best breed for very young children

[tomjul811]

I currently have a 2 1/2 year old and one on the way. I wanted to get two hens and was thinking about Salmon Faverolles. Is this the right way to go or should I be looking at a diffrent breed. I really want hens which don't fly much because I would like to let them roam a bit and only have a 3 foot fence in the rear.

 

[hatchaholic]

Have you thought about silkies? They're sweet and don't really fly.

 

[cottagegarden]

Our house is the bus stop so we get lots of little visitors stopping by. We have Bantam Cochins and Silkies that are very tolerant of children. Both are really sweet chickens children. Silkies are so different looking, soft, and they make great pets you really cant go wrong with one(or 11)

 

[therealsilkiechick]

i have 5 children and silkies and salmon favorolles r both excellent breeds to have around kids.

 

[congdon476]

Check out mypetchicken.com and look to the left at the bottom of the page. There is a tool there that will help you determine the best chicken for your needs. I used it to pick them out for our family.

Please note: many websites do not recommend that toddlers be allowed to handle chicks or chickens unless they are completely supervised and wash their hands when finished. Also, they must not rub their eyes, noses, etc. unless you know your chickens are germy free.

Having a newborn and a set of newborn chicks is a lot of work! Heck, my kids are a year and a half apart and I thought THAT was a lot of work! Best of luck and fun to you

 

[sandypaws]

yeah i agree.. cochins bantie or ST.. both are mild tempered... or silkies... (but i have had aggressive silkie roos)

 

[sarahloveschickens]

any type of cochin or silkie :] silkies are very docile and sweet and they cant fly!

 

[bargain]

I love my speckled sussex. They are sweet and gentle - even the rooster. They come up to be petted when I feed them .... no kidding.

I have hatching eggs available if you have an incubator or can borrow one.

Here's a photo of my gals and guy

PM if you are interested. I've also taken photos of a 2 year old petting the sussex. Unfortunately it was on her mom's diggie and not mine.

Good luck on your selection but these are really docile.

 

[ArizonaDesertChicks]

All of my standard breed chickens could easily get over a 3 ft. fence. I've never owned any silkies, but after reading the other answers that might be your best bet if you're just wanting chickens as pets for the kids. If you are wanting good, large egg layers, maybe you could just keep their wings trimmed?

 

[Omniskies]

If this is for a two year old then I recommend something HUGE or something really, really fast. If the cuddling gets too crazy or the kid suddenly throws a fit and hits the bird there's a lot less chance of a big ol' Brahma being hurt than a little bantam Cochin.

Small kids and small pets do not mix. They _can_ mix, but I'm sort of in favor of them not mixing unless it's behind glass or at a distance.

Faverolles are nice and mellow and I've never had a bad Brahma in the past. Orpingtons and Giant Cochins are also laid back.