Good with Kids

[NicolePA]

I am new here, and I wanted to get some chicks for my daughter she will 5, so i need something that will be friendly around her, What type of chicks are good with kids??
I was thinking about getting some american/araucanas but I wasnt sure if they were okay with Kids...


Nicole
Living in Pa

 

[TheBigWRanch]

I know that Buff Orphingtons, Salmon Faverolles, and Cochins make great pets, I've never heard anything about the ones you want though. I've only had one aggressive hen and it was a Old English Game. Most hens will do just fine with children, it is just roosters that sometimes you have to watch out for.

 

[equine chick]

I also think the bramas is a good choice as well as delawares and dominiques.

 

[BeckyLa]

I think the Americaunas/Easter Eggers are the most gentle chickens I have ever met. We are so impressed with their gentleness and personality we ordered 25 chicks. But we have never had a roo of this breed so I can't speak for them.

 

[speckledhen]

My two definite picks would be Buff Orpingtons and Barred Plymouth Rocks, both wonderful breeds, gentle temperaments and good layers. The Buff Orpingtons tend to go broody on occasion and the Barred Rocks rarely do, so that may be one consideration if you dont have a rooster to fertilize eggs for her to sit on. Breaking up a broody hen is sometimes difficult as I can attest with my Buff Orp, Sunny. However, my other Buff Orp hen has never gone broody in her life, so it just depends. Both excellent choices.

 

[Backyard Buddies]

Start by researching the breeds you think you'll like best. The Henderson's chart is a great place to start: http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html and will point you toward breeds that are the most friendly.

Get them as babies and handle them as often as is safe for the chicks. Let your child handle the chicks as well, teaching and showing her the proper way to hold them and care for them. Hand raising is going to create the best opportunity for the chickens to be friendly.

My kids are great with our chickens. We have two RIRs and an Easter Egger. The EE appears to be the least friendly, but it isn't true at all. She's really smart and follows commands well. She is also the most likely to "chat" with us. She's particular about the WAY that she is held, so if you hold her "wrong" she'll start flapping. However, if you hold her correctly, she'll sit there forever. My son often sits on the swing with her.

My kids are 9 and 11 and love their chickens. It's the first place they go when they arrive home from school each day. They help to care for the chickens by feeding them and cleaning their coop. They make wonderful pets. Enjoy!

 

[chooky2005]

why dont you get her several of these rocomeded breed so she can tell them apart name them and relise there all different?

one breed i would steer from are silkies ...they are great gentle quiet birds with great personalities...but they have health needs other chickens dont and they odnt have a proper skull plus they have large pom poms on there head and maybe be somthing for younger children to pull at...or somthing


i hope i helped you

 

[hinkjc]

I think you could find chickens in most any breed that will do well with kids, although there is also a bad chicken in most every breed as well. The most common 'friendly' chickens that I know of are buff orpington and silkies.

From a personal perspective, we raise several different breeds, so I'll give you some insight on those.

Our buff orpingtons are what I call my gentle giants. They are large fowl (also available in bantam, but tough to find) and all of my hens and roosters are gentle. The majority of this group are tame and will eat out of your hands and let you pick them up.

Our Easter Eggers are a little more flighty and not so quick to greet you. There are a few girls in that flock that appreciate a cuddle and like to see you come out for a visit. Don't get me wrong, the others will come for a snack, but otherwise, don't really want to be bothered. The rooster does his own thing and is not really bothered by us. He takes good care of his girls and that's what he is here for. Our other rooster we had in that group, was a big meanie and attacked every chance he had. Don't know why...he just had a mean streak in him. They are certainly not all like that.

Our Araucana is another large flock here and we have mixed personalities there. All of our birds do well with adults, but there is one rooster that scares my daughter. I don't think he means harm, but he does act a bit intimidating towards her. He's on the small side and spunky, but by no means aggressive. We also have wonderful roosters that like to sit on your lap and snuggle or just like to see what you're up to. The hens are fairly different as well...some like company and others are saying 'hey, get out of here...this is my space".

Our silkies are a lot of fun and from the short time I've had them, I've found them to be very mellow. They don't mind a hug when you want one and they love to see you for snacks. They seem a bit shy to me, but maybe they'll loosen up in time. I can pet all of them without worries and my daughter loves them.

Now, having said all that...you can get very mixed results and for various reasons, regardless of the breed you choose. A lot depends on how you raise them and who does a lot of the handling and caring for them. While most tameness comes from a lot of handling and interaction, there are exceptions as you can see in my notes above. An individual chicken personality does not speak for the whole breed, so what one of us experienced with one or many birds, you could get completely different results. I hope this is helpful and wish you the best in your choice.

Jody

 

[CarriBrown]

I'm a sucker for Barred Rocks...

 

[silkiechicken]

I don't know what is wrong with my EE's and barred rocks but when ever I have tried to get them they have always ended up the most skittish and mean little suckers. I 've had the best luck with RIR's and production red's and blacks.