Newbie & Trying to pick my breeds! Help :)

[rushingmeg]

I am starting my first little flock of chickens soon and I have been researching what kinds I want. Here is what I have decided so far, let me know what y'all think! : (in Mississippi with cold not terrible winters and hot hot summers)

2 barred rocks
2 Americaunas
1 white leghorn
1 Rhode Island Red

And that was going to be it until I fell in love with the fluffy little white bantam silkies! I have a little girl and thought it could be "her" chicken, so Would it be okay to add one of these to that little group as well? Does it need another bantam silkie friend or is it okay being the only one? I've also been reading about how broody they are. I mainly want to keep chickens for eggs and I'm not planning on getting a rooster. I might experiment with some hatching eggs in the future some day but I don't want to have problems with my other birds if this one is too broody. Thoughts and opinions or suggestions??

 

[silkiecuddles]

Hi, welcome to BYC!!

Good choice of breeds. However, the breeds you've picked are all Large Fowl. Because of their outgoing personalities and size you need to be cautious if you have a little silkie in there with them. Silkies are generally docile and lower in the pecking order. If they're all raised as chicks together it may be fine.
good luck!

 

[Michael OShay]

If good layers is your main priority then you've picked some good breeds, particularly with the Leghorns which are egg laying machines and the Rhode Island Red. If a calm and gentle temperament is important to you, you should go with some different breeds. Barred Rocks and Easter Eggers (incorrectly marketed by hatcheries and feed stores as Ameraucanas) are generally docile but Leghorns tend to be high strung and flighty and RIRs (particularly hatchery quality ones) are sometimes aggressive. You might want to consider some of the breeds that have a well deserved reputation for being calm and gentle (great lap pets) such as Australorps, Faverolles, Orpingtons, Sussex, and Brahmas. Of course there can always be an exception with any breed. All of the breeds on this list are good layers and Australorps in particular are excellent layers. Whatever breeds you decide to get, good luck with your flock. )

 

[rushingmeg]

Thank y'all both so much for the input!! I've been reading up more on the breeds you mentioned and on silkies and I have decided on a new flock list. Let me know what you think of the changes:

1 barred rock
1 buff Orpington
1 Australorp
1 Easter egger (maybe 2)
2 bantam silkies so that the little one has a friend
Maybe 1 white leghorn....

I'm hoping with all these breeds being friendlier they will get along nicely and I'll still have a good supply of different colored eggs. Not sure about the leghorn. I don't want one flighty chicken to make the whole group tense... Thoughts on that? I decided against the Rhode Island Red all together bc of the aggressiveness.

 

[Michael OShay]

Thank y'all both so much for the input!! I've been reading up more on the breeds you mentioned and on silkies and I have decided on a new flock list. Let me know what you think of the changes:

1 barred rock
1 buff Orpington
1 Australorp
1 Easter egger (maybe 2)
2 bantam silkies so that the little one has a friend
Maybe 1 white leghorn....

I'm hoping with all these breeds being friendlier they will get along nicely and I'll still have a good supply of different colored eggs. Not sure about the leghorn. I don't want one flighty chicken to make the whole group tense... Thoughts on that? I decided against the Rhode Island Red all together bc of the aggressiveness.

You're welcome. That's a great choice of breeds. However I would not personally recommend keeping the Silkies in the same flock with the standard sized breeds as they are liable to take a beating from the larger birds (especially the Barred Rock and the White Leghorn if you get one). For this reason we ended up having to remove our Silkies from the main flock and keep them in their own separate enclosure. Keep in mind also that Leghorns, which excellent layers, tend to be high strung and flighty--not the breed for lap pets.