I am still debating.....Doms or RIR RCs?

[Rare Feathers Farm]

Every year (for the past three years) I have been debating about what kind of "free-range" chicken I want....

The MUSTS:

At least (sort of) rare (I don't want anything too common on my place)

and they have to be rare enough to allow me to sell their eggs as hatching eggs but not too rare that if I lose one or two occasion that I'll be unable to ever replace them

Very hardy--their coop will have no heat or insulation and we get well below zero here in the winters.

Rose comb or pea comb to prevent frostbitten combs

Something that forages well (they will be fed in the winters but on their own the rest of the time. We have hoards of grasshoppers every summer!

Good-natured roosters (I do not tolerate being ninja-kicked every time I walk out the door!)

Lay brown eggs (these will be sold as eating eggs to friends & co-workers to help supplement their winter feed bill)

I would like something that grows kind of fast--I have had Brahmas in the past and they just took too long to sex, lay or get meaty enough to butcher

Something with a good carcass--I plan on hatching out chicks each spring and raising 25 or so for meat

The two breeds I've been considering:

Dominique
RIR RCS

I tried the White Dorkings in the past with little success but I am not sure I want to give up yet........

 

[CrestedGirl]

We have a pair of dominickers, the roo,Zebra, is one of the smartest and nicest Roos we have. The hen, trumpet lays some nice medium brown eggs for us!

I would say dominiques

 

[mississippifarmboy]

We free range all of our growing birds, and I mean freerange as in not a fence for miles and an open coop. We do keep the feeders full year-round. Of course our winters are much milder, but you already have the best free range birds I've ever owned.... Russian Orloffs.
The only down side out of your list is they lay a light egg and do grow a bit slow for meat birds and are tough to sex early. We have around a hundred running around now from about 6 weeks old up to over a year old.


Out of the three breeds you mentioned I'd suggest Dominques. They are our second best foragers and true quality stock is very rare.

 

[Rare Feathers Farm]

Quote:
Thanks! I'm really torn between them & the RIR RCS, I think....

Doms would be nice because I don't have anything that color at all....

Although I don't have anything RIR colored, either.

 

[Rare Feathers Farm]

Quote:
Thanks! I don't let any of my others out of the coop, ever....just because we have so many predators...and they're not scared of anything. The last time I tried that, I had a neighbor dog come over and kill every single one.

Which was my fault because I'd taken Cash (our LGD) with me to town and left all of the chickens out.

Yes--these would have miles & miles and no fences, either....

Orloffs do grow very slowly and mine took 8-9 months to reach laying age...

 

[Rare Feathers Farm]

I remember someone on BYC earlier this spring with some awesome (show) Doms....he was selling eggs...

I have several sources for the RIR RCs and only two for top-quality Doms....

It would be nice to be able to show these guys as well....I don't keep anything I cannot show.

 

[CrestedGirl]

 

[Rare Feathers Farm]

My in-laws have Black Australorps from IDEAL. They range year 'round and have a coop they go in at night. In the winters, they do have a heat lamp & a heated waterer but no insulation or anything. None of her birds have combs anymore (they froze off).

I was trying to convince her to try RIR RCs!

 

[mississippifarmboy]

Just sent ya a PM on the Doms.

Good luck!

 

[zookeeper15133]

RIR roos are notoriously nasty. We had one we raised from a chick. He was handled a lot. He was my grandsons favorite. At about 8 months he started attacking. We tried many solutions but had to get rid of him at about 1 year. We couldn't even go in the coop to feed and water with out being attacked. I have read on here many other stories about nasty RIR roos. But the hens are very nice and lay large brown eggs.