Chicken Behavior

[DoublePrincess]

I want chickens but I want docile ones that this old lady can handle. I would love a blue egg layer too. Any suggestions?

 

[SilverBirds]

Where in the world are you located? Knowing your general location can help us suggest breeds that will do well in your climate. Are you looking to keep one breed or multiple breeds?

There are a few pure breeds that lay blue eggs and a whole lot of hatchery hybrids that do. Ameraucanas are a pure breed that lay a nice blue egg. They can be a bit flightier than other breeds but that doesn't mean they can't be handled when needed. Cream Legbars are another popular blue egger. I've never owned any myself but from what I've read that are a friendly, docile breed. Easter Eggers are a mixed breed that come in many different shapes, sizes, and with different names depending on where you source them from. Some hatcheries refer to them as Americanas, so watch out if you're looking to get a pure bred Ameraucana. Being mixes, their eggs can range from blues, to greens, to browns.

If you're also looking to get a few brown layers, I would suggest Sussex, Plymouth Rocks, Wyandottes, or Red Sex Links. In my experience, all of these breeds have been very friendly birds and double as great layers. The first 3 come in many different color variations and make for some great eye candy as a bonus.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

I too am older with a bad back, but chicken keeping can be relatively easy to do with much less work than many pets. I find it very enjoyable, with a little bit of help from the family for any heavy lifting.

Many breeds are very docile especially if hand raised, though most won't be affectionate like a cat or dog. I know my chickens love me because I feed them treats, but I'm okay with that. I enjoy their avarice little hearts running after me and the treat bucket. Mine are more of an egg hobby than pets. (I have a cat and dog for snuggles).

If you want very docile breeds, you can choose Favorelle or Silkie. If you want docile blue layer, Ameraucana tend to be quiet birds. I find my Cream Legbar are a bit flighty. There are numerous new blue breeds like True Blue that would probably fit the bill.

If you want quiet, I definitely would stay away from roosters. Some can be very sweet while others not so much. Many tend to be aggressive, and you don't need a rooster for hens to lay eggs.

I'd keep the flock smaller, 3 to 4 birds, depending on how many eggs you want, so you can keep coops smaller and overall feeding and cleaning easy. (As I write that I want you to know I have 24 adult birds now with 7 chicks freshly hatched...I should warn you that chickens are potatoe chips...you can't seem to get enough).

As long as you can move feed bags (or have a healthy grandchild or family member do so), and keep the coop cleaning easy, chickens are very easy care. They are more eye candy than hard work.

I find having a raised coop, meaning the coop floor at knee or mid-thigh level, really helps me clean the coops without straining my back. I also place my opened up feed bags as a liner for the floors so that all I have to do is pull the plastic feed bag and the shavings come out in a quick swoosh avoiding shoveling and scraping. I then re-lay opened up bags down and place new pine shavings on top. This really helps keep the coops clean. I toss the coop shavings into the run which keeps the runs refreshed.

A hanging feeder that is top filled is essential. You can pour feed from the top. There are some nice automatic feeders out, but I keep it simple with a refill and check once daily. I like a large 1.5 gallon dog bowl for water as you can top fill and kick it over to spray clean with the hose. Many of the waterers require bending down, unscrewing, filling and rescrewing. There are some top filler waterers out there, and I have one I constantly fight with. I find them finicky with gravity flow mechanisms that get gunked up easily.

I'll link a breed chart below that gives you ideas for personality types for chickens. My personal favorites over the years have been Silkies (slow, small, sweethearts except when they become brooding momma bears), Barred Rocks (friendly and inquisitive), Barnevelders (real sweet hearts), the Red Sexlink hybrids (good layers and generally calm birds), Buckeyes (good for laying and meat, generally calm). I personally hated my Buff Orpingtons as they were nasty, lazy and mean, but many love their Buff Orps. I likely just got a poor batch from a hatchery. I'd stay away from Leghorns (Brown and White) as they tend to be flighty as do the Games. Most hybrids (mixed breeds) tend to be quieter. I haven't met a hatchery Rhode Island (production Red) that I've liked. Produce well but are mean tempered.

edited to add: I agree that Wyandottes and Sussex also are good choices for calm decent layers.

Good luck with your new chicken endeavor <3

LofMc

https://robertsfarm.us/breed.php

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I just don't think you can go wrong with Easter Eggers. Hoover's Hatchery has a hybrid called Prairie Blubell Eggers that lay a very pretty blue egg, but the birds are not uniform in appearance so you get a nice mixed-looking flock. Good luck snd enjoy your chicken hobby! A word of advice: if you purchase a pre-made coop, don't believe the ad that says how many birds it will hold. Measure it, LxW, minus the nest area, and divide the square footage by four. That's how many birds it will REALLY hold.

 

[SamLockwood]

I want chickens but I want docile ones that this old lady can handle. I would love a blue egg layer too. Any suggestions?

I've had good luck with both cream leg bars and olive eggers. Both are almost annoyingly friendly, good egg layers, and overall pretty chill.

 

[Mrs. K]

Maybe you want pets, but don't think you have to handle your birds. I almost never touch mine. I just watch them. I love to watch them.

DO NOT get one of the cute prefab chicken coops, unless you only want 2-3 smaller hens. They say they will keep 6 but they won't.

Personally I like a coop I can walk into. Mine is more like a shed. My chickens are my reason to get out of the house. I take a bucket of feed down each day, and a gallon of water. You can spend as much or as little as you want on their feed bowls. If it gets cold, I do like black rubber bowls to put the water in, so I can stomp it out when it is frozen. Some people have electricity at their coop and heat the water.

As for birds and everything getting along - the most important thing is enough space. It is hard to believe that the puff balls, will grow up, but they do, and when they do so - they need space.

Mrs K