Best dark egg laying breed and hatchery

[familychickenman]

I really want to get some good productivity dark egg laying hens. I am thinking some Maran's. Are these the best breed for this? Where is the best place to get them?

 

[JLMom]

You might want to post this is "Breed, Genetics, and Showing" instead of here.

 

[rancher hicks]

If your looking for just "dark" eggs then you want marans. If you want productivity then you want RIR's. If you want both meat and eggs then you want Delawares. Dual purpose birds are a good compromise for meat and eggs. When an "egg" bird is done there is nothing left to eat. RIR's are a dual purpose bird but not as meaty as the Delaware.
Personally I don't know too many who are keeping Marans eggs to show their friends, which means they're eating them. I will say if you can master the knack for blowing out eggs you could acquire a collection of dark eggs. Glue a couple of brass craft do hickies and bingo a fragile dark brown or copper colored Christmas ornament.

 

[australorpchick]

Ooooohhh, I love the ornament idea.