Urban chicken breed - Clearwater,FL

[LacyBlue2U]

I'm interested in getting 2 chickens for my backyard. We live in a traditional neighborhood so I'm looking for a more incognito breed (I ready the entries on "Proud and Loud") and since it'll be around us all the time one that's friendly. A smaller chicken that produces a reasonable number of eggs would be great. Any suggestions on breeds? Or a farm where I can get them?

 

[Three Cedars Silkies]

Silkies...they are MUCH quieter (usually) and even though they are considered a bantam breed, their eggs are larger than most bantams. They can't fly and are generally very friendly.

 

[AngieChick]

Golden Comets *aka Red Sex-Links* (also called red stars) are quiet, pretty, very sweet and excellent layers.

 

[gritsar]

My only suggestion is that you get three hens instead of two. Chickens are very social animals and if you only have two and something happens to one you're left with a very lonely chicken.

 

[Dash Riprock]

Quote:
RIR's and Sex-Links seem to be very docile and quiet. Our Doms tend to get a little mouthy. I found my girls on local craigslist.org. They were a little over 1 yr old and already laying. I didn't want to go the raising chicks route, so this has worked well for me. BTW...I live in the City Limits, so I had your same concerns.

Good luck and best wishes.

Dash

 

[holliewould]

Quote:
Yet I have 2 RIR's and they are louder then a John Deere tractor with megaphones as tail pipes. Sweet as can be though. I keep hearing them silkies are pretty quiet, but, don't they always sit on their eggs? It would be like a Fraggle that doesn't work.

 

[LacyBlue2U]

Do the silkies lay many eggs? Physically they seem perfect - being small - but I'd like to get a reasonable number of eggs. Also are mites a problems with this breed. This will be my first chicken experience and I'd like to make the right selection. I don't know what a sex-link chicken is but I've got lots of interesting hits from my internet search... I don't seem to be able to locate anyone that sells chickens in the tri-county area but there is a county fair next month in Hillsborough County. I might have some luck there.

 

[cmom]

Here are a couple of Breed charts that gives you alot of information on the different breeds.
http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/BRKPoultryPage.html