Which Breeds Would Be Good for a Newbie?

[nolotus]

I

You're welcome.
If you free range, I'd choose chickens that are darker or have patterns,(for camouflage) like barnevelders, ( i know of a great breeder in NC for hatching eggs), barred chickens, and wyandottes.
See how my sussex has that baby deer camo, she blends in, more or less.
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I personally, avoid production breeds, I prefer heritage type.
The ones I've had of production reds randomly dropped dead. of course that doesn't mean they all do that, I could've had a bad batch.

That is a beautiful hen! I hadn't ever looked at sussex chickens before, but I will! Yikes on the "randomly dropping dead" chickens. That sounds ominous. Thanks so much for the reply!

 

[nolotus]

does the color make any difference-

Not to the chickens. Does it to you? I personally like a multicolored and patterned flock. But that is a personal preference. We all have our favorite breeds, colors. and patterns and they are all different. That doesn't matter. What matters is your personal preferences.

I also want to get a cockerel. Just one I’m assuming? Which breed would be best for that?

What are your goals for that cockerel? Your goals, not mine. Why do you want one? If you are hatching his eggs, what do you want the chicks to look like?

Is it best to stick with established breeds instead of something like McMurray’s Whiting True Green?

Again it comes down to your goals. It sounds like you are not going to be breeding for show as you are getting multiple colors/breeds. Are you planning on selling hatching eggs or baby chicks? There can be reasons to just get standard breeds. But in my personal opinion I think you would be needlessly limiting your options if you just went with standard breeds. Do you want a hen that goes broody and hatches eggs? Some standard breeds go broody more than others. The "specialty" like that Whiting or the Prairie Bluebell probably won't. Does the color of the egg matter? It does to some people, not to others. Will you ever eat them? Size might matter.

My main reasons for wanting chickens is for the eggs and for the enjoyment of watching them.

I think they are all fun to watch so that part doesn't help me. Chicken TV can be better than anything on cable, antenna, or satellite. As for egg laying the production type breeds are more productive than the decorative or meat birds. Stay away from Cornish X and Rangers. I'm probably not doing you any favors since you said it's hard for you to make up your mind but I'll include these links anyway. Henderson's Breed Chart only includes true breeds and not all of them. But you can go through the breed chart and see what they consider breed characteristics and then go to Feathersite to see what they look like. Breed characteristics are misleading. If you have a huge number so averages mean something you may see a difference, but each chicken is an individual. Some will hit breed characteristics, some will not be anywhere close. As an example, Buff Orpington are supposed to go broody a lot, mine never did. But I only had two of them. Still, I don't know anything better to go by.

As for the mixes or special ones like that Whiting not in the chart, they tend lay really well and not go broody, but that is a generalization. Read their write-up carefully.

Henderson’s Breed Chart

http://www.sagehenfarmlodi.com/chooks/chooks.html

Feathersite

http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/BRKPoultryPage.html#Chickens

The bottom line is that with a little basic study to narrow it down a little about any will be a good choice. A lot will depend on which individuals you get. As one experienced person on here said, they put a lot of study into it and think they will really like a certain breed, but when they get them they often find out they don't. Or fall in love with some they did not think were that great.

I understand how hard it is to make up your mind. When I placed my first order I was changing my mind up until the order was placed, then questioned myself as to why I had not chosen differently. At some point you just have to decide. With the pandemic a lot of people are ordering chickens that otherwise would not so it is important to get an order in early. In Idaho you might want to try a little later on spring so the weather has warmed up a bit. A winter storm can disrupt mail delivery which is not good when mailing living animals. And try to avoid holidays, mail tends to get messed up then too.

I doubt if any of this has helped you. When I ordered my first flock I used a childhood song to help me get organized. Red was Speckled Sussex because my wife liked the speckles. Yellow was Buff Orpington because they were supposed to go broody a lot. Mine never did. Black was the Black Australorp, supposedly good for laying in winter. These surprised me by going broody. White was Delaware because I wanted a white one. If I were starting over I'd choose differently but I'm not sure what I'd choose.

Good luck and welcome to the adventure. It really is hard to choose wrong.

Thank you so much for the really helpful reply! I will check out the links and take to heart that it's "really hard to choose wrong." Thanks again!

 

[nolotus]

There are very few kinds of chickens that have any special needs (mostly the ones with non-standard feather types like Silkies and frizzles or extreme crests like Polish and the feather-footed sort that shouldn't be kept in areas prone to mud), and so many wonderful breeds that do well in a variety of conditions so you'd probably be fine with just getting anything you think is pretty.

Thanks! I appreciate it!

 

[Friendly_Lurker]

Buff Orps. In my opinion, they are not fussy, are cuddly, sweet, and love being held if raised right.

Yes. I always suggest Buff Orpingtons.

 

[nolotus]

My Buff is the sweetest little thing! She was the first to lay!
Our Australorp is also beautiful and very friendly, she likes being held more than the Buff!

Thanks for your reply! I have heard good things about Buffs and Australorps.

 

[nolotus]

Yes. I always suggest Buff Orpingtons.

Probably will be some Buffs in my list. What does "raised right" mean? Thanks for the reply!

 

[Friendly_Lurker]

Probably will be some Buffs in my list. What does "raised right" mean? Thanks for the reply!

As in a hatchery catalogue? It might mean the hens were raised with plenty of space.

 

[3KillerBs]

Thanks! I appreciate it!

Since I live on sandy soil I went ahead and indulged in feathered feet even in my first flock.

 

[AntiqueB]

I believe it's important to get them used to you from day 1. I probably went overboard by cuddling them to sleep every night before I put them, sleepy, back in the brooder, but they're 17 weeks old now, and still follow me, jump on my lap instead of looking for food and bugs, and fly up to my shoulders.

I have an Easter Egger and Buff Orpington (who's mean to the EE, but loves me), and a Speckled Sussex I had to rehome (he turned out to be a rooster). They're all nice chickens. The SS was the best forager, the EE the best flyer. Let's just say the BO is "special."

 

[mviera101]

I've had great luck with Barred Rocks, sweet , gentle gals.