What breeds have you kept across your chickening life and why?

[Amer]

Sussex, Barnevelders, Silkies (+ Showgirls), Frizzles, mixes, some black blue egg laying chickens that I do not remember what they were, and a little bantam rooster that I don't remember either. There's a couple other random breeds that I had for short periods of time because it wasn't uncommon for us to take unwanted roosters for meat. Like that scissor beak indian game cockerel I had for like a week...

I've liked basically all the breeds I've kept. My goals now are keeping dual-purpose heritage breeds (except the silkies, they're just a guilty pleasure ), and I also want to do some breeding projects just to have some fun cross breeding and learning genetics.

Silkies being a guilty pleasure is so valid.

 

[Chicalina]

Throughout my chicken keeping journey I've kept australorps, BSL, leghorns, EEs, barnyard mixes, Sex Link mixes, Blue Haze. Those I no longer have. I've also kept ISA Brown from the very beginning, but I still have those. Right now I have Tsouloufati, some mix breed bantams, and aseel. My favorite breed is the aseel

I have never heard of Tsouloufati! What are they like?

 

[Chicalina]

Everyone has different objectives, equals different breed favs. For me, 3 objectives: different colored chickens, different colored eggs, nice breeds. I will always have Creme Legbar, BCM, EE, OE, Lavender Orp. Beyond that, whatever it takes to meet objectives like Cuckoo Maran's, Wyandottes, Australorps, Barnevelders.

That is very true! You have similar objectives to me. I've only in recent years added in the idea of coloured eggs. Hence the Welsummer and this year the Marans and Auraucana. My Cream Legbar didn't last long so I never got eggs from her.

 

[Chicalina]

I really like the middle-of-the-road girls, where maybe they lay only a few eggs a week, but they aren't likely to die on me when they are 2 years.

I used to try to have the best egg production breeds only, but they are always having some issue from laying all those eggs (with the exception of my black sex-links, they have been problem free so far. Still, they are only 2 now, so the issues may come next year).

I love the personality of brahmas and salmon faverolles, but they lay so few eggs that I can't keep too many in the flock.

My favorite breeds are rocks, wyandottes, austrolorps, and orpingtons (as long as the latter two aren't ones that goes broody all the time, but that is a roll of the dice). I like having either breeds, too, so I can tell them apart, so I will deviate and get some other interesting breeds periodically.

I hear you on the egg production. That's why I won't keep those breeds any more but I started out with them. Having a hen with a really bad prolapse was pretty traumatic, and losing others with egg peritonitis quite young. That being said, one of my red sex links lived for years, even with ascites and she raised babies.

Brahmas are beautiful! Too big for me now as I only keep bantams now.

 

[Chicalina]

RIRs, Bar Rks, Buff Rks, Wht Rks and Delawares. Like American Breed birds with nice single comb and body build. Now have Blk Aus and am very satisfied. Slightly smaller than the rock types with nice combs, body, early maturing and great layers. Want to try some Lavender Orps because of color.

Black Australorps are on my wish list. Never kept Rocks but I see they are quite popular.

 

[Chicalina]

So many. To begin with, I just wanted some homegrown colorful eggs so I got EE hens.
But when I moved to the country I wanted to start breeding some for show.
My brother liked how d’Uccles looked and I thought it would be good to show Dominique bantams and Jersey Giants.
We also got Red Rangers for meat.
I really wanted Faverolles so I got those. And Mom got Welsummers and Australorps for eggs.
We were disenchanted with the feather legs so my brother got d’Anvers. I always wanted Ameraucanas, I loved the blue wheaten color and the blue eggs and the cold hardiness. That’s actually how I got my original username, AMERAUCANAS4REAL, I was serious about breeding real Ameraucanas.
I actually found their personality really boring, so now the only Ameraucana I have is a black hen for eggs.
We got Silkies from a friend who didn’t want them anymore. The farm will always have Silkies. My brother and cousin love them, and I like their brooding abilities.
My mom got Buckeyes for show.
I ended up buying some d’Anvers to go with my brother’s.
Since I was in the Buckeye club she found out that breeders were giving bantam Buckeye pairs to youth that were willing to breed them and spread them around.
I remember I once had a trio of bantam Brahmas for show but they never laid. Same with a pair of bantam Cochins. And I think my brother had a pair of bantam Wyandottes with fertility issues.
I took over my brother’s d’Anvers project and made it mine because he didn’t want anything to do with birds anymore.
Eventually the LF Buckeye project went away because I didn’t want large fowl anymore.
In subsequent years, there were a variety of breeds on the farm.
Cornish cross for meat, but I didn’t like them.
We raised many different egg layers (two accidental Easter Eggers, an accidental BuckeyexSilkie, a Marans, a bantam Sicilian Buttercup) and others and my mom bred Anconas for show and my little brother recently started a bantam Welsummer project.
I have one Dominique bantam for a cuckoo d’Anvers project.
Mom got rid of her Ancona males and will start a Delaware project. We like the dual purpose qualities and enjoy heritage meat.
I just graduated high school, so I sold all my bantam Buckeyes. I did my best to share them all over the state. I think I did them justice but they will never be my favorite.
Now, I only have d’Anvers bantams. They are my favorite breed because of their beauty, beards, and personality. I keep them for show and pets, basically. It’s funny that I never wanted them to begin with.

Wow, what a great story and such a chickeny family you have!

 

[Amer]

Wow, what a great story and such a chickeny family you have!

Thanks

 

[Chicalina]

dominiques were my first breed 40+ years ago. when i moved here 20+ years ago i got a trio of dominiques. now this year i ordered 2 dominique pullets to have some winter egg layers because my other breeds are oriental gamefowl that mainly lay in the spring

I've seen some of your wisdom on the gamefowl. You seem to know a lot about them! I find them fascinating, and weird and really hard to tell all the varieties apart.

Dominiques are pretty.

 

[fluffycrow]

I have never heard of Tsouloufati! What are they like?

Makes sense, they're a Greek landrace. Here is what they typically look like. Excuse the ISA brown in there

 

[Chicalina]

Sussex, Barnevelders, Silkies (+ Showgirls), Frizzles, mixes, some black blue egg laying chickens that I do not remember what they were, and a little bantam rooster that I don't remember either. There's a couple other random breeds that I had for short periods of time because it wasn't uncommon for us to take unwanted roosters for meat. Like that scissor beak indian game cockerel I had for like a week...

I've liked basically all the breeds I've kept. My goals now are keeping dual-purpose heritage breeds (except the silkies, they're just a guilty pleasure ), and I also want to do some breeding projects just to have some fun cross breeding and learning genetics.

Sounds interesting! I have had loads of fun breeding my own mixes and working out which hen laid which egg. I had a paint silkie cockerel for years and he fathered a fair few interesting mixes with his genes.