Idea for mixed flock?

[bantamkelley]

I plan on having a coop and run suitable for 8 standard chickens and will let them out occasionally. Here's the idea for the flock: 1 black cochin bantam rooster, 2 good broody hens( Ideas ? ), 5 laying hens( Im thinking sussex but other idease are welcome) Ideas, questions, comments? Shoot away

 

[peterlund]

You want fertile eggs? Hatching your own? If not.. Lose the Roo.
Just a suggestion... Hey, you asked!

 

[bantamkelley]

on the last post i forgot to say that instead of 5 laying hens i wanted 4 and an easter egger. I would prefer to have a hen go broody occasionally and hatch chicks.

 

[kinsey228]

Wyandottes. I can't have a flock w/ out them. I love my White leghorns and my Golden Comets also. They lay very well. I heard Silkies are great at being broody.

 

[aoxa]

Temperament - cochins & BR
Prettiness - Wyandottes and Polish

Egg layers - RIR or even production reds & SS Hamburgs
Broody - Cochins & silkies

 

[donrae]

I love bantam cochins also, but I don't think one is the best choice for a roo for a sustainable flock. The offspring will be half size and cochins aren't known for their great laying abilities, you'll get pretty, small hens who aren't great layers.

 

[octahen]

Something that I didn't think about before I got my 5 hens is posting something like that! I have one Polish, and she's gotten her head pecked really bad by the others. It seemed to be an adolescent stage or something, and they haven't done it in a while, but we used to really worry about it. It was bloody and very sad.

Anyway, THEN I looked on BYC and saw that this is a common problem with mixing breeds with feathered heads like that.

SO, for your hens, avoid mixing in a breed with a feathered head like a Polish!

 

[aoxa]

Quote:
This doesn't always happen. My hen Wendy is 3rd in the pecking order out of 18 chickens and 2 ducks

She stands her ground! She is so sweet too. I was sitting in the run the other day at dusk and she decided I would be the perfect perch. She snuggled right into my hair.

 

[fowlsessed]

I think black australorp, rir and barred rock are about the best pureblooded brown egg layers out there, but then any of the hybrids would be great egg layers. And if you don't mind white eggs, then white leghorns are great also, although they may slack off more in the winter than the heavy breeds. Just my two cents.

 

[fowlsessed]

Also, black australorps are a good broody hen.