What type of chicken should a beginner get?

[Luke10]

Hello, this will be my first time i have kept chickens, and i am unsure of what chicken breed to get.

I wont 4 hens. They will be kept in a 8 by 8 ft shed and will be allows about 40 by 30 ft worth of room in my garden during the day.

I wont my chickens to be:
* Friendly as they will be around young children.
* They should be easy and cheap to keep.
* Easy to handle.
* Not able to fly over 3ft.
* Lay eggs everyday and are a good size.
* hardy to cold and a generally healthy birds.
* Fairly common breed/easy and cheap to obtain

I live in Lancashire, England.

Also, the outdoor area i am allowing them to roam around in is covered in stones, would this be a problem for the chickens?

All comments appreciated.

Thanks, Luke.

 

[muddyhorse]

I'm not sure what breeds are readily available to you in the UK. orpingtons would be a good choice but I don't know how high they fly. Sussex are really nice too. the stones in the outside should be just fine for them.

 

[TK Poultry]

silkies or cochins (pekins) would be great choices

 

[shortstaque]

Hello, and welcome to BYC!

It sounds like you will have a nice set-up for your chickens.

I'm pretty new to this chicken thing too. I ended up getting 12 different breeds so I could try them out. You can see the breeds I have listed in my signature line. They do all have different personalities.

I agree with a previous poster that the Sussex would be a good choice. I think they are very common on your side of the big pond. Mine are very friendly and curious. They are great foragers. They love coming to the garden with me. They are cold hardy. Mine didn't lay yet, but they are know to be reliable layers of brown eggs. Mine tend to stay on the ground more than some other breeds, but I think almost any chicken can fly over 3 ft unless you clip the wings on one side. That said, they don't often want to get out if they like where they are. They really prefer to be with their friends. Generally, the smaller and slimmer the bird, the quicker and higher it will go to get into trouble.

I don't recommend the mediterranean breeds if you want them calm and friendly. Plus, because they are smaller, they are real flyers.

Have fun choosing!!! Chickens are such a joy to have for so many reasons.

 

[bubblesegg]

you should get a Rhode Island red or ameroucana. they are soooo friendly, trusrt me. Rhide island red lay very big eggs. I once got a big egg that it wont even fit in the carton.

 

[Robo]

I would try buff orphingtons. They are very cold hardy, are very friendly and they lay big brown eggs. They are a very big bird, so they can't fly too far if you clip their wings. They will be fine on the stones. If mine can swim every time it rains hard, I'd say they'll be fine on stones. Good Luck!

 

[TK Poultry]

when I started out I had like ten different breeds. I finally after a year of buying and selling I finally found my LOVE Ameraucanas. It will take awhile for you to find "the breed"

 

[luvchicks8]

cochin or orpingtons

 

[noodleroo]

Buff Orpingtons. Great with children, too. Big fluffy birds that are fairly hardy. Any chicken can fly over 3 ft., so you'll have to figure something out for that. I have them and just love them; they are so sweet...

 

[GothChick]

I also say Buff Orpingtons. I love mine! They are super friendly and I have a 1 1/2 year old that plays with them all the time. Also like others have said, they are too heavy to fly, great brown egg layers, and they are one of the breeds that continues to lay eggs even in winter. Many breeds stop laying eggs once it gets cold but Buff Orpingtons lay all year long.