Help me decide on chickens

[Ilovemychicks08]

I'm seeing a lot of Orpington, Sussex, and Wyandotte. I think I'm a little worried about the Orpingtons' ability to stay cool given...well, they're very borb. Bird-orb. But it does look like non-show birds are less round, so it'll probably be okay. I like the colors all of these come in, and they all look very cute from initial Googling.


I do not want feathered feet. I spoke to the Husband since I posted and he's very against dealing with feathery feet. That being said - I was looking into Belgian d'Anvers bantams because they're so stinkin' cute - I don't know if you (or anyone else) has any opinions about these?

...I am a little tiny bit sad that it looks like I won't have a bearded chicken. I might attempt getting an Easter Egger anyway - though if anyone has any beard-y recommendations that would fit in with some Orpingtons/Sussex/Wyandottes, I'm all ears! I finally remembered the name for Russian Orloffs, which hit all the aesthetics for me but which I can't find/keep easily.

Belgian d anvers would be good. My Orpingtons do good in heat. We already have 80 plus degrees days. And last year they did well in 95 plus degrees.
Just add cool water, i add ice, then i have watermelon and mist their run. Provide plenty of shade and the coop has fans.

Im hatching some Russian Orloffs i can get them locally. Maybe post in your state forum on here and someone will help you find some.
We have had 100 plus days and the breeder says hers are ok in the heat.

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

Sussex is a great breed, I am not sure if they will fit exactly into your standards but the speckled variety has wonderful camouflaged plumage, go broody often and lay the amount of eggs that you want—good egg production but not too much to where it will harm them. I aim to always keep Speckled Sussex because they are beautiful, friendly and great.

 

[AinaWGSD]

What about Favorelles? They have beards and muffs. And by most people's accounts they're super friendly birds. They do have feathered feet, but the feathering isn't particularly heavy.

 

[AntiqueB]

I have 2 EEs. One grew up with the Buff Orpington that became the top hen. When she died, the EE took over. My other EE is the most laid-back chicken ever. I can put her with new chickens, and she just accepts them. She's the one I let my students pet and pick up because she is so docile. Every chicken has its own personality!

My Orpington was constantly broody, poor thing, but my Sussex never was! She was friendly in a goofy sort of way, that Sussex! But she was always the first to go into danger (like trying to kill a mouse).

 

[scyllarus]

What about Favorelles? They have beards and muffs. And by most people's accounts they're super friendly birds. They do have feathered feet, but the feathering isn't particularly heavy.

I love their looks! I'm really rather worried about them doing okay with our summers + feathered feet, so they're lower on the list.

Right now I'm thinking one of each chicken. I'm not 100% sure of how much room we have (I think it's 1/4 acre, but I'm going off of like...comparison to a property I'm familiar with that's 3/4 acre) so for now I'm aiming for 5-6 chickens, max. Since I want multiple breeds, I figure it's better to have very different chickens so it's less likely that they'll clique up and bully the odd one out - so I've listed some in colors because I'm avoiding have two of the same color as well.

Then again, I have to find chicks/eggs, some of them die, etc etc etc...we'll see how it goes.

The current list:
Russian Orloff
White or Speckled Sussex
Lavender or Splash or Buff Orpington
Easter Egger
Some color of Laced Wyandotte

Other options:
Australorp - might do these instead of regular Orpingtons since these seem more heat-hardy
Jersey Giants - The Husband wants BIG CHICKEN and these seem very gentle
Langshan - Looks like a pretty ideal breed for warmer climates, but I don't see a lot of keepers talking about keeping these.
Bantams - I might...just keep a dozen banties instead. The D'anvers have my heart for cute chickens, but I do not feel good about putting one single bantam hen in with the much larger breeds. For now it's on the back burner.

 

[notabitail]

I'm seeing a lot of Orpington, Sussex, and Wyandotte. I think I'm a little worried about the Orpingtons' ability to stay cool given...well, they're very borb. Bird-orb. But it does look like non-show birds are less round, so it'll probably be okay. I like the colors all of these come in, and they all look very cute from initial Googling.


I do not want feathered feet. I spoke to the Husband since I posted and he's very against dealing with feathery feet. That being said - I was looking into Belgian d'Anvers bantams because they're so stinkin' cute - I don't know if you (or anyone else) has any opinions about these?

...I am a little tiny bit sad that it looks like I won't have a bearded chicken. I might attempt getting an Easter Egger anyway - though if anyone has any beard-y recommendations that would fit in with some Orpingtons/Sussex/Wyandottes, I'm all ears! I finally remembered the name for Russian Orloffs, which hit all the aesthetics for me but which I can't find/keep easily.

We have a bunch of mixed breeds. Feathered feet get damaged feathers which get picked at by other chooks. Plenty of bloodshed there.

Speckled Sussex, Cream Legbars, Welsummer, Leghorn.

You might want a rooster as well if it's a small group. Make sure you cuddle the thing a lot while it's a chick.

 

[scyllarus]

We have a bunch of mixed breeds. Feathered feet get damaged feathers which get picked at by other chooks. Plenty of bloodshed there.

Speckled Sussex, Cream Legbars, Welsummer, Leghorn.

You might want a rooster as well if it's a small group. Make sure you cuddle the thing a lot while it's a chick.

I've seen a lot of experiences with aggressive (and nonaggressive) Leghorns, and for some reason my assumption is that the Legbars and Welsummers are a little more aggressive than the other breeds listed. I'm already avoiding feathered feet because of the mess, so these are more reasons to not deal with them.

edit: Looked it up and I think my concern is that Legbars and Welsummers are a bit flightier and more aggressive in general. I know that it depends on the individual, how we handle them, etc as well, but I want to set myself up for success.

I don't think I'll be keeping a rooster at first since a lot of people have mentioned these seem to be for more advanced keepers. However, I really love the way Russian Orloff and Jersey Giant roosters look, so I'm not deeply against getting a rooster once I feel more comfortable with keeping chickens (and clear it with neighbors, etc) - but I assumed it would be worse to keep a rooster with only a few hens? More issues with overbreeding, for example.

 

[SourRoses]

My Ameraucana (not EE) get along very well with the sweet Orpingtons. The Ams often have a very curious personality, and are smart and in charge, yet they don't tend to be mean.

I've kept English Orpington (very floofy) in the heat here in FL, and provided the right conditions they do okay (open-air or partially open-air coop NOT a box, and deep shade under mature trees to rest in summer). I wouldn't call them heat hardy. But my neighbor has the production American bred Orpingtons in Buff and Lavender, and they seem to do quite fine.


Here's one of the beardy girls from my Am + Orp mix...

 

[notabitail]

I've seen a lot of experiences with aggressive (and nonaggressive) Leghorns, and for some reason my assumption is that the Legbars and Welsummers are a little more aggressive than the other breeds listed. I'm already avoiding feathered feet because of the mess, so these are more reasons to not deal with them.

edit: Looked it up and I think my concern is that Legbars and Welsummers are a bit flightier and more aggressive in general. I know that it depends on the individual, how we handle them, etc as well, but I want to set myself up for success.

I don't think I'll be keeping a rooster at first since a lot of people have mentioned these seem to be for more advanced keepers. However, I really love the way Russian Orloff and Jersey Giant roosters look, so I'm not deeply against getting a rooster once I feel more comfortable with keeping chickens (and clear it with neighbors, etc) - but I assumed it would be worse to keep a rooster with only a few hens? More issues with overbreeding, for example.

My Leghorn is the lead hen. She's gotten along fairly well with the others. Same for the Welsummer.

Dominiques would be a good breed as well. Not the friendliest, but mine are the friendliest birds on earth, especially if food is involved. I have a group of six (Leghorn, Welsummer, 2 Cream Legbar, 2 Dominique, and previously a Speckled Sussex). They all get along fairly well, with the occasional peck. The Leghorn and Welsummer are hard to pick up but seem to be just fine on my lap at times (especially Welsummer). I have another seperate group and the Welsummer and one of the Dominiques pick fence fights all the time. I think the way they act depends on how they're raised as chicks, and what other chooks they're mixed with. Some parts can be genetic as well (as far as I'm concerned).

If you want a rooster in the future make sure you hatch it, so that the mother hen can take care of it and give it a few spankings to keep it well behaved (yes, hens will do that).

 

[scyllarus]

My Ameraucana (not EE) get along very well with the sweet Orpingtons. The Ams often have a very curious personality, and are smart and in charge, yet they don't tend to be mean.

I've kept English Orpington (very floofy) in the heat here in FL, and provided the right conditions they do okay (open-air or partially open-air coop NOT a box, and deep shade under mature trees to rest in summer). I wouldn't call them heat hardy. But my neighbor has the production American bred Orpingtons in Buff and Lavender, and they seem to do quite fine.

Hello fellow Floridian! She's so floofy, I love her! I'm willing to build a coop to suit the environment, so it's good to know that we'll probably need more ventilation (maybe a fan, too) and definitely shady spots. I've been debating on trying to find a real Ameraucana vs an EE but figured I would probably end up with an EE due to 1) me not wanting to track down a bunch of breeders and 2) the general misinformation out there about what makes an Ameraucana vs EE. I'm very happy to hear that the American-type Orps are pretty hardy with the hot weather since I'm probably going to end up with those.