I have been looking at different breeds of chickens to raise on our homestead. My children are also in 4-h so they may show a few too. right now we have our 9 laying hens that we bought right before they started laying se we would have eggs. now we are trying to work on our breeding stock to supply our egg and freezer needs. We are raising several different types of animal all of which we are trying to choose heritage breeds. What we are looking for is two breeds of heritage chickens that are becoming rare. We would like a dual purpose who do well inthe cooler weather andthe heat. We live in the hills in northern California. I want birds that can get broody, lay in the winer also in the summer, gro to a good size for meat we are a family of 8, we would like them to grow in a reasonable amount of time not one that take a long time to fill out but im not looking to butcher at 10 weeks ither just something reasonable. We would like for themtogo full circle, lay eggs, set the eggs, grow the rooseter for meat, and sell what we do not need. I would like your thoughts and give me ideas on what would work for us. Has anyone has sucess with Brahmas or large Cochins for this reason?
Mebys Sussex or Buff Orpington? ive had both, both good layers, broodys. (i have never culled any so i dont know if they are good in that way but i have heard they are)
Orps and Sussex are nice birds, but certainly don't fit the OP's requirement for breeds that are becoming rare. Buff Orpingtons are on the "recovering" list, as are Sussex. Here is a link to the American Livestock Breeder's Assn. list of rare breeds: http://www.albc-usa.org/cpl/wtchlist.html#chickens. I really like Delawares very much, and they are a nice eating bird that can go broody and are on the "threatened" list. You might also look at Chantecler, which are on the "critical" list. I've never had them myself, but I've read that they are a good dual-purpose bird that is frequently broody. If you can, seek out breeder stock instead of hatchery stock. They're much more likely to be correct and true to type, especially if your goal is to preserve a rare breed. Oh, and have you seen Henderson's Chicken Chart? Another very good resource for choosing the perfect bird. http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html#ch
Below is a link I dug up on BYC about Chantecler breeders - hope you find it useful! https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/305309/chantecler-breeder-and-owner-database-project
You might consider Dominiques. They are friendly, on the ALBC watch list, and lay during the winter. Their eggs are medium-large and are various shades of brown/tan. The males grow to be bigger than the females, and are VERY tasty! Check out my Facebook page.....
Chanteclers are nice. But don't get orpingtons if you want eggs, they aren't known for that.. And very slow growing if you want meat. They are friendly though.
I have Orphingtons and they have a 70% laying rate. I enjoy them but Australorps seem to be the way to go. They have the record of 364/365 days.
