put 6 new chicks and everything was fine until one of my hens decided she was going to be a rooster and started riding the 6 new chicks, needles to say I'm going to have a chicken diner soon, i know its the pecking order but 2 red stars in particular won't leave any one alone from riding them, pecking them, or just chasing, so 5 chickens are getting eaten

Thye put good egss but they atack my ducks, and i sold the chickens

Cheap, easy and readily available. The do confinement very well and do pretty good in the colder months of the year. Personalities are unique to the individual, fun to have around. However, they can on occasions be overly aggressive with flock mates to the point my rooster got involved and hushed them around a bit. If I was to do it over again, I think I would go with a different breed/type of chicken for my hobby.

I've had several red stars, and they were sweet, and beautiful birds. They laid 5-6 large brown eggs a week for about 2 years, after that they started laying less, and the eggs had very thin shells.

If you aren't looking for a long term layer, these are great, but if you want a hen that will lay reliably for years they aren't the best

My star is only 4 weeks old, so it's too soon to tell. She is one of the smallest and sweetest of the four I have.

I was hesitant to give this breed only 3 stars because I've heard so many stories from fellow chicken-owners that conflicted with my feelings about the breed. I may have an atypical Red Star hen, so keep that in mind as you are reading my review. From what I've heard, these are supposed to be the very best layers, but I haven't been as pleased with ours. She doesn't lay as often as my other chickens. She gets an egg in about every other day. And when she does lay them, they are enormous! Much too big to fit inside a standard, large size egg carton to sell. (I believe this might be due to the fact that she holds her eggs in for 2 days at a time.)

She is extremely skittish and particular. The slightest change in her schedule will cause her to stop laying for days at a time. She also has more trouble than all my other hens at grooming herself. We have to keep her behind trimmed almost to her skin or it gets bad back there.

Even so, I'm giving this breed another chance, just because I've heard such good things from everyone else. We just brought 13 more Red Stars home and I'm going to test and see if our first Red Star was just an odd ball!

My Red Sex link roo was a big surprise, he was supposed to be a buff orpington hen. He turned out to be a welcome addition to our flock. He is so beautiful and we haven't lost a hen to coons or coyotes since getting him. He has never attacked me, but my dad has told me he went after him. I didn't see it so I don't believe it. The only problem I have is he overbreeds my hens, I can't show any of my largefowl because he has ripped their back feathers out. He has been condemned to a separate pen.