Three is the charm!
We started with the idea of having five, because I could not decide between five beautiful breeds: Columbian Wyandotte, Silver-laced Wyandotte, Silver Campine, Speckled Sussex, and Cream Brabanter.
We lost the Sussex, Nugget, to a crop problem, and the Brabanters all turned out to be roosters, so we now have three.
I love having just three hens. It is a breeze to clean out their henhouse and run each morning, I can use sand in the run, and I don't have shavings or straw anywhere to muck out.
With only three hens, I can examine each bird every day and look for lice or injuries when they sit on my lap. I can pay closer attention to their behavior and make sure each is eating and drinking enough. I can catch problems like Nugget's crop problem early.
We get two or three eggs a day, but they are all a year old this month, so I expect the egg production will taper off after this year.
I also like having a small flock because they do very little damage to the garden when I let them roam every afternoon, and I can keep an eye on them.
