Best Chicken

[Nemo]

We have fifteen seventeen-week-old BO pullets, and are just about bouncing waiting for eggs. They're not loud, except for the occasional squabble, but they are vocal... They make all kinds of clucks and honks.

 

[The Chicken Lady]

Quote:
This is because the points on a single comb are at risk for frostbite. With frostbite, the points will turn black and fall off. However, covering the comb and wattles with vaseline helps to protect them from the cold. Also, ensuring that your birds are indoors at night in a warm coop will help.

Chanteclers were bred to have almost no comb or wattles so that they wouldn't have this problem.

 

[DTchickens]

Sumatra-Great broodys/mothers, beautiful looks, a bit skittish at first but once you handle them often they calm down to be probably the nicest chickens around, roosters only crow a few times a day i hear (usually just in the morning and whenever provoked by breeding etc through-out the day). and talkative.. very talkative

EDIT, OH.. and i've heard this -in freezing weathers the other chickens were freezing to death and the sumatras were walking in the snow. HOT weather-Sumatras weren't doing bad... other breeds dying.

http://feathersite.com/Poultry/CGP/Sumatra/BRKSumatras.html -Sumatras

 

[debilorrah]

I love my buff orp. So pretty and full of personality.

 

[TillinWithMyPeeps]

ARGH!

I was so sure that I was going to get the following:

1 Buff Orpington
1 Buckeye
1 Faverolle
and
1 Easter Egger

But, now, I am thinking about the following:

1 Buff Orpington
1 Red Sexlink
1 Easter Egger
and
1 Cuckoo Marans

What do you guys think? Also, if I buy these birds from a hatchery (My Pet Chicken, probably via Meyer Hatchery) Do you think I will be too disappointed (like with the egg colors)?

 

[TillinWithMyPeeps]

Can anyone help me with this conundrum? Do these breeds lay well in winter? Any major difference between Black Copper and Cuckoo Marans?

 

[welman]

I have 5 NH Reds...I have nothing to compare them to but we love them. They follow me around the yard and seem to be friendly enough! They're only 16 weeks or so...things could change I guess!

Someone posted this link to a pretty comprehensive list of characteristics
http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html

Hope it helps! Good Luck!

 

[TillinWithMyPeeps]

Thanks,

I knew this site existed, but I forgot the link, i will add it to my Favorites, right next to BYC

.

Anyone else have insightful information regarding my choices?

 

[AlabamaChickenHead]

Trust me, you want to get at least 2 of everything instead of one..............you can always cull some later, but it will just kill you to get those four hens to laying age and then loose one or two to a preditor or sickness or worse, they turn out to be roos.

For example if you get a new puppy, not much chance of anything happening to him (short of neglect) but Chickens will find a way to get killed, eaten, lost, sick...........its not nice to talk about but it happens, do yourself a favor and get 6-8 chicks if you want to end up with 3-4 good layers, just my 2 cents!

 

[Lee]

Quote:
I have to agree and will go one further. Get twice as many as you think you want. Things do happen, Murphy's Law you know.

Geez, I've got White & Barred Rocks, Buff Orps, NH Reds and Speckled Sussex and I love them all!