Your opinion on breed to get...

[grandmaof5]

I thought I had my mind made up; then DH (city boy that he is)told me he doesn't like white chickens. So now I need to re-think. So, here are my criteria, folks. DH says brown chickens. I prefer a heritage breed, and one that is rare in Canada (or North America). I'd like a dual purpose breed; not necessarily "one egg everyday" girl. We live at 45 degrees north latitude and our winters can get very cold (-20 C for weeks on end) so not fragile types. We'll have only hens for the first while, no cockerels.

So now I'm open for all opinions...

 

[ging3rhoffman]

What i did when i couldnt chose was get a few pairs of different colors. They look so good together. For cold winters you want to stay away from the girls with big single combs. I like the Silver Lace Wyandotte, the Buff Orpingtons, the Black Aussies and everyone should always have a couple of Easter Egg chickens for the blue and green eggs. You can also go look at chickens on a website and see which ones appeal to you.
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[ke_ben]

Turkens/naked necks are supposed to be really cold tolerant, large, and consistent layers. Your choice of color and beauty is in the eye of the beholder!

 

[grandmaof5]

ging3rhoffman, I love your idea, however, we are planning on getting only 4 pullets.

 

[Katy]

Wyandottes are cold hardy and they have rose combs which cuts down on the frostbite in the winter. I like my wyandottes a lot.