If You Could Only Have 6 Chickens...

[ThreePumpkins]

Barred Plymouth Rock
Speckled Sussex
Appenzeller Spitzhauben
Easter Egger
Welsummer (or Cuckoo Marans)...I love them equally!
Buff Orpington

We have a pet flock, and these breeds always end up being our favorite hens...cold hardy, amiable, and kid friendly...colorful eggs basket too!

 

[FlyWheel]

I want one of Willy Wonka's geese. Y'know, the ones that lay the golden chocolate eggs?

 

[Hoytman]

We chose...

2 Buff Orpingtons
3 Buff Brahma (one rooster)
2 Rhode Island Red
2 White Leghorns
2 Golden Laced Wyandottes
2 Black Jersey Giants
2 Black Australorps
2 Barred Rocks

Of those, if I could only choose six ... considering our environment ... friendliness ... hands down Brahma's and Barred Rocks (then Buff Orpingtons). Leghorns are laying machines and pests to the others (peckers) and are flighty and skiddish which isn't a bad thing out on the farm because they watch things like a hawk and watch for the hawks and anything else.

All of my birds have proved winter hardy to -27*F with no frostbite and WITH wind protection.

We will be adding Silver Lakenvelders, Light Brahma's, more Barred Rocks, more R.I.R's., Speckled Sussex, Welsummer and Barnvelders, Blue Laced Red Wyandottes and a few of their white and black brothers and sisters, some green and blue egg layers...more roosters... some ducks...some lambs...some mule foot pigs...some upland birds...some ducks...err...umm...I'm getting carried away now.

Kidding aside, we really like having a mixed flock ... they keep each other warm too being a mixed flock ... that I am sure is why my Leghorns had no frost bite. Even if would do not add the other breeds mentioned ... at the least we'd like to increase the numbers of each hen per breed that we have, along with a few more roosters so we can be more sustainable rather than having to buy chicks all the time.

 

[TLCMidMichigan]

More Black French Copper Marans.

 

[Frostette]

I would have Delawares

 

[Helen_Jayne]

We actually can only have six due to the small space and then only bantams so we chose 2 silkies (one is a cockerel but they're well worth having for the comedy value), 2 welsummers and we are hoping to get a couple of easter eggers. I would love some polish chickens but I don't think we can stretch to 8!

 

[janiedoe]

I wasn't going to play this silly game...really? Only 6!!! But no one has mentioned the
Black Langshan (stunningly beautiful, hardy, heat tolerant, & great mother hens ...in case I need to grow my flock)
Besides langshans, I'd have buff, lavender, and blue orpingtons
SLW, GLW, & a blue laced wyandotte
& a columbian wyandotte too
Cream legbars
Easter eggers
3 or 4 kinds of marans
A partridge rock
Light brahma, dark brahma
Welsummer
RIR
(Did I mention that my math skills are awful? )

 

[ARose4Heaven]

just put in my order..with a Texas hatchery..no COLD travel!
6 Silkie, 2 Salmon Faverolle, 1 Easter Egger.
That's my 5 bird order...oops there goes that chicken math again!