Hi! I'm planning on adding chickens to my flock early this spring. I currently have four bantams (a silkie, a frizzle and two buff brahmas). I would like to add a full size breed and was thinking of a Barred Rock, but I also heard they're not great when confined in a run. I am unable to let my chickens free-range due to my towns regulations on keeping poultry. I'm looking for advice on what breeds are friendly (would get along with my bantams and my 1 year old daughter), tolerate the cold well (I live outside of Boston, it can get quite cold here), tolerate life without regular time free-ranging, and are good egg layers. All suggestions welcome! Thanks in advance.
I would recommend buff orpingtons. They are very sweet birds, handle confinement very well, are rarely aggressive, are calm, are pretty, and are great layers. This would be my number 1 choice. number 2 would be an Australorp. They are sweet, handle confinement well (not not quite as well as the orps), are calm, pretty, not aggressive, and layer even better than the orpington. Good Luck!! Adding birds is always fun! Make sure if you are getting adult birds, that they are quarantined for a couple weeks before introducing them to your birds. I would be devastating to lose your current ones from something brought in. Good Luck!! Adding birds is always fun!
Barred Rocks are just fine confined to runs...Great layers and really nice to look at......Easter Eggers are colorful with pea combs and usually great layers...Rosecomb breeds such as Silver Laced Wyandottes and White Wyandottes would work....Brahmas are docile but poor layers...