Howdy from Denton TX

[DentonChicken]

Hi all of BYC!

I'm so thrilled to have a forum of this caliber and might! I find the information here is so wonderful and everyone is so friendly. I've been snooping around for a couple of months now, and haven't come across one nasty bit of nonsense. It's refreshing!

I've began my chicken adventure, admittedly a little late in the year... but my coop should be finished by next week, with a 4x8 run attached to it for the birds. I'm hoping to just house 3 or 4.

I've got a smaller backyard in an older part of Denton pretty close to the UNT campus. The birds will be cooped most of the time, but when I'm home they'll get to free range a bit when I'm around.

Breeds I'm considering:

Americaunas
Black Australorps
Barred Rock
Black Sex Links

Any suggestions for a small flock, smallish yard, and looking for general laid back personalities and decent egg laying. Would love any suggestions!

Thank you all so much and I look forward to being apart of this community!

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Welcome to BYC!
The breeds you have listed would all be good choices - I might also suggest a Buff Orpington just because they are a favorite of mine (the three we have in our flock at the moment are the three friendliest out of 21). On the Ameraucana issue - if you want a true Ameraucana you will need to source your bird(s) carefully as they are a breed that is often mixed up/confused/purposefully misrepresented with folks buying what is actually an Easter Egger. The good news is that Easter Eggers actually tend to be better layers than the true Ameraucana, so if what you are looking for is the potential of a blue or green egg there is no worries in getting the birds Easter Eggers from feed stores/hatcheries/etc.

 

[drumstick diva]

Welcome to the BYC flock. Rule of thumb holds that you need 4-5 sq.feet per bird inside the coop excluding nest boxes & roosts, and 10 sq.feet per bird in the outdoor run. You may like to join your state thread to find out how they handle weather extremes, and know what predators you may have to deal with.

Between the Learning Center and any specific forums, you should have many of your questions answered.

 

[Peep-Chicken]

Hello and welcome to BYC!

 

[Chicken Girl1]

 

[Michael OShay]

Welcome to BYC. Glad you decided to join our flock. My wife and I were both raised in the great state of Texas, not far from where you are (Blue Ridge for her, Greenville for me). ) Those are some great breeds on your list. Black Australorps are my favorite standard breed as they are extremely hardy, calm and gentle (my children and granddaughter made lap pets of them), and excellent layers of large brown eggs. And Black Sex Links are my favorite of all chickens (they are actually hybrids and not breeds) as they are very friendly and hardy egg laying machines. I raised them for years (along with dozens of other breeds), and they have been my best layers, consistently churning out more than 300 large, brown eggs per hen per year, with double yolks not being uncommon. You might also want to consider getting more than one kind of chicken. These four will all mix well (assuming they are not overcrowded) and will a mix you will be able to see which you prefer over time. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. We are here to help in any way we can. Cheers.

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Welcome to BYC! I'm glad you joined us!

 

[trailrider330]

Welcome to the BYC flock! We are glad you joined us!