Vote on what breed I should get!

[black_cat]

Plan 2:
this is where we give back our whole rental flock, get chicks in spring 2021, then get more in spring 2022.
Spring 2021 chicks:
1 Silver Laced Cochin
1 Black Copper Marans
1 Easter Egger
1 Barred Rock

Spring 2022 chicks:
1 White Leghorn
1 Speckled Sussex
1 Black Australorp
1 Cream legbar
My runner ups that I might buy along with the 2022 chicks if any of the OGs have passed away, or after if any have passed away are:
Olive Egger
Golden Laced Wyandotte
Delaware

 

[black_cat]

Plan 3:
This plan involves also giving back the whole rental flock, but it is where we get silkies. I've been told in another thread I've been told that if I have a mixed flock, I should have more than one silkie, even if the chicks were raised together. Is this true?
The 2021 chicks would look like this:
Silver Laced Cochin
Black Copper Marans
Easter Egger
Silkie
Silkie

With the 2022 chicks being like this:
White Leghorn
Barred Rock
Cream Legbar
and the runner ups being:
Olive egger
Black Australorp
Speckled Sussex
Delaware
Golden Laced Wyandotte

 

[ShrekDawg]

Are you set on the Cochin? They are known to be very broody birds and not be great layers so that might not be something you want.

I would get a Barred Rock, Leghorn, and Easter Egger. Or Delaware. My all time favorite breeds lol and great layers. My Leghorn is not flighty at all like people say. She is very sweet and friendly and curious, bold, etc. and fantastic layer as well as forager.

 

[black_cat]

Are you set on the Cochin? They are known to be very broody birds and not be great layers so that might not be something you want.

I would get a Barred Rock, Leghorn, and Easter Egger. Or Delaware. My all time favorite breeds lol and great layers. My Leghorn is not flighty at all like people say. She is very sweet and friendly and curious, bold, etc. and fantastic layer as well as forager.

I am very set on a cochin. My friends have two and I am in love with them. I have a leghorn and she is flighty, but I"m assuming that that's also attributed to the fact that I got her as an adult instead of a chick.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I am very set on a cochin. My friends have two and I am in love with them. I have a leghorn and she is flighty, but I"m assuming that that's also attributed to the fact that I got her as an adult instead of a chick.

Thats understandable! I have bantam ones and they are very sweet haha and yeah that could be! Mine is definitely aware but has never been flighty with me but I’ve had her since she was a baby haha you could get another if you wanted since mine is a fantastic layer! Or get the BR, EE, and Cochin haha

 

[Chickstarrs]

I can't really add a whole lot since I am new to this as well. My 3 laying hens are all mixes. The part EE lays olive eggs (I guess that would make her an olive egger). She has laid a egg everyday since I got her in mid-June. My little part speckled sussex is cute and lays about every second or third day. I have no idea what my 3rd hen is but she lays pink eggs. My chicks are too young to be laying yet. I have 4 BA. They will come to me and sometimes sit on my lap but do not like to be picked up. I also had 2 creme legbars because I really wanted some blue eggs, but I lost one last week so now have only one. They were not nearly as friendly but I got them as older chicks. They were very quiet and cute.

I have a neighbour with RIR who had offered me some to start with, however, he also said they were kind of mean. I had also heard this from other chicken keepers so I decided to pass on those. I was going to get barred rocks but then heard mixed reviews on them as well. That's how I ended up with BA and Creme Legbars. I also have some mixed chicks that are very silly. They were supposed to be EE but turned out they are not.

If you give back the whole flock to order chicks, that would leave you several months with no layers. Something to keep in mind depending on the timing of the return.

Good luck. It is always good to have a plan.

 

[black_cat]

I can't really add a whole lot since I am new to this as well. My 3 laying hens are all mixes. The part EE lays olive eggs (I guess that would make her an olive egger). She has laid a egg everyday since I got her in mid-June. My little part speckled sussex is cute and lays about every second or third day. I have no idea what my 3rd hen is but she lays pink eggs. My chicks are too young to be laying yet. I have 4 BA. They will come to me and sometimes sit on my lap but do not like to be picked up. I also had 2 creme legbars because I really wanted some blue eggs, but I lost one last week so now have only one. They were not nearly as friendly but I got them as older chicks. They were very quiet and cute.

I have a neighbour with RIR who had offered me some to start with, however, he also said they were kind of mean. I had also heard this from other chicken keepers so I decided to pass on those. I was going to get barred rocks but then heard mixed reviews on them as well. That's how I ended up with BA and Creme Legbars. I also have some mixed chicks that are very silly. They were supposed to be EE but turned out they are not.

If you give back the whole flock to order chicks, that would leave you several months with no layers. Something to keep in mind depending on the timing of the return.

Good luck. It is always good to have a plan.

Yep, I'd like to keep the flock. Parents want to give back the flock. We may end up compromising and keeping the two that are laying, possibly three if another starts laying, and giving back the other(s) I would hate to give any of them up but may have to.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Yep, I'd like to keep the flock. Parents want to give back the flock. We may end up compromising and keeping the two that are laying, possibly three if another starts laying, and giving back the other(s) I would hate to give any of them up but may have to.

I say just give them up and start over and get the breeds you want. and also if it were me I would not have even accepted them to begin with or be paying them since they gave you the complete wrong breeds. I would have told them to take them back right then and/or gotten my money back.

 

[black_cat]

I say just give them up and start over and get the breeds you want. and also if it were me I would not have even accepted them to begin with or be paying them since they gave you the complete wrong breeds. I would have told them to take them back right then and/or gotten my money back.

Parents didn't seem to care. I didn't mind because we got a free chicken (we paid for 3 and got 4) If we had been purchasing the chickens, it would have been different but because we're renting them (but hopefully will buy!) it wasn't as big of an issue, especially because my parents were positive at the time that we would give them back (they're unsure now)

 

[black_cat]

Here's how the votes look so far: