What's a good breed?

[chicken_love]

I don't have any chickens yet, but I want to get some. I don't know what is a good breed though. Bantams sound good, but then again, a lot of breeds sound good. What do you think is a good breed to get started with?

 

[PurpleChicken]

That's like asking "What is a good car?" or "What is good food?".

You've got to answer these questions first.

1-What do you want them for? Eggs, pets, soup, etc...

2-How much room do you have?

3-Where are you located? Some breeds are better in colder
environments.

4-Are you gonna hatch, buy from a breeder, or get the chickens
full grown?

5-What are your town ordinances on chickens.

There are a lot of different breeds of bantam. Bantams are just smaller.

Good luck.

 

[Whirlwind]

It kind of depends on what you want your chickens for. If you want eggs or meat or both or just pets. Everyone has their favs.

My favs are Golden comets. Friendly,calm, early layers of huge brown eggs. Mine are pets also and not for eating.

 

[WoodlandWoman]

Here are some fun sites to look at, when you are thinking about what chickens you might like to get:

This one has a nice chart of information, so you can compare breeds.
http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html

This one has a lot of pictures of the various breeds.
http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/BRKPoultryPage.html#Chickens

 

[chicken_love]

Quote:
OK:
1. I want a nice chick that I can show that won't attack me if I pick it up.
2. I have an 8x8 shed with about 192 sq ft outside (fenced in)
3. Michigan, so it's sold in the winter and warm in the summer
4. Buy from a breeder
5. We live in a rural area with a ton of land, so there aren't any ordinances on really anything.
And I like silky bantams.
Thanks a lot!

 

[speckledhen]

Like the quote from Hawkeye-that's my flock rooster's name, LOL. Named him after the character in Last of the Mohicans, though. Anyway, if you like Silkies, there's your answer. Most are docile, but some roos will get a little ornery since it's also an individual thing, not only a breed thing. You could easily fit 20 bantams in a coop that size. Good luck with your new hobby!

 

[PurpleChicken]

You've got your priorities in line a lot more han I did when we
got our chickens. We're still new ourselves with the oldest of our flock
going on 13 weeks. Get yourself some silkies. We have 3 and love them.


My Silkie observations:
Ours are a little cranky compared to our standard Buff Orps or Speckled Sussexes
but friendlier than some other breeds. They are a lot more vocal than our standards.
Silkies require more care since their feathers grow in around their eyes. They
are also more prone to mites. Heat is also a concern. They start panting
before the other chickens do. They don't fly are even jump up on the waterer.

Disclaimer: I only got the silkies cause my wife didn't understand why I wanted
chickens but fell in love with the silkies when she saw them. Personally, I'd like
to eat them.

 

[PurpleChicken]

Meet my silkies...

http://s164.photobucket.com/player....s/silkie_0001.flv&t=1183250726&fs=1&os=1&ap=1

 

[chicken_love]

Awww they're so cute, PurpleChicken!!!!
But I don't think that any chicken that has much trouble in heat will work very well here, cause it can get rather hot. Are there any other chicks that are cute that might work better in heat? And in cold?

 

[CarriBrown]

Chickens can handle the cold much better than the heat. I live in Southern California where it can get 90-100 degrees for three months straight, and the silkies seem to have the hardest time with it. My standard cochin also gets pretty hot.
I have a Buttercup who seems to like the heat, and my Wyandottes like to sunbathe in the middle of the day. My bantam cochins don't seem to get as hot as my standard. It seems to me that the Asianic breeds heat up the most.