Wanting to give this a go.

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tad and charity

tad and charity

In the Brooder
Mar 10, 2015
12
0
22
Front Royal VA
Hey yall. We are a husband and wife living in the blue ridge mountains of VA. We are wanting to get started raising a few chickens for eggs and maybe a meat bird or two. Needing a little info on what breeds are best around children and also predator resistant. We aren't going to let them free range do to coyotes Eagles and dogs around.
 
Welcome!
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I'm glad you joined our community.

Some of the best overall breeds for children, egg production, and hardiness are Wyandottes, Orpingtons, Australorps, Easter Eggers, Sex-Links, and Sussex.The Australorps and Sex-Links would probably be the best egg layers, but my favorite of this list is the Wyandotte. My Wyandotes have been very good egg layers (250 eggs per year), are quite personable, inquisitive, and docile, and make great pets.
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I've also enjoyed my Easter Egger.

All of those breeds should be predator resistant, provided their coop and run are well made. Be sure to provide housing with secure latches, use sturdy hardware cloth on the runs instead of chicken wire, and cover the run to protect from hawks.
 
Hello there and welcome to BYC!
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Wyandottes has given you some great advice on the different breeds. I am a huge fan of Black Australorps. My girls are so gentle, docile, they love to sit on my lap, affectionate and follow me around like drooling puppies looking for the goodies!

You do not need a rooster unless you want fertile eggs. The hens lay regardless whether you have a rooster or not. Quite frankly the hens are usually happier without a rooster bothering them all the time.

Most feed stores carry chicks in the spring time. Feed stores all get them from the same local hatchery, do one feed store is not necessarily better than the other. Try to pick from bins marked Pullets Only (hens). If you get chicks from a bin that says Straight Run, these will contain roosters as well as hens.

Have you stopped by our learning center yet? Lots of good articles on all the aspects of keeping poultry...https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/1/Learning_Center

Enjoy this new journey you are on! If you have any questions along the way, feel free to ask. Welcome to our flock!
 
Welcome to BYC! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

Great advice from Wyandottes7 and Two Crows!

I would definitely recommend buff orpingtons. They are affectionate, docile, great layers, cold hardy and very curious and sweet birds
 
Welcome to BYC. Glad you decided join to our flock. If your coop/run is predator proof, all of your breeds will be resistant to predators. If not, none of them will be resistant to predators. With children around, I would suggest going with one of the breeds that has a well deserved reputation for being calm and gentle (potential lap pets), such as Australorps, Orpingtons, Brahmas, Cochins, Sussex, or Faverolles. If egg production is a priority, Australorps are the best layers on this list. You don't need a rooster to get eggs from your hens. In fact, hens typically lay better when they are not stressed by having roosters around. I currently have 25 hens and no roosters in my flock, and I get loads of eggs without all of the aggression, fights, biting and feather plucking, crowing in the middle of the night, feeding of non-productive mouths, drop off in egg production, over-breeding and battering that typically goes along with having roosters (especially too many). My hens are stress free and enjoying life without a rooster around. :eek:) Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. We are here to help in any way we can. Good luck with your flock.
 

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