Picking what breed of chicken?

[bert304]

I have been looking at different breeds for a while now and I am more confused on what breed to pick. I am looking for a dual purpose breed. I would like brown eggs and then when they are old for meat. I will not be getting any roosters just pullets about 8 of them. I am planning on getting 2 Turkeys also.
Give me some ideas and why they would be good for me.
Thanks

 

[lazy gardener]

Where are you? That makes a difference. Check Henderson's chicken breeds chart.

 

[bert304]

I am in southwest Mississippi

 

[lazy gardener]

Will you be buying new pullets every year to replace the current ones? If you'll replace every year or two, you could go with sex links. Leg horn is an other possibility. If you want meat every year, as well as layers, I'd get a few pioneers and raise them up for meat, and then get a few layers. If you want the layers to last more than 2 years, choose a DP bird. So many to choose from, and it depends on how you will be managing them, and what kind of eye candy you prefer in your yard! You'll not be limited in your selection (like I am) by cold weather. Can you have a rooster? If so, you might want to consider breeding your own birds after the initial set up with chicks. Big DP birds will fill the crock pot better, but they'll not give you any more eggs % wise than a smaller DP bird. But, the larger birds are not as thrifty on the feed. Will they be confined to a run, or will you allow them to free range some, or all of the time? So many questions to answer first which will help you narrow down your selection to which birds you end up with. My personal favorites: EE, Dominique, Pioneer, home bred Black Sex Links, Wyandotte.

 

[bert304]

I was going to purchase some meat chickens to butcher every year, then add in new ones when I start butchering. I am not sure how long they take to grow but I am not looking to rush the growth. I am not looking to sell the eggs so I do not need a lot of egg layers, my neighbor gives me eggs when I need them now. So I was going to lean more towards the meat chickens say about 2/3 of my flock, maybe about 5 or 6 chickens. 1/3 is for egg layers, about 3 or 4 until they start getting to old to lay eggs then I will butcher them one at a time. I would also like to get a couple of turkeys.

What is a DP bird?


Thanks

 

[Honey B]

DP = duel purpose

 

[CliffB]

Naked Necks!

 

[bert304]

I am going to keep them in an enclosed pen. We have problems with local dogs killing chickens that are allowed to free range in a yard. I will build a tractor to move them around the yard. The pen I am building is decent sized. The coupe is 12 feet wide by 8 feet and 7 feet tall, the attached pen is 40 feet long by 12 feet wide and 7 feet tall.
I like the Naked Necks and the Buff Orpingtons. The Buff Orpingtons hens get to 8 pounds and the Naked Neck hens get to 7 1/2 pounds

 

[CliffB]

The naked necks will be great for the heat tolerance.

 

[bert304]

I like the ones from Ideal Hatchery, but they are over a month to ship. Would not ship until May