Which of these breeds would you recommend?

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Barred rock 100%. They are sweet chickens.
Not in Tony's case, though.
View attachment 3385602

Oh i love her. Whats she doin'?

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

The Comets and ISAs are excellent layers and have nice personalities, but I would only recommend them if you plan to cull them around their second year. Because they are bred to lay daily, it really takes a toll on their reproductive system and the rest of their body. In my experience, my Comets SERIOUSLY suffered from some sort of reproductive issues eventually and I culled them just because I didn't feel it was humane to let them suffer. I did not know any of this before getting the Comets. They really are great personality-wise, but it's only humane to cull them. Chickens are tough and don't show pain until something really bothers them. So they likely suffer from reproductive issues and pain way before we can realize it.


I've never had Leghorns, but I've heard their personalities aren't the best. Great layers though. I LOVE my Barred Rock. She's hilarious! She's quite bossy and also "complains" to me a lot by making this "bwaaaaaaa" noise like she's warning me she's gonna do something bad if I don't give her a snack ASAP lol. She also likes to peer in at me from the back step when I'm inside, hopeful for a treat. I think Barred Rocks are generally spunky like this, from what I've heard. They aren't known for being super sweet and cuddley (but they can be), but they are a great flock addition because they are friendly, have big personalities, and are solid layers. Mine is not aggressive at all. She can sometimes boss the other chickens around a bit and puts the pullets in their place, but she's never excessively rough. Just a good chicken all around. I think she is over 3 years old (idk age because I adopted her from a rescue farm) and she still gives me 4-5 eggs a week.

View attachment 3385712
The one and only, Big Rhonda.

Rhonda, she is ALL that and then some! Hey, i notice your chickens beaktip didnt photo. I have the SAME exact problem with my iphone. The beaktips dont show! I' e had to delete so many good photos but missing the beak tip!

 

[Grandma The Chicken]

Oh i love her. Whats she doin'?

I tried to get her to sit still for a photo and I'm surprised that she didn't run away.
The only reason why I did this was because every time I try to get a photo of Tony, she always run away before I can even get a photo. This is one of my favorite photos of her.

 

[NevadaEmma]

I was going to suggest the Australorp, but you have one. I bought what was called an Aquila at our Big R a few years ago, but essentially I think that they are an Australorp. Beautiful birds and now she is my most consistent egg layer. Her eggs are huge!

I also have a Lavender Gem I bought at the same time. She is my smallest hen, but she is also my most consistent egg layer, again with huge eggs. Hard to believe that she can lay them that large considering how small she is. It could be that their eggs are so large because they are older than my others.

I had a barred rock which I really liked. She was very sweet when before she started laying eggs. Then she just became a bit stand offish. She was also very independent, but that could have just been her personality.

I currently have Salmon Favorelles. I would highly recommend the Rooster of this breed if your are so inclined to have a rooster. Very friendly, calm and protective of his girls. He is also gorgeous. Dual purpose birds as well. They SF females may be a bit too timid for the mixed flock that you have. Most of mine (20) are a bit nervous and timid. Wonderful birds though.

 

[HenriettaPizzaNolan]

Rhonda, she is ALL that and then some! Hey, i notice your chickens beaktip didnt photo. I have the SAME exact problem with my iphone. The beaktips dont show! I' e had to delete so many good photos but missing the beak tip!

Hahaha thank you! She really is something!

And I usually have good luck with the beak tips showing in portrait mode, but for some reason with this lighting and her being turned away, it just wouldn't pick it up. I use a Pixel 3a phone btw. I usually have more trouble with their eyes. For some reason they occasionally turn out looking cloudy - maybe because they were just blinking or something? It's weird.

 

[fuzzi]

Barred rocks are a breed. Different people have different opinions on what "heritage" means so I try to not use that term. Any breed will breed true, that's a requirement of being a breed.

If you breed a barred rock to a barred rock you will get a barred rock.

These terms get confusing. One definition of a breed is that it is recognized by a national organization like the APA (American Poultry Association). The British, Australians, French, and other countries have their own national organizations. They have their own requirements for a breed. For example a British Araucana can have a tail, an American Araucana cannot so a breed can look different in different countries. The Cream Legbar is an approved breed in the UK and can lay a green egg. The last I heard the Cream Legbar was not approved in the US and the consortium trying to get it approved were debating whether to require blue eggs of if they would accept green eggs like the British. Then you have the color thing. Different country's organizations approve different colors for a breed. Some breed organizations don't consider a specific color a requirement for a breed. There are other characteristics that define the breed. Colors can be approved but a chicken with all those characteristics can be an unapproved color and still be that breed. Not everybody will agree with this. It gets confusing. With a barred rock the breed is Rock and Barred is one of 8 colors approved by the APA.

A hybrid is when you cross two specific lines of chickens to get a specific result. In some cases it may be a 4 way cross. These specific lines don't have to be breeds, in the case of Cornish X meat birds or the commercial hybrid layers the parent flocks are not breeds but they produce consistent results. Which parent is the father and which the mother is usually very important. Some hybrids have been given names but this does not make them a breed, they will not breed true. One hatchery makes Cinnamon Queen's by crossing a Rhode Island Rooster with a Silver Laced Wyandotte hen, for example. There are many others.

You have the mixes. With the current boom in backyard chickens, several hatcheries have developed mixes and given them a marketing name. They are not hybrids because they don't produce a specific result but they produce a type where they have some similar traits. I can't remember an example off the top of my head.

You have the EE's and OE's. Many people talk about them as if they were a breed but there are no standards. We can't agree on a definition on what makes a chicken an EE. When someone says EE or OE it tells me nothing about colors, size, traits, or even color of eggs the hens lay.

I'll stop my rant, I could keep going. I'm sure this is a lot more than you wanted. I consider your question as to whether they breed true to be a good one. You are thinking.

Thank you, that was very informative.

While I am getting back "into" chickens for eggs and fun, I would like the option of breeding replacement chickens in the future. If I get Barred Rocks for characteristics of the breed, I don't want to lose the characteristics by mixing them with other breeds.

It's why I'm leaning towards to having just one breed at this time. Maybe I'll change my mind in the future, but for now one breed is what I want.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Thank you, that was very informative.

While I am getting back "into" chickens for eggs and fun, I would like the option of breeding replacement chickens in the future. If I get Barred Rocks for characteristics of the breed, I don't want to lose the characteristics by mixing them with other breeds.

It's why I'm leaning towards to having just one breed at this time. Maybe I'll change my mind in the future, but for now one breed is what I want.

I prefer one breed and I'm not sure why. Maybe because my first flock are all the same and I like to be able to compare their personalities and not just assume its because of the breed. I have 5 GLW's (only for 2 yrs now this spring) and I think they are a delight. Good luck and i hope your flock thrives.

 

[Nancy Welton]

We are considering adding a couple of more chickens to our flock and are considering breeds that are consistent and great layers (good personality is a bonus). These are the ones we are considering:
-Barred Rock
-White Leghorn
-Isa Brown
-Golden Comet

Which would you recommend?

They would be joining a Rhode Island Red, Buff Orpington, Light Brahma, Wyandotte, Speckled Sussex & Black Australorp.

White leghorn are great layers and large size eggs.

 

[ChickenLaydeeMontana]

My leghorn is the best layer I’ve ever had even at almost 3 she’s been laying through the winter almost daily! She’s very friendly as well and follows me around all the time, she is an escape artist!

My two leghorns are the same. Winter they don't skip a beat. I mostly only collect white eggs in winter. My australorps are down to maybe 1 every 3rd day

 

[ChickenLaydeeMontana]

The only thing I would add about the White Leghorn...but first the good. Yes they are full of personality, yes they lay more eggs than anybody in my flock they take care of themselves. but… they are pigseven though they deserve it, they case off the other chickens from the feed! The biggest downside to the white Leghorn is if you live in a cold climate. I have struggled with temperatures at negative 40ﾟF and they have extremely large combs...