I have a soft spot for anything small - so I'm partial to bantams. But my absolute, hands-down favorites are the
Nankin Bantams, mainly because they have so much personality in a tiny little body!
Nankins are a true bantam breed - and they're Critically Endangered, so I'm helping save a heritage breed while enjoying my backyard biddies. They're super friendly, curious to a fault and so docile that children can pick them up at will.
The mamas are great broodies and really good mothers. The roosters will join in chick-raising duties and they all get along. We have a bachelor run with 4-6 fellows in it at any given time - and no real fighting beyond the usual pecking-order picking.
The Nankins' very survival as a distinct breed is due explicitly to the traits I love. Their size, broodiness and docile, friendly natures are why the gamekeepers of Europe kept them pure and small while the rest of the world was using them to downsize the bigger breeds.
For myself, I'll add that Nankins are big enough to turn over a garden but small enough to not do any real damage, they're small and trusting enough to ride on my shoulder ... and they're just plain fun-to-watch. The hens look like they just stepped out of a child's storybook -
The Little Red Hen, and I can't resist the roosters' beautiful coloring, especially their flowing golden hackles and gorgeous, iridescent green tails. They look like a picture from a child's
Old MacDonald songbook, pint-sized!
Check out Nankin Bantams (and a bunch of other endangered and threatened heritage breed livestock) at
www.livestockconservancy.org. Just be prepared to spend some time there ... it's addicting ... kinda like keeping chickens ...
