What are bantys good for?

[Southerngirl]

They are good layers, excellent at foraging and most of all where I live near pine trees TICK PREDATORS !! We have little to no ticks on any of our animals !! They add excellent entertainment value to a barnyard, just watch a banty hen take out a dog, rooster, cat or goat that gets near her babies !!!!! They make wonderful pets for kids too !!

 

[seedcorn]

Lot of reasons for bantams.

Like the look of game chickens w/out the problem of roosters......go w/bantam OEG's.

Like the look of cochins or brahma's but don't want the feed bill of the larger slow growing breeds, try bantams.

All the other breeds give you eggs and small friers w/much less feed.

Want outstanding layers, then it's commercial layers. Want the best and quickest friers, go w/commercial broilers.

Other than that, the question should be, WHY NOT BANTAMS?

 

[apbgv]

Stress relief Cute eggs. Plus smaller chicken poop, eat less. Just darn sweet

 

[Chickenaddict]

Quote:
I beg to differ with the smaller poops part... ever seen a broody bantam hen poop?? HOLY HANNA almost the size of a dog!!! LOL!!!

 

[tiki244]

Ditto on everything!!!

Also bantams are becoming very popular in the shows. So if you are into that, that would be good. You could also sell hatching eggs. Or just get some good quality bantam breeds and sell the chicks to 4Hers.

 

[a2ms4chickens]

I have banty RIRs, 2 hens and a roo. The hens are great broodies. I had 2 sitting on eggs, each in 2 different nesting boxes. Lucy hatched her eggs and was being mama to her chicks. A couple days before the other hen's eggs were to hatch, Lucy sat on half of Ethel's eggs for her. They were both good mamas to 7 chicks.

Even though they are small, they rule the roost. They keep my standard hens, BO, BR and red sexlink, as well as, our standard RIR teenagers, all in line.

We do have old english bantams and modern game bantams for my son, who shows for 4-H. They fit in his hand, and they have great personalities.

They are really cute and friendly. And they eat less than the standards.

Just try a couple and you'll love 'em.

 

[wegotchickens]

Banty's weigh less and are smaller, so it's easier to cuddle them. You can keep a set in the brooder longer, handle them more, and they are tamer. And they are adorable (a word usually squealed by my 12-year old DD when we play with them).

 

[Kanchii]

You can have more of them cause they're like 1/3 the size of a standard chicken, easier to handle, and since I like to show it's a lot easier to transport little chickens than huge ones! I'd probably only be able to fit 3 standard chickens in my car

 

[Iceblink]

Here is one other benefit of Banties, especially Silkies, they don't really look like "real" chickens, so if you have nosy un-chicken-loving neighbors (!) you can tell a little fib and say they are 'rare black skinned gallus domesticus.' Your neighbors will look at you funny and walk away........ at least that's the idea.

 

[Kanchii]

Quote:
No no, they're rare african ground parrots!