My mix bag flock idea...

[ChickenFox]

I'm not sure this is where I should be posting this and if not I apologize.

I kinda fell out of chickens for a couple years due to medical issues/family drama/life in general and am currently planning out my flock I want to have next year. I still have 3 of my old girls thankfully (dark Cornish, FBCM, and a blue cochin) but as its now their 3rd year the eggs are very slow in coming.

So my plan is to introduce new blood and get possibly back into selling eggs again. Both for eating and hatching. Here's what I was thinking

2 Polish - 1 sliver laced 1 gold laced preferably
1 WL
1 Blue cochin
1 Dark Cornish
2 FBCM
2 Ams
3 Random eggers (prob RIR and BR)
1 Blue Am Roo

Any thoughts on the mix? Some of those mixes I wouldn't be so sure about but with a pure Am Roo covering them then I could sell the resulting eggs as EE is the hope. I would think the babies would be quite interesting. Granted I'm still rebuilding the coop that would house all these buggers so I have plenty of time to change my mind. LOL

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Having only a couple polish can sometimes be troubles, so that would be my only critique. If your set up is smaller I would pick something else.

 

[ChickenFox]

Having only a couple polish can sometimes be troubles, so that would be my only critique. If your set up is smaller I would pick something else.

Once the coop is finished it would have a 6x25 run with the coop itself being 6x8 with 2 8 ft roosts for them to choose from. With that much space and the occasional yard free range do you think the Polish would get picked on as much? I had a couple before and usually the only time they were actually pecked was during treat time but I also only had a handful of other hens at the time...

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Having only a couple polish can sometimes be troubles, so that would be my only critique. If your set up is smaller I would pick something else.

There are full size Polish.

What color Am girls are you getting? You could sell them as EE or possibly OE. Should be a nice mix of color in your basket and on pasture.

I personally would add half the first year and the second half the following year to keep production up... Or plan on replacing some older girls with newer ones each year.

Will you be able to deal with the extra cockerels you end up with?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Once the coop is finished it would have a 6x25 run with the coop itself being 6x8 with 2 8 ft roosts for them to choose from. With that much space and the occasional yard free range do you think the Polish would get picked on as much? I had a couple before and usually the only time they were actually pecked was during treat time but I also only had a handful of other hens at the time...

That's the thing, you never know what the dynamics will be within a new batch of chicks. As long as you are able to deal with any issues that may arise than get some. I've had them left alone in my current situation where everyone is free range. I had big problems with confinement as far as them getting their crests pecked to the point of no return. You are experienced with them so that goes a long way too.

 

[CDcluck]

We've always gone with a mixed flock, just changing out the roo if we were going to do any hatching. The color combos (plumage and eggs) we ended up with got more exciting every year. Adding a bigger group of juveniles to a smaller group of older adults generally went just fine as long as there was enough elbow room.

The only Polish/tophat type we ever had was a bantam that came to us as a rehome because her former flock was trying to peck her to death. Most of her fancy hat feathers never grew back because of scarring from the damage the other hens did, but our mixed flock didn't harass her at all.

 

[ChickenFox]

Having only a couple polish can sometimes be troubles, so that would be my only critique. If your set up is smaller I would pick something else.

There are full size Polish. 

What color Am girls are you getting? You could sell them as EE or possibly OE. Should be a nice mix of color in your basket and on pasture.

I personally would add half the first year and the second half the following year to keep production up... Or plan on replacing some older girls with newer ones each year.

Will you be able to deal with the extra cockerels you end up with? 

Any cockerels I may hatch would get sold or raised to a decent butchering age. I was planning on having a Blue Am rooster and 1black and a blue Am hens. The eggs would technically be purebred but as I won't be raising to standard and just egg color and muffs I would sell the eggs/chicks as just EE.

I would probably slowly switch out some the brown layers with a few I hatch but I may just expand and add instead lol

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Any cockerels I may hatch would get sold or raised to a decent butchering age. I was planning on having a Blue Am rooster and 1black and a blue Am hens. The eggs would technically be purebred but as I won't be raising to standard and just egg color and muffs I would sell the eggs/chicks as just EE.

I would probably slowly switch out some the brown layers with a few I hatch but I may just expand and add instead lol

I wish more people would be honest about their breeding.

Why spend the $ for real AM instead of EE for your original flock? Just curious. It is my understanding that they do not lay nearly as well. Of course I think the Am are beautiful!

 

[ChickenFox]

Any cockerels I may hatch would get sold or raised to a decent butchering age. I was planning on having a Blue Am rooster and 1black and a blue Am hens. The eggs would technically be purebred but as I won't be raising to standard and just egg color and muffs I would sell the eggs/chicks as just EE.


I would probably slowly switch out some the brown layers with a few I hatch but I may just expand and add instead lol

I wish more people would be honest about their breeding. 

Why spend the $ for real AM instead of EE for your original flock? Just curious. It is my understanding that they do not lay nearly as well. Of course I think the Am are beautiful!

Solely for the reason I love Ams. Lol I had some before and I just adored them. Plus the added benefit of knowing they have 2 copies of the blue gene where some easter eggers may not. Just a personal preference. Although tbh I've rarely met a chicken I didn't like with the exception of a very mean EE Roo I had a few years back. But I loved even he. I was sad to learn he had died defending his new flock after I gave him away.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Solely for the reason I love Ams. Lol I had some before and I just adored them. Plus the added benefit of knowing they have 2 copies of the blue gene where some easter eggers may not. Just a personal preference. Although tbh I've rarely met a chicken I didn't like with the exception of a very mean EE Roo I had a few years back. But I loved even he. I was sad to learn he had died defending his new flock after I gave him away.

I love the Ams to.

None of my laid.... ever! They all turned out to be boys so far.

And I agree having the double blue gene is a benefit.