New Member in Illinois

[Tabitha504]

Hi there,
My family is just getting started with the chicken process. We are researching breeds and planning the coop now. We have a rather steep area of land that isn't usable for much else, so thought it would be a great range area for the chickens we always talked about starting. Looking forward to fresh, organic and mostly free eggs! We are outdoor enthusiasts, gardeners and hunters. So we think this will be a good match for our family too. Looking forward to learning and any advice we can get from others who have been doing this for awhile!

 

[Michael OShay]

Welcome to BYC. Glad you decided to join our flock. If sheer egg production is your main priority, I would recommend Black Sex Links (Black Stars), which are hardy and friendly, egg laying machines. I've raised them for years (along with dozens of other breeds and hybrids), and they have been my best layers, consistently churning out more than 300 eggs per hen per year. 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.

 

[Mountain Peeps]

Welcome to BYC! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

X2 on Michael. Leghorns are great too!

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

Hi

Glad you could join the flock!! Wishing you the very best of luck in your new chicken adventure. Hope you enjoy BYC

 

[drumstick diva]

Welcome to the flock. A trip to the Learning Center will get you chickened-up - from there you may want to venture to "Raising Backyard Chickens," forum.

 

[Tabitha504]

Thanks! Do they handle heat and cold well? The temps flucuate a fair amount thoughout the year.

 

[Michael OShay]

Thanks! Do they handle heat and cold well? The temps flucuate a fair amount thoughout the year.

Black Sex Links are very cold hardy, and very persistent layers in cold weather. Leghorns, while terrific layers, do not handle cold as well. Also, if temperament is a concern, Leghorns are high strung and flighty. Mine screamed bloody murder whenever I handled them (one of the reasons why I no longer keep Leghorns).

 

[Tabitha504]

Thanks Michael! Temperament is definitely a concern. I have small children that I plan on involving from the start up, appropriately of course. I remember being chased by white chickens as a kid and pecked just when trying to feed them. I'm sure it was a leghorn rooster! I would prefer to find good layers that will have a friendlier relationship. Noise is also a concern. We are in town, with a fair amount of room between neighbors, but not acres between us. I really appreciate your advice

 

[Michael OShay]

Thanks Michael! Temperament is definitely a concern. I have small children that I plan on involving from the start up, appropriately of course. I remember being chased by white chickens as a kid and pecked just when trying to feed them. I'm sure it was a leghorn rooster! I would prefer to find good layers that will have a friendlier relationship. Noise is also a concern. We are in town, with a fair amount of room between neighbors, but not acres between us. I really appreciate your advice

You're welcome. Those white chickens may well have been White Leghorns. If noise is a concern, I would suggest Black Australorps (Black Sex Links are very friendly, but they can be rather noisy). Black Australorps are very calm, quiet, and gentle (as chickens go), and while they will not quite match the lay rate of Black Sex Links (which are hybrids), Australorps are the best layers of the standard, brown egg laying breeds. In fact, a Black Australorp actually holds the brown egg laying record with 364 eggs in 365 days. My children, and now my granddaughter (pictured in my avatar) made lap pets of our Black Australorps.

 

[Tabitha504]

The australoupe was the top of the list of 4 that I researched that may be good fits. Any experience with speckled sussex? That's another that was on the list.