Whats one breed you own that you would not get again?

[SilverBirds]

I wouldn't get Australorps again. Didn't care for their personalities.

 

[Pampers]

I switched to All Flock instead of Layer feed, supplementing calcium on the side if a hen wants it, I'm not sure if that is why, but my Comets & ISAs are still going strong, 5 yrs old plus. They no longer lay every single day but that's OK with me, I don't mind my seniors up to abt 10 yrs old now, I don't call them freeloaders, they do more than their fair share of gardening & surrogate mama duties, as well as keeping the flighty ones calm.

Thanks fir the tips, I have a red sexlink pulletthat hasn't started laying yet so these tips will be helpful, I want her to have a good, full life!

 

[Liz Birdlover]

I love how Barred Rocks feather patterns look, my very 1st chickens were Rocky & Sweet Pea, gorgeous birds, healthy, sturdy stock. She was a great egg layer (just passed on recently at 7 yrs old). She was loving towards me (made Rocky jealous) But...Sweet Pea wasn't very congenial with other hens. Luckily, the other hens grew as large or larger & were much calmer (she could be skittish) they pretty much ignored Sweet Pea, so there was no bloodshed, but on occasion Sweet Pea was seen spitting the other hens' tail feathers from her beak. Rocky, was named correctly, he wanted to spar, whether it was with other Roos or my leg, when my back was turned, or I was walking away. Yes, He would wait till I did all the food & water, cleaned his section of coop, & while in there, he sweetly watched me. Then when I was completely done, walking away, the scooper in one hand & bucket of poop in the other, with both hands occupied & back turned, then he would run up behind me & kick me good, on the back of my calf, right where top of my boot ended of course! Then the little bugger would actually laugh! I kid you not, he sounded like a witchy woman laughing! He didn't draw blood, although it did get my attention, but when I heard him laughing it made me laugh. I swear that little stinker was doing it for fun. He has mellowed considerably in his old age, with no skittish Sweet Pea by his side, & sits on my lap, making sweet sounds as I pet him. He's an old man now.
Sweet Pea & Rocky


The Rhode Island Reds are sweet to me, but can be quite bossy & bully other chickens. I bred the sweetest Rhode Island Red rooster, then got these cute RIR chicks to be his little harem & grow up with him. Those wenches picked his neck completely bald!!! He looked like a naked neck, I swear to you they were pulling his feathers out...& he would cry a squeak, but continued to let them! Needless to say, he's not with them anymore. He's doing much better with sweet ISAs, gentle Roos need gentle hens. Fiesty hens need a Roo that's kind but won't take any crap. The RIR wenches have a red Ameracauna Roo I raised, he is a lover boy with me but he will keep a boisterous hen in line. He doesn't peck or spar them, he rams them like a bull or rhino! Funniest thing I've ever seen. He plows them apart if they squabble. Then Crows in satisfaction of his peacekeeping efforts.
RIRs & poor Casanova's pecked neck & comb. (He healed well & is gorgeous now)



I truly love the Ameracaunas (mine may be EEs) & Wyandottes, & have never had any attitude issues with them. (Well 1 adult Ameracauna Roo I rescued was a meanie...he was rehomed). But the ones I've hatched & raised, plus the originals I purchased, are sweet & loving. I count my blessings, they are wonderful & the EEs lay pretty blue eggs.


Wyandottes lay cream color eggs



The Marans & Australorps are pretty sweet as well, slightly skittish but not as much as the Barred Rocks. Those ladies lay large, dark brown eggs. They can squabble a bit amongst themselves but no bullying. When they do come out to free range a bit as I do yard work, they tend to stick close to coop pens. Little homebodies.




My Buff Orpingtons are The Most Friendly, along with Comets & ISA Browns, & 1 Brahma (want more of her, what a gentle soul) they never squabble with eachother, either, total harmony with them. They lay light beige eggs. I switched feed to All Flock & offer calcium on the side for who wants to peck at it, so all of my Roos & hybrids, (so far), are still going strong. I've heard some breeds are genetically bred to produce eggs & have a shorter life span, which I really didn't know when I 1st got them, & a few were rescues so I didn't care what they were, I just want to provide these older ladies a good home. I don't know if it's true, but I've tried to supply a healthy, varied diet. These chickens not only grew in lovely feathers & became more active, but their overall health improved & began laying eggs again, after I was told they'd stopped. I don't know how old they'll live to, but it'll be the best life I can provide while they're here. They range in age from 5 to 8 yrs right now.



I took in 2 Call Ducks once, hen was blind & drake was missing 1 foot. I had them a few months before finding them a loving home with more duck friendly accommodations. While I do love all birds, I have found that waterfowl can be a different type of challenge, because they truly love swimming, and I do not have a pond. Kiddie pools I used, but goodness what a mess they made, so dumping out the pool daily was killing my aching back. I'm not a big fan of slipping & landing on my butt in mud either.

Guineas, I am new to. They present a challenge because they prefer to roam & do not care whose property they're roaming on. We will have less ticks, hobo spiders & creepy crawlies, but I'm not sure how my neighbors feel about them...I know I will hear from them at some point. Lol Especially when the Guineas do their synchronized vocalizations...that will undoubtedly set off their 2 Husky pups. The other neighbor has a ton of cats. Yeah...to be continued.


Anyway...hope this helps if you're trying to make a decision. All birds do have their unique personalities though, just like people. I'm sure there are sweet, calm Barred Rocks & RIRs somewhere, just not in my coops.

I'm not saying never, but I'm not exactly going out of my way looking for more Barred Rocks or RIRs at this point.

(Oh for goodness sakes...I say that now, but when Rocky my Rock Star passes, it will break my heart. Yeah...never say never. I'm sure somehow fate will see that Barred Rocks & RIRs find their way to my coops)

Rocky, my very 1st Roo...King of Stink Eye

Casanova, the sweetest RIR Comet mix ever hatched
Daily hugs for this boy! (Thank God his neck feathers grew back)

 

[ikoCRO]

Dwarf cochin.
In Croatia, many people call them "walking plague". Very sensitive, they often get sick. Trouble to raise, cheap to sell!
Laying hybrids.
Extremely stupid, unsocialized animals, quite messy.
HPK Croatian pygmy hen.
Quite aggressive and wild, the roosters are extremely loud and busy at all times of the day. They reproduce very quickly on their own, very cheap to sell!
These are my personal experiences!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Any hybrid high production egg breeds.

Agree with this, 100%

I also didn't much like the Rhode Island Reds, Wyandottes, or Leghorns I've had and probably won't get any more of them. Poor attitudes toward each other and the other birds, and in the case of the Leghorns, much too flighty for my liking.

And I don't find Silkies that great, either, and likely won't replace mine once they've gone. I'm much happier with my silkied Cochin bantams than I ever was with the Silkies.

The only other thing I can think of is bantam Easter-eggers. Love my large fowl EEs, but the bantams were absolutely insane, worse than the Leghorns for flightiness!

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Probably no Japanese again either. My girl was just bonkers. Usefully broodingwise cause she didn't actually have to be broody to care for cjicks, but she was insane and hated every other living bird that wasn't currently a baby

 

[artbykarenehaley]

White Faced Black Spanish, at least not here. I have a backyard, and these birds need to live out in the country away from Chicken lovin' kids.
Pretty.
noisy. We're talking, the most talkinist chicken I ever met.
Good flyers.
Escape artists.
Aggressive and strong roosters.
Faces are kind of delicate.

 

[artbykarenehaley]

Also I'm not sure if I ever get buff orps again. They look really washed out and ratty by the time the end of summer comes around. When they have fresh new feathers they look lovely but oo much time in the sun bleaches them and seems like their feathers are prone to becoming kind of brittle.
My biggest bully is my buff Orpington.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

White Faced Black Spanish, at least not here. I have a backyard, and these birds need to live out in the country away from Chicken lovin' kids.
Pretty.
noisy. We're talking, the most talkinist chicken I ever met.
Good flyers.
Escape artists.
Aggressive and strong roosters.
Faces are kind of delicate.

Do you mean bantam or standard? Just asking because my bantams are almost opposite that

 

[Liz Birdlover]

Do you mean bantam or standard? Just asking because my bantams are almost opposite that

The few bantams I have met (farm sitting for friends) were such loveable birds!