New member from Southern California

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chicks2015

chicks2015

Hatching
5 Years
Jan 3, 2015
2
0
7
Hello all. This is my first venture raising chicks. The local feedstore tells me that i may be able to buy them as early as next week. So far i have a red bulb and metal heat lamp....reading all about the first steps thanks to this awesom r web site and member participation. A friend recommended buff orpingtons. I plan to get 3 chicks. Are there pros cons to keeping the three all one breed?ed
 
Welcome to BYC! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

Ooh! Buff orpingtons! Your friend must be very wise! They are my favorite breed. You'll love them!! They are affectionate, good layers, cold hardy, good foragers and overall a great breed!

The pros and cons for raising all one breed are
Pros
•They'll have a better likelihood of getting along better
•You'll probably have very friendly birds
•They'll all require the same amounts of food, space, etc

Cons
•You won't get as much experience with breeds
•They may not like each other
•You won't get a variety
•You'll only get brown eggs

I would check out these five links. They are super informative for first timers
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https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/1/Learning_Center
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/advice-for-first-time-chicken-owners
https://www.backyardchickens.com/products/orpington
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/top-10-things-to-consider-before-buying-chickens
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/how-to-tame-chickens-from-the-start

Best of luck!
 
Welcome to BYC. Glad you decided to join our flock. With only three chickens, I think keeping one breed is good if you really like that breed. I've raised Buff Orpingtons for years, and they are a wonderful breed; very cold hardy, calm and gentle (my children, and now my granddaughter, made lap pets of them), and good layers of large brown eggs. With only three birds, you need to make sure that you don't keep any that turn out to be roosters. The recommended ratio of roosters to hens is 1 rooster for every 10 hens. As they mature, too many roosters will become very hard physically on your hens; over-breeding them, biting and plucking the feathers from their necks and backs, battering them, and potentially, seriously injuring them. Also, I would not recommend using a heat lamp as they seem to lead to too many fires. Feathers are wonderful insulators and Buff Orpingtons are particularly a cold hardy breed. As long as your coop is well ventilated to prevent moisture from building up in it, and dry and draft free, your BOs will be fine. I've raised chickens where winter temperatures dropped to 30 F below zero, and they did just fine. Moisture is a much greater danger than cold. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. We are here to help in any way we can. Good luck in getting your flock.
 

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