Ideas for breeds of chickens!

[Gray Farms]

Were do you get your chickens? Are bantams and Orpingtons a good cold hardy good egg laying breed?

My breeding stock came from private breeders in several states
Brahmas- Kansas, Missouri, and South Carolina
Spitzhaubens- Texas and Kansas
Sumatras- Missouri
English Orpingtons- Kansas, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Missouri
Swedish Flowers- Florida, Kansas, and New Jersey
Iowa Blues- Kansas

Most breeds of bantams as decent cold weather layer of course they lay considerably smaller eggs than the large breeds. English Orpingtons are not very consistent layers. They tend to start and stop for periods of them throughout the year.

 

[Gray Farms]

What breed would you guys recommend? What I'm worried about is that do I need to get the same breed of chickens that I have know? The chickens that I get this spring will they get along with my other chickens?

Most all breeds will get along with each other after a period of adjusting.

 

[rdcowman]

Most all breeds will get along with each other after a period of adjusting.

Ok! There's so many breeds to choose from!!!

haha!

 

[rdcowman]

My breeding stock came from private breeders in several states
Brahmas- Kansas, Missouri, and South Carolina
Spitzhaubens- Texas and Kansas
Sumatras- Missouri
English Orpingtons- Kansas, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Missouri
Swedish Flowers- Florida, Kansas, and New Jersey
Iowa Blues- Kansas

Most breeds of bantams as decent cold weather layer of course they lay considerably smaller eggs than the large breeds. English Orpingtons are not very consistent layers. They tend to start and stop for periods of them throughout the year.

Wow that's a lot of states! Thanks so much for your advice!!

 

[rdcowman]

Most all breeds will get along with each other after a period of adjusting.

When the chicks get old enough to be put with the big chickens, how do I do that?

 

[GingersHuman]

I love my Leghorns and Australorps!

 

[rdcowman]

I love my Leghorns and Australorps!

Are they good egg layers?

 

[henny1129]

I posted earlier and saw that you were wondering where people get their birds. It really depends on what you want....if you don't want show quality birds just order from a hatchery or get chicks from your local feed store, it's not worth spending the money for show quality birds when in the end it doesn't matter to you. BUT, if you do want show quality birds, don't buy from a hatchery, but from a breeder. And a few other notes I'd like to add too.
1. Leghorns are exceptional layers but the vast majority of them are flighty and unfriendly.
2. Buff Orpingtons are incredible personality wise...they will follow you around like dogs! And while they lay nice large, brown eggs, just like someone else mentioned here, they lay on and off and take "vacations" from laying. If you are looking for a very friendly bird though, Buff Orpingtons are the way to go.

 

[Leigti]

I have a Rhode Island red, a barred rock, a buff rock, a white rock, three Easter Eggars, one black australorp, two silver laced wyandottes, and two speckled Sussex.
They are all cold hardy and are good egg layers. The friendliest are the speckled Sussex. I highly recommend any of these breeds but so far my sentimental favorites are the silver laced wyandottes. Maybe because I've had them the longest, three years.
I ordered four of them as started pullets, around 15 to 20 weeks old, from McMurray hatchery. That is one way to avoid the hassle of dealing with chicks. But it is very expensive. The rest I have gotten at the local feed stores. I'm just looking for pets that lay eggs. Not worried about show quality etc. But if you do want more "quality" and specific breed type, then I would suggest checking out the breed threads here on the forum and buying from people here that have them available.
I am personally a little hesitant to buy from craigslist, I'm a little paranoid that the new chickens would bring in some kind of disease because I don't really know how they were raised etc. I'm sure there's some sort of risk from that even if I get them from the feed store but I still prefer to skip craigslist all together. But that's just me. There are honest good people out there.

 

[rdcowman]

I posted earlier and saw that you were wondering where people get their birds. It really depends on what you want....if you don't want show quality birds just order from a hatchery or get chicks from your local feed store, it's not worth spending the money for show quality birds when in the end it doesn't matter to you. BUT, if you do want show quality birds, don't buy from a hatchery, but from a breeder.

And a few other notes I'd like to add too.
1. Leghorns are exceptional layers but the vast majority of them are flighty and unfriendly.
2. Buff Orpingtons are incredible personality wise...they will follow you around like dogs! And while they lay nice large, brown eggs, just like someone else mentioned here, they lay on and off and take "vacations" from laying. If you are looking for a very friendly bird though, Buff Orpingtons are the way to go.

So Leghorns would not be like RIR then! I would like lots of eggs though! But i don't want unfriendly chickens! I like RIR because there very friendly once they get to know you! I might think about Buff Orpingtons! I don't want show quality birds i just want chickens that lay eggs!

I don't know if you have heard of Theisen's!? I get my chicken food there! They sell chicks but i don't remember if the sign says what breed they are! I don't want to get chicks if i don't know the breed! they sell them in the spring! Someone mentioned ordering chicks form Ideal and Cackle hatchery! Have you ordered from there before? I'm thinking about getting some chicks from one of the hatcheries!

What do you think?