Hello. We are so pleased to find this source of information and for sure newbies. Our facility is now finished and ready to get our stock. Our interest is laying hens (8-10) and think our best purchase would be pullets. This being said since we would be afraid of getting hens past their prime and the wait time of chicks to mature. We are unsure about whether it is best to stay with one breed. Could there be an issue that we should be aware of if we should mix breeds in the same enclosure? At this point not seeing any need to acquire a rooster since our goal is to harvest eggs only.
Purchasing Advice
- Thread starter Suzjohn
- Start date
- Apr 17, 2017
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The only problem with having different breeds is that some may be picked on, especially if they have those head feathers like the Polish. Also, some breeds are more likely to peck others. I have 5 different breeds and have never had a problem with them! 
I would get them all the same breed, and from the same source ...
A change of home will be stressful for them, if they have just started laying, they probably will stop, until they are settles in, in a few weeks hopefully!
Having a whole flock move together, atleast they know each other, and have the pecking order figured out ... putting together a bunch of strange chickens will be very stressful for them, and probably you too!
A change of home will be stressful for them, if they have just started laying, they probably will stop, until they are settles in, in a few weeks hopefully!
Having a whole flock move together, atleast they know each other, and have the pecking order figured out ... putting together a bunch of strange chickens will be very stressful for them, and probably you too!
In most cases you can mix breeds without issue. I like having a variety of egg colors and I like being able to ID my chickens at a glance. Since you mentioned wanting eggs soon, but not wanting older birds, point-of-lay pullets would be your best bet.
I too run mixed breeds with no issues, the many colours of eggs is great!
Welcome to BYC @Suzjohn!
Different breeds are fine, good in fact as it gives you some diversity to experience,
exceptions being foofoo birds like silkies and polish whose topknots can make them susceptible to picking either by looking different or because those topknots often restrict their vision.
All from same source would be good mainly due to narrowing down the bio-security risk.
Getting older birds is great for 'instant' eggs, but poses the risk of bringing in pests and disease.
Different breeds are fine, good in fact as it gives you some diversity to experience,
exceptions being foofoo birds like silkies and polish whose topknots can make them susceptible to picking either by looking different or because those topknots often restrict their vision.
All from same source would be good mainly due to narrowing down the bio-security risk.
Getting older birds is great for 'instant' eggs, but poses the risk of bringing in pests and disease.
I agree that the only reason you need a rooster is if you want fertile eggs. Since you don't want to hatch them you don't need to feed an unproductive chicken.
Since your goal is eggs you need to pick egg laying chickens, no the decorative breeds. You probably want to avoid bantams also. Henderson's Breed Chart gives you a rough idea of what you might expect from certain breeds but realize these are only rough ideas. Each chicken is an individual and it's production can vary a lot from the norm. Then you can look on Feathersite to get an idea what that chicken might look like.
Henderson’s Breed Chart
http://www.sagehenfarmlodi.com/chooks/chooks.html
Feathersite
http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/BRKPoultryPage.html#Chickens
A lot of us mix breeds with no issues at all. You can have issues between any chickens of any breeds. they are definitely individuals with their own personalities. For eggs you don't need pure breeds. I like mutts that are not breeds, call them a barnyard mix. We all have our preferences, some like to keep only one breed, some like to keep a rainbow of breeds, and some are quite happy with mutts. It just comes down to personal preference. We can all come up with reasons why we like what we like.
There is a difference in what is possible and what is likely. When you mix chickens from different flocks or that have been recently exposed to other chickens there is the possibility that you might introduce a disease. It's something like a person that meets new people all the time is more exposed to diseases than someone who works and plays with the same people all the time. There are some benefits to getting all your chickens from the same source or limit the sources. It's better from that aspect to get your chickens from an individual than to get them from a chicken auction or chicken swap where they are exposed to a lot of new chickens.
A lot of people do bring home chickens from auctions and swaps all the time, enough people have to be participating for auctions and swaps to happen. They don't bring home that many problems that often or they'd quit going. But is is certainly possible you can bring home a problem no matter where you get your chickens and auctions and swaps are more risky. Most of the time the problems they do have are mites, lice, or worms, all of which can be treated. Butt here is always the possibility it can be something really serious.
Where are you? Which country? North or south of the equator? If you modify your profile to show your general location that can help us a lot with a lot of questions more than just climate. It could make what I'm about to say shorter.
If you are south of the equator it might be a good time to find point-of-lay pullets. They are going to be a lot less available this time of the year north of the equator. A POL pullet is probably around 16 to 18 weeks old, old enough to be sure it is a pullet and not a cockerel, and not that far from laying. In the USA some hatcheries will sell POL pullets but they are really expensive. If you can find your state or country thread in the "Where am I? Where are you!" section of this forum you can chat with your neighbors and see how they may be able to help you, either with chickens or advice on local opportunities.
If you are in the USA you can chat with your county extension office, they might know individuals that might sell you POL pullets or where auctions and swaps are. If you are somewhere else your agricultural ministry may have a local office that can help. Or maybe not.
You can chat with the people at the feed store. They may know someone that can help if you get really lucky or they might allow you to put a sign on a bulletin board. If you have something similar to Craigslist you can check on there. You can go to the sell/buy section of this forum and post an ad there, just include your location and POL pullets in the title so you attract the people you want to attract.
I don't know how big your coop and other facilities are or how you plan to manage them. One mistake people make is to crowd their chickens. The more I crowd mine the more behavioral problems I have to deal with, the harder I have to work, and the less flexibility I have to deal with issues that come up. A flock of all females the same age generally don't need as much space as a mixed flock and especially a mixed age flock. I'm a strong proponent of providing as much room as you reasonably can. You might see some issues with POL pullets as they reach maturity and settle the pecking order but in general they should not be bad. But f you see serious behavioral problems there is a reasonable possibility you have too many chickens in too small a space.
Anyway, enough typing this morning. Welcome to the forum, glad you joined.
Since your goal is eggs you need to pick egg laying chickens, no the decorative breeds. You probably want to avoid bantams also. Henderson's Breed Chart gives you a rough idea of what you might expect from certain breeds but realize these are only rough ideas. Each chicken is an individual and it's production can vary a lot from the norm. Then you can look on Feathersite to get an idea what that chicken might look like.
Henderson’s Breed Chart
http://www.sagehenfarmlodi.com/chooks/chooks.html
Feathersite
http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/BRKPoultryPage.html#Chickens
A lot of us mix breeds with no issues at all. You can have issues between any chickens of any breeds. they are definitely individuals with their own personalities. For eggs you don't need pure breeds. I like mutts that are not breeds, call them a barnyard mix. We all have our preferences, some like to keep only one breed, some like to keep a rainbow of breeds, and some are quite happy with mutts. It just comes down to personal preference. We can all come up with reasons why we like what we like.
There is a difference in what is possible and what is likely. When you mix chickens from different flocks or that have been recently exposed to other chickens there is the possibility that you might introduce a disease. It's something like a person that meets new people all the time is more exposed to diseases than someone who works and plays with the same people all the time. There are some benefits to getting all your chickens from the same source or limit the sources. It's better from that aspect to get your chickens from an individual than to get them from a chicken auction or chicken swap where they are exposed to a lot of new chickens.
A lot of people do bring home chickens from auctions and swaps all the time, enough people have to be participating for auctions and swaps to happen. They don't bring home that many problems that often or they'd quit going. But is is certainly possible you can bring home a problem no matter where you get your chickens and auctions and swaps are more risky. Most of the time the problems they do have are mites, lice, or worms, all of which can be treated. Butt here is always the possibility it can be something really serious.
Where are you? Which country? North or south of the equator? If you modify your profile to show your general location that can help us a lot with a lot of questions more than just climate. It could make what I'm about to say shorter.
If you are south of the equator it might be a good time to find point-of-lay pullets. They are going to be a lot less available this time of the year north of the equator. A POL pullet is probably around 16 to 18 weeks old, old enough to be sure it is a pullet and not a cockerel, and not that far from laying. In the USA some hatcheries will sell POL pullets but they are really expensive. If you can find your state or country thread in the "Where am I? Where are you!" section of this forum you can chat with your neighbors and see how they may be able to help you, either with chickens or advice on local opportunities.
If you are in the USA you can chat with your county extension office, they might know individuals that might sell you POL pullets or where auctions and swaps are. If you are somewhere else your agricultural ministry may have a local office that can help. Or maybe not.
You can chat with the people at the feed store. They may know someone that can help if you get really lucky or they might allow you to put a sign on a bulletin board. If you have something similar to Craigslist you can check on there. You can go to the sell/buy section of this forum and post an ad there, just include your location and POL pullets in the title so you attract the people you want to attract.
I don't know how big your coop and other facilities are or how you plan to manage them. One mistake people make is to crowd their chickens. The more I crowd mine the more behavioral problems I have to deal with, the harder I have to work, and the less flexibility I have to deal with issues that come up. A flock of all females the same age generally don't need as much space as a mixed flock and especially a mixed age flock. I'm a strong proponent of providing as much room as you reasonably can. You might see some issues with POL pullets as they reach maturity and settle the pecking order but in general they should not be bad. But f you see serious behavioral problems there is a reasonable possibility you have too many chickens in too small a space.
Anyway, enough typing this morning. Welcome to the forum, glad you joined.
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