What is your favorite chicken breed?

[Beccazon]

I've had about 25--30 breeds and varieties. Out of those, Leghorns and Chanteclers stand out as being repeat buys.

I have LF Partridge Chanteclers and bantam Buff Chanteclers. Both have been great. The Partridge hens are great layers, good mothers, solidly built, gentle, and cold hardy. They aren't duffers like some other large breeds and can handle themselves in a free range situation. The roosters are good with people, absolutely gorgeous, and respectful of hens. The only issue I have had is one of the roosters had a vendetta against ducks. Wouldn't quit chasing them away from the main flock. I unfortunately don't have high quality colour patterns on the hens, but I will put pictures up anyway.
View media item 7910302View media item 7910311View media item 7910275View media item 7910274View media item 7910273View media item 7910297View media item 7910276View media item 7910300View media item 7910299View media item 7910298The Buffs are new to me, but they are lovely so far. The personality on the hens is particularly sweet. I've been getting an egg a day from the trio since they started laying. Two eggs some days.

The Leghorns are tough, scrappy, good layers, and cold hardy. Yes, I am talking about White Leghorns, and no, cold hardiness is not measured only by comb size. They will be outside wandering around when even the Chanteclers are indoors due to the weather. Their feathering is downy and tough which helps retain heat, and their active personalities keep them from withering away on the roost like some others will. I do not think they would do well in a coop and run situation, though; they'd go stir crazy. I free range mine. They aren't crazy, by the way, despite their reputation. Raise them yourself and they'll be annoyingly friendly. They aren't good with strangers in my experience.

I took these pictures of my newest group a week or two ago.
View attachment 1756792
View attachment 1756793

I also really like Ameraucanas, for their shape, egg shell colour, and feathering, but unfortunately I haven't been able to get the nicest stock so far. Maybe some other year. These are Silvers, by the way.
View media item 7913134View media item 7913135

I wondered about strangers. Excellent point I am glad you brought up! For those who have pleasant and/or friendly poultry, I would be interested in knowing how your birds react to or accept outside humans. The same as they do you? No? Your kids or significant other or those who do not regularly handle them?

 

[Beccazon]

WHs are great ducks. I've had five of them. One was a house duck for a while, and I loved every minute of it. They lay like crazy, they're gorgeous, and they're friendly. What more is there to want, eh??

HOW do people house-pet a duck?? This blows my mind. Mine poop like it's a contest and poultry poop is naaaasty. Please weigh in...

 

[BantyChooks]

HOW do people house-pet a duck?? This blows my mind. Mine poop like it's a contest and poultry poop is naaaasty. Please weigh in...

With secure dog crates and daily shaving changes. Also, by keeping them in the basement, not in living areas! She'd gotten bad frostbite on her foot and eventually lost the whole thing, so she had to stay indoors all winter. (Frostbite was due to a mink attack disabling her leg, not to any fault of her own.)

 

[woodmort]

I decided this spring would be my last chick order--time to wind down my chicken keeping--so picked a few each of those breeds that, over 30 years, I've enjoyed keeping and had the best experience with. BTW, this is for eggs(especially in cold weather), free ranging and ease of managing, not meat, gave up that long ago. Also all were, hopefully, pullets. They should give me an interesting final flock.

In no particular order they are:
EE's aka Ameraucanas--I like the uniqueness of the colored eggs. Actually I've kept a few of these since the beginning, find them reliable layers and gentle although don't produce especially large eggs. This is the only breed were I keep roosters. At one time I hatched chicks in an attempt to improve the egg color but lost my breeders.
Brown Leghorns--great foragers and only breed I keep for white eggs. I prefer the rose-comb since they are less apt to have frozen comb problems. However not reliable cold weather layers and not especially friendly.--usually the first birds out of the coop and the last ones in.
Black Jersey Giants-- nice, gentle birds and size-wise less apt to be fox or hawk bait.
New Hampshire Reds--great winter layers and, in my experience not tough to get to know.
Rhode Island Reds--see NH.
Barred Rocks--great cold weather layers plus one of the first chickens I ever kept as a teenager.
Australorps--one of the best layers both cold weather and age-wise that I've had experience with. I have 3 that are in their 6th year and still give me a couple of eggs per week even in the winter.
Buff Orpingtons--love the disposition and color, good layers too. If I take the time they can become pets.
Silver Laced Wyandottes--one of few light colored birds I own as I find white birds tend to be predator targets but I love their disposition and they tend to stay close to home.
Light Brahmas--another light colored bird that sticks close. I actually picked these up on a whim at TSC but have had good experience with them.
Dark Brahmas--ordered these because of their disposition and dark color. Again, good cold weather layers and love their feathered feet.
One breed that I should have added but overlooked and when I tried later the hatchery was out of them was the Speckled Sussex. Nice layers and really gentle birds.

I also have half a dozen "production" Reds that I picked up from TSC in February just so they would give me early eggs. I really tend to stay away from sex-link birds (which these are not) because I find , while they lay early, they also burn out early.

Over the years I've had a lot of different breeds or different colors of the above, some with good, others with bad, experiences but the above are the ones I liked best. If I had my druthers, a couple of breeds I would have like to try but haven't would have been Marans and Whitings.

 

[Beccazon]

With secure dog crates and daily shaving changes. Also, by keeping them in the basement, not in living areas! She'd gotten bad frostbite on her foot and eventually lost the whole thing, so she had to stay indoors all winter. (Frostbite was due to a mink attack disabling her leg, not to any fault of her own.)

Oh ok that makes sense. I have heard about people keeping them not in basement. Seen pics of their duck on their bed. That just...yikes! Lol

 

[BantyChooks]

Oh ok that makes sense. I have heard about people keeping them not in basement. Seen pics of their duck on their bed. That just...yikes! Lol

Mmmm... nope. Won't ever catch me putting a diaper on a duck.

 

[danceswithronin]

I'm a huge fan of silkies. That's what I raised last year and not only were they very sweet pets, they also gave us more eggs than we knew what to do with. We were told their laying was lackluster at best but they did just fine. I did have an issue with broodiness in a few hens but that's typical of the breed. The only thing I don't like about silkies is how difficult they are to sex. But I was surprised at the nice uniform medium-sized eggs I consistently got from them, and they took up very little space. I kept my four in one of those small prefab coops and while standard fowl would have probably been a bit cramped, the bantam silkies had plenty of space.

Other breeds I like: I have a six week-old silver lace English Orpington chick right now, and I've been so impressed by her pleasant personality and cuddliness that I cancelled an order for a Silver Spangled Hamburg, a White Sultan, and a Dominique, and just ended up ordering three more Orpingtons instead (in buff, lavender, and blue). Can't speak to their laying ability but for tameness she is easily the most tame bird in the entire flock.

 

[Beccazon]

Mmmm... nope. Won't ever catch me putting a diaper on a duck.

I wondered if that's how they do it. I am not even a fan of diapers and little lapdog's. No way am I having a stinky duck booty in my living space. But then, differences make the world go round right? LOL

 

[jolenesdad]

I only have one, so generalizations are hard, but true to most everyone’s descriptions, my speckled Sussex is incredible.

My most personable chick and hen.

Second to her are Buff Orps and Marans.

I would have listed my Golden Campine but they can supposedly be flighty. Mine is adorable and sweet and lets my 2 year old pick her up.

 

[equine chick]

I love ameraucanas first . Yes I love the blue eggs, muffled cheeks and slate legs but find most of them really sweet and not flighty. Ee’s are pretty much the same, I have never had a bad or mean one.
Marans: I have had blue Marans and French black and they are a nice docile bird. This year I plan on getting some Copper Marans to add to the flock.
Australops : they are a nice gentle bird and good egg layer.
Plymouth blue rock: This breed is new this year, currently only have a rooster but my hens come this weeek. The rooster is sweet and likes to be held, he’s just a couple weeks old but love his coloring, and docile personality.
Ones I don’t care for.
Leghorns- they to me were flighty and crazy and hard to get to know. Welsummers I only had two but both flighty and mean.
Jersey giants a nice bird but sold at 9 months all they did was eat eat eat. I never got eggs , I know they are slow maturing.