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Aerwan

Aerwan

Hatching
5 Years
Mar 6, 2014
9
0
9
Southwestern PA
Hi! I am new to chickens! My husband grew up with them and has offered to help me get started in raising layers:) I am so excited. I welcome any information on the best beginner friendly chickens and the best place to purchase them. I live in SW PA and I was thinking of starting with 6-8 chicks. Is that a good number? Do I need a Rooster? Can roosters be friendly?

I look forward to exploring this site and learning!
 
Welcome to BYC! You don't need a rooster, but they can be friendly and they are so personable and beautiful. I have three, and all are very well behaved. One will hop into my lap so that I'll pet his comb and wattles. They also protect their girls, so they are useful that way. As for chicks, you could check your local craigslist and see what's available, or if you have a local Tractor Supply they are now carrying chicks for spring.
 
Hello :frow and Welcome To BYC! Your state thread is a good place to post for local birds or to ask where people in your area are finding theirs https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/248345/pennsylvania-unite
For breeds, check out the BYC Breeds section, there are member reviews of a lot of breeds, https://www.backyardchickens.com/products/category/chicken-breeds and the Henderson chicken breed chart compares a lot of popular breeds http://www.sagehenfarmlodi.com/chooks/chooks.html In general, if you want to replace your flock every couple of years when they slow down laying and you are looking just at the number of eggs, the various commercial Red Sex Links (they go by different names depending on the hatchery, Red Stars, Golden Comets, ISA Browns etc) for brown eggs, and the White Leghorns for white eggs are probably number one. Some other popular brown egg laying breeds that don't lay quite as well but usually will lay over a longer period of time are Sussex, Wyandottes, Orpintons, Delawares, Australorps and Plymouth Rocks, and of course Easter Eggers / Ameraucana for blue/green eggs and Welsummers or Marans for those dark brown eggs.
You don't need a rooster unless you plan on hatching your eggs. If you are going to have a small flock, you may want the extra hen for more eggs, instead of a rooster. Some roosters are friendly, no real way to know how any specific rooster will turn out though... they do add an extra dimension to the flock dynamics taking care of and protecting the girls as they can, and they are usually very pretty to look at.
 
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Welcome to BYC! Kelsie has you on a good path with the links!

Enjoy all your poultry adventure!
 
Welcome to BYC. Initially I would suggest starting with an all hen flock. Roosters are not needed for egg production. They can be friendly, but can also have an attitude that a new chicken owner should not have to deal with.
 
Thanks everyone! I think I've picked out my breeds. Now to find them. Besides TSC, where could I find chicks? Is there a local listing? How about online ordering?
 

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