Good laying breeds that are too fat or lazy to fly over electric netting?

[Amer]

Hatcheries normally offer some large, beautiful Brahma pullets.
Buckeyes are great too, but I might be a little biased on that aspect.

 

[21hens-incharge]

My buff Orpington must not have read the manual.
She tries to roost on garden trellis that is 6' straight up with no helpful stumps etc anywhere near.
By the by it is a piece of cattle panel. not the best for footing up there.

 

[Henriettamom919]

My Buff Orps were never inclined to fly, I think they thought it was beneath them.

 

[Fur-N-Fowl]

My Brahmas can't go out of our fence which is around 4ft I think. Not to say they can't jump it because I know they can. They jump onto out goat pen which is higher.
However, I've found they prefer jumping onto a solid surface as they can't keep themselves lifted for very long with them being so big. Maybe that's why they won't jump over a fence.

My Brahmas prefer to stick to the safety of the fenced area and never really explore off the ground. They are 'terrible' for going broody though and when they do, they don't lay at all.

If you manage to prevent them from going broody you can get anywhere from 4-7 eggs a week. All depends on their feed and living conditions I guess

I can't vouch for how they cope with heat though as we rarely get overly hot summers here.

 

[cmom]

Unfortunately, neither clipping nor covering are good options for my setup. The fenced area is 368 feet around (2 sections of electrified netting each 184' long) with bushes, scrub trees and bigger trees throughout. Even I clip their wings, I believe they could hop into a bush or onto a stump or their run-in roof or into the grape vines and flump themselves over. The cedar trees, although excellent hawk protection, are also easy to "climb" for the agile ones. That is why I am asking about fat and lazy breeds of chickens that just aren't interested in working that hard to get out

I did have a couple of White Leghorns (Houdini 1 and Houdini 2) that could find their way out of any coop and pen I put them in. They got out one too many times and eventually disappeared. This is many years ago when I first planted the trees in the pens. I completely covered all of the pens which are 200 feet x 60 feet. Since this picture was taken we have added a couple more coops with pens.

This picture was taken a few years ago and the trees are bigger now.

 

[DellaMyDarling]

Options:

1. Cover your exposed areas with netting. Sounds like you'll have to get creative.

2. If you're losing babies because they wander beyond fence, you don't have a fence. You also don't have a fence if everyone flies over it. Rethink the fence. The babies themselves could be contained in a smaller enclosure within the chicken area, with mom, until too big to just disappear.

3. Get rid of the predator. Lots of options here.

 

[ColtHandorf]

Lets see, out of the breeds I've kept, the larger breeds like Light and Buff Brahmas were not at all inclined to fly. They required ladders to the roosts etc. Cochins (Golden-laced, Blue, Black, Splash, and Partridge) and did not fly...ever. They wouldn't even roost. lol Salmon Faverolles, Wyandottes (Gold, Silver, and Blue-laced Red), Javas (White, Black, and Mottled) were other good non-flighty breeds. I was also able to keep Sicilian Buttercups, Rhode Island Reds, Black Australorps, Marans, Speckled Sussex, Ameraucanas, Easter Eggers, etc in with no problem. The only birds I consistently had trouble with were the Dominiques. Those little farts drove me insane. They flew straight over five foot wire no problem. So I clipped them. Then they couldn't fly out, but they'd walk the wire. Wing flapping the entire time as they walked up the fence they could clear it. I finally just sold them all off since the rooster wasn't content with staying in his pen or just out either.

Currently I'm keeping English Silver-laced Orpingtons and they are decent layers and not at all inclined to fly. They are so large they have trouble jumping up the three feet or so to roost. I had to put a ten foot ladder in the pen for them so they have an easy incline to get up to the roost. I could also save some eggs for hatching or if you're close I have started birds available now.

 

[VictoriaTemple]

I adore my Jersey Giants, I have 3 in a mixed flock (the rest are Brahma, Cochin, and Marans, with 1 each of Rhode Island Red, Easter Egger, and Americauna). My laying hen is an unusually excellent layer, 5-6 jumbo brown eggs per week that are extra-high protein, huge fat yolks and delicious! She does, however, skimp on the antibacterial bloom. Most JGs will give you 3-4 eggs per week, perfect for a dual-purpose rock star! My rooster is a heavyweight bodybuilder @ 14 pounds @ 1 year old, and will continue to grow for 2 more years at least. My hen is about 8.5 pounds, and also 1 year old. My pullet is from the same breeder as the hen, and will likely grow similarly to her. None show any interest at all in going over my 4-foot fence. Actually, Hero actively discourages any flight at all within his yard, and disciplines offenders long before they attempt escape! He has short powerful wings that were clearly not designed for much flying. Keep in mind, though, that mine are not hatchery hybrids, they are pure bred breeder stock. Jersey Giant is a vanishing breed, so hatcheries cross with Australorp and others and still call them Jersey Giant. Hatchery JGs might have different wing shape and flight habits. Good JGs are also not at all the "eating machines" they are reputed to be, because their metabolism matches their build. Shiny feathers= healthy bird, and they are surprisingly NOT huge eaters. They do like some extra protein in their diet (I breed earthworms), and both roosters and hens benefit from eggshells or oyster shells for calcium. The biggest key is grass. They MUST have fresh grass when available, they are NOT happy with only grain-based feed. Given the choice, mine pick grass every time, leading to slow, healthy, vitamin-fueled growth. Get them from a reputable breeder and raise them right, and they won't disappoint you! FYI, they seem to prefer having more than one rooster in the flock, probably because of their origin as a poulterer's specialty broiler breed. Good luck!

 

[VictoriaTemple]

My Buff Orps were never inclined to fly, I think they thought it was beneath them.

LOL!!

 

[Henriettamom919]

I adore my Jersey Giants, I have 3 in a mixed flock (the rest are Brahma, Cochin, and Marans, with 1 each of Rhode Island Red, Easter Egger, and Americauna). My laying hen is an unusually excellent layer, 5-6 jumbo brown eggs per week that are extra-high protein, huge fat yolks and delicious! She does, however, skimp on the antibacterial bloom. Most JGs will give you 3-4 eggs per week, perfect for a dual-purpose rock star! My rooster is a heavyweight bodybuilder @ 14 pounds @ 1 year old, and will continue to grow for 2 more years at least. My hen is about 8.5 pounds, and also 1 year old. My pullet is from the same breeder as the hen, and will likely grow similarly to her. None show any interest at all in going over my 4-foot fence. Actually, Hero actively discourages any flight at all within his yard, and disciplines offenders long before they attempt escape! He has short powerful wings that were clearly not designed for much flying. Keep in mind, though, that mine are not hatchery hybrids, they are pure bred breeder stock. Jersey Giant is a vanishing breed, so hatcheries cross with Australorp and others and still call them Jersey Giant. Hatchery JGs might have different wing shape and flight habits. Good JGs are also not at all the "eating machines" they are reputed to be, because their metabolism matches their build. Shiny feathers= healthy bird, and they are surprisingly NOT huge eaters. They do like some extra protein in their diet (I breed earthworms), and both roosters and hens benefit from eggshells or oyster shells for calcium. The biggest key is grass. They MUST have fresh grass when available, they are NOT happy with only grain-based feed. Given the choice, mine pick grass every time, leading to slow, healthy, vitamin-fueled growth. Get them from a reputable breeder and raise them right, and they won't disappoint you! FYI, they seem to prefer having more than one rooster in the flock, probably because of their origin as a poulterer's specialty broiler breed. Good luck!

You've got me wanting to run to a reputable breeder for some of these! Sold!