Help picking MORE chickens! Breed suggestions?

Consider Speckled Sussex and Faverolles. For the life of me, I can't figure out why EVERYONE doesn't have these breeds for backyard, dual-purpose chickens. They should be as popular as the Buff Orpingtons (which I also recommend).

 

I don't have alot of expierence in alot of chicken breeds. My friend Denise has just added some Isa Browns. I read they are good layers but I don't know from personal experience. She has 5 Mille Fleur bantams and they lay alot of eggs! You would think them being a fancy bantam they couldn't forage, but they do. They free range along with her standards. I don't have any personal expierence with alot of bantams either, but I really love the Mille Fleurs. They are so comical and the hens are really beautiful with all their speckles and such. They seem to be in demand as pets too. Her local feed store sold out of all their Mille Fleur chicks!

 

i have rir's,opingtons and red sex links. they all are very good layers of brown eggs and the orpingtons are a good table bird

 

I have heard great things about the "Red Sex Links" from MM. The cockerel chicks they sent me (extras) are very robust and growing faster than my other breeds.

Andy

 

Yes, the Sussex lay brown eggs. The hens tend to get more and more speckledy as they get older, too, especially around the head. Not sure about the roos... however, they're supposed to be (typically) quite nice.

I've also heard good things about the sex links, but I've always had a hankering to raise my own birds, and the sex links won't breed true. If you don't care about that, then it shouldn't matter.

A friend of mine has raised goats and chickens for 30 years, and he has the best animals I've ever seen. The reason is that he only breeds for what he likes. He doesn't show. He's interested in breeding friendly, healthy birds that are gentle, easy to confine to his run, and lay eggs all year long. I don't know how well they conform the the standards of their breed, but just looking at them you can tell they're happy, healthy birds with shiny plumage. He currently has Brahmas and Orpingtons.

I'd like to have the same quality in my birds: not show quality, but backyard flock quality. That's why I'm so interested in the Faverolles and the Sussex, because they seem to be my idea of a good breed to start out with. PLus, they're rare, and if I can help preserve a heritage breed, then all the better.

 

I've never had any of these breeds so I can't speak on temperment, but according to the books they lay white eggs:

Leghorns (come in white, brown, red, and silver)
Blue Andalusians
Anconas
Silver Spangled Hamburgs
Minorcas (buff and black)
Phoenixs
Sumatras
Silver Grey Dorkings
Golden Campines
Lakenvelders
Buttercups

And I'm sure there are dozens more, but these should be common enough for you to find more info on. Good luck, and be sure to post lots of pics!

 

I have three red sex links and they are the friendliest of the bunch. I like their coloration as well. My husband had them as a teenager and they were the one type he insisted we get this time. Great egg production. My Dominiques are a little more skiddish, but beautiful! They are also brown egg layers.