Are these good breeds?

1. What is your experience with them?

2. Were you pleased with their egg production?

3. Do they brood? (I know LH are not known to brood.)

4. Or, what breeds would you recommend? I need a hardy bird for cold Utah winters and hot summers, good temperament and good egg laying.

I haven't had any Speckled Sussex or Leghorns.

My Marans are French Cuckoo Marans, the ones Ideal used to carry but don't anymore. :( They're big girls who lay large eggs at a rate of about 5 a week when they're laying -- but they take the winter off. With only 2 to judge by, I find their temperament calm, even bombproof. They're good flock citizens.

My white layers have been California Whites -- active, curious, mischievous, and thoroughly entertaining. Chipotle was smart enough to fly back into a pen she flew out of. Repecka has recently taken a notion to hide her nest. Though half the size of their flockmates they don't get bullied.

Australorp might fit your needs. @3KillerBs has a lot of them if you have questions!

That I do. :)

I don't have any particular experience with Australorps and lasting cold, but I can testify to their temperament, their egg-laying, and their heat tolerance. Maybe one in 1 of my Aussie girls goes broody.
 
I haven't had any Speckled Sussex or Leghorns.

My Marans are French Cuckoo Marans, the ones Ideal used to carry but don't anymore. :( They're big girls who lay large eggs at a rate of about 5 a week when they're laying -- but they take the winter off. With only 2 to judge by, I find their temperament calm, even bombproof. They're good flock citizens.

My white layers have been California Whites -- active, curious, mischievous, and thoroughly entertaining. Chipotle was smart enough to fly back into a pen she flew out of. Repecka has recently taken a notion to hide her nest. Though half the size of their flockmates they don't get bullied.



That I do. :)

I don't have any particular experience with Australorps and lasting cold, but I can testify to their temperament, their egg-laying, and their heat tolerance. Maybe one in 1 of my Aussie girls goes broody.
Thanks for the input! My neighbor has a Black Australorp and she has had no trouble in our winters (usually 20s is lowest long cold, although we get spurts of below zero. Lots of snow!)
 
I also liked my California Whites. Great layers, good foragers and less skittish than white Leghorns. Ours were killed by hawks- in our back pasture, their brilliant white feathers are beacons visible from two counties away. My only remaining white bird is a Leghorn which stopped laying a year ago but has managed to evade the hawks for a total of four years. My BCMs lay beautiful eggs but they stop in late September and don't start until March, and then they're laying an average of 4 eggs a week. Being larger birds, they eat a lot and aren't worth it except for those gorgeous eggs. They're friendly, though.

My favorite chickens right now are our Rhode Island Reds and New Hampshires. They're very similar breeds, being bold, bossy, inquisitive, friendly and great foragers. They lay 5-7 eggs a week and, even though they slow down to 3-ish eggs a week during the winter, they are laying when most others have stopped entirely. They're also decently large and make a good crockpot meal when they're ready to retire.

I am migrating my entire laying flock to RIRs. As hens are retired, I replace them with RIRs... or, more accurately, I obsessively buy RIR chicks when they're available, raise them to POL, then choose the next group of retirees. My wife likes our Ameraucanas so, for now, I'm keeping a few of them around for their pretty eggs. For now.
 
Hello BYC people!

I have a question concerning these breeds... FBCM, (or bbs marans.) SS and white leghorns.

1. What is your experience with them?

2. Were you pleased with their egg production?

3. Do they brood? (I know LH are not known to brood.)

4. Or, what breeds would you recommend? I need a hardy bird for cold Utah winters and hot summers, good temperament and good egg laying.

I'd love to hear your input. Pics and tips also appreciated!
Thanks in advance!

~Yard farmer~
We h
Hello BYC people!

I have a question concerning these breeds... FBCM, (or bbs marans.) SS and white leghorns.

1. What is your experience with them?

2. Were you pleased with their egg production?

3. Do they brood? (I know LH are not known to brood.)

4. Or, what breeds would you recommend? I need a hardy bird for cold Utah winters and hot summers, good temperament and good egg laying.

I'd love to hear your input. Pics and tips also appreciated!
Thanks in advance!

~Yard farmer~
We live in Iowa (it’s COLD) and have Sapphire Olive Eggers and LOVE their egg production so far this winter! Also our K Marans are doing well. We have 3 Silver Laced Wydonettes that should start laying in a couple weeks. Excited to see how they do!! They are suppose to be great in cold.
 
I picked up 6 little Marans about a month ago. :D
DSC_0733.jpg
 
I dont prefer leghorns. Theyre snotty dont lay as often as my other breeds and are a lot less cold hardy in my oppinion.
 

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