Breed Recommendations for a newbie

[colmcmanus]

Hi - I would recommend Easter Eggers. We started with seven birds last year (2 easter eggers, 2 speckled sussex, 2 buff orpingtons, and 1 cinnamon queen) and have added a couple more easter eggers, an australorpe, and a light brahma chick. The Easter eggers are very friendly. One of my older ones will hop onto our back if we lean over and feed the others. They are both good consistent layers (though one lays a light blue egg and the other a greenish egg). Our younger Easter eggers are also friendly - too soon to tell what they'll be like as grown ups. We also adore our baby brahma. One of our speckled sussex is very curious and if I'm working outside, she'll come next to me and dig with me. Our cinnamon queen is a great brown egg layer. Our buffs lay every other day, so not as frequent as the other birds. Speckled sussex seem less frequent than the easter eggers and cinnamon queen. All in all, we haven't had any problems with any of our birds in terms of pecking people. I have elementary aged kids, and all the birds are tolerant of being handled by them and the neighbor's kids. Hope this helps!

 

[OneBrahma]

Golden comets are good layers. I know a few people who have had big problems with aggression (toward other chickens), but we don't have this problem--probably because they freerange, and everyone has plenty of space. I would also recommend marans. Ours are good producers of dark brown eggs, and they have great dispositions. You can pick them up and they will chatter to you as if they're telling you about their day. The other brown egg laying breed I've had experience with is the speckled sussex. They are fair layers, pretty, and good-natured. Very fat and huggable, if you are in to that sort of thing.

 

[Wildkatzchicken]

I have downsized and moved to the city, booo lol but I still have 3 chickens, I decided to go with Cochin's. They lay brown eggs and are friendly. They also are quite hilarious. My husband likes to pet them and has a heavy hand so the largest of my Cochin's (Bess) spreads her legs, gets a stance and waits for the pet. It is quite the most hilarious sight to see. As with all chickens they will peck a little finger at times thinking worm but as they get used to you they learn your habits and are quite friendly.

 

[chickyen]

I have a RIR, light brahma, and buff orpington. I am a newbie chicken owner as well, and my chickens aren't old enough to lay eggs, so I don't know what the broodiness from the buff and the brahma will be like, but they are all friendly. They aren't very strict about the pecking order, and I have never had one injured by the others. They overall go great together, at least for me. Have fun with the breeds you choose!

 

[Michael OShay]

I have had many different breeds over the years in addition to managing a chicken hatchery that sold many breeds. If you are willing to go with hybrids, I would suggest black stars (black sex link). They are great layers and have been friendlier and more docile than other hybrids, also better cold weather layers. If you decide you want to go with a standard breed then I would suggest black australorps. They are not quite as good layers as the better hybrids, but they lay as well as any other brown egg standard breed and they are very friendly, docile, and hardy (both in cold and hot weather). Hope this helps.

 

[The Yakima Kid]

I think that a flock of Barred or White Rocks, or Black Stars is an easy way to go. All of these are comparatively tough breeds; and for generations the Barred Rock was the favored breed on American farms, right up until the age of the modern production bred.

Cochins and Brahmas can be very friendly - but you absolutely must ensure that they have a dry clean run for those legs to avoid problems. Marans can be too noisy for the city; although Rocks and Black Stars can be chatty, they have less carrying voices and are less vocal. Our Marans caused problems with a neighbor because her voice carried and she was very vocal.

Broodiness is pretty useless unless you intend to hatch eggs; and this requires separate quarters for Biddy and her babies. It also requires fertile eggs - which means buying fertile eggs or keeping a rooster - and the latter is not recommended around children.

If you want white eggs, go with a California Gray. Far calmer and friendlier than a Leghorn. Does not bounce off the walls when handled by calm children.

Australorps can be very good as well. Orpingtons enjoy going broody, and many RIRs are not particularly nice or friendly birds.

My other suggestion is if this is your first time keeping chickens, choose one of the calmer, friendlier, American class breeds, all of the same breed and color. Biddies tend to die of reproductive issues by age four, so it isn't like making a commitment to a parrot. When you have more experience, you can decide how much drama you are willing to live with.

Drama can be horrible. This spring at least two people on a local list have had biddies scalped, their skin torn off their heads, necks, or backs, by other biddies. In both cases the owners chose to mix less aggressive and more aggressive breeds and strains with color, comb, and feathering differences. In one case a biddy died, in another, it was a fairly long, but narrow strip of skin peeled off and the problem was caught in time. In any event, the surviving hen is slowly healing and can never return to the coop due to the risk of torture and death at the hand of more aggressive hens. Other hens, less injured, have had to be removed from other coops.

 

[Michael OShay]

Mpgo4th is correct in saying that they are all red males X white/silver females, although there are different breeds used for these hybrids layers. RSLs, also known as Red Stars, are RIR X Delaware, Golden Comets are typically Production Red X R.I.White, unless you are talking about Hubbard's Golden Comet which is New Hampshire Red X White Rock. ISA Browns, also sold as Shaver Browns and Babcock Browns are RIR X White Leghorn, and Star is simply another name for Sex Link. Black Sex Link, also sold as Black Star or Bovans Nera, is RIR X Barred Rock; Brown Sex Link, also sold as Brown Stars is RIR X White Rock; and Gold Sex Link, also sold as Cinnamon Queen, Bovans Brown, Golden Buff, and Amber Star is RIR X R.I. White. I personally prefer the Black Sex Link (Black Stars) as they have been a little friendlier and more docile than my other hybrids and have layed a little better in cold, winter weather.

 

[birdlady79]

I LOVE my Speckald Sussex, Barred Rock, and BOrpington...... My SS is the sweetest!!!

 

[Michael OShay]

@IrishAcreFarm Yes, there is a difference in the temperament of Black Stars (BSL) and Red Stars (RSL). The Black Stars are a little friendlier and more docile than the Red Stars and mine layed a little better in really cold winter weather.

 

[The Yakima Kid]

@IrishAcreFarm Yes, there is a difference in the temperament of Black Stars (BSL) and Red Stars (RSL). The Black Stars are a little friendlier and more docile than the Red Stars and mine layed a little better in really cold winter weather.

I have found Black Stars to also be less cannibalistic than Red Stars. The various Leghorn X brown egg layers tend to be too cannibalistic for my tastes.

Yes, the pun was intended.