Starting some new chicks! What is your favorite breed?

VickiP
VickiP Posts: 586 ✭✭✭✭
edited November 2020 in Birds (Land Fowl & Waterfowl)

We ordered 15 mixed breeds female chicks this week, they came yesterday. So cute, healthy and active. Lots of colors. As we were unboxing them we were trying to guess the breeds and I got to thinking about all the different breeds we have raised over the years. I think my all time favorite is Buff Orpingtons. I love their disposition and they are heavy layers of big brown eggs. After that Easter Eggers and Dorkings both because of personality. What are your favorites?

Comments

  • Melody Castello
    Melody Castello Posts: 13 ✭✭✭

    I love Buff Orphingtons also. My second favorite is Black Astralorp. I love when you let them out in the morning and they follow you around like a puppy. So cute and then there are the eggs. Yum.

  • VickiP
    VickiP Posts: 586 ✭✭✭✭

    Melody Castello, that is fun! We have a Maran Rooster named Walter who follows us around and will eat treats out of a spoon. Haha too cute! Love my chickens.

  • Gardennan
    Gardennan Posts: 47 ✭✭✭

    I love my Black Australorps, they are great layers and good foragers

  • tammyrichardsmt9
    tammyrichardsmt9 Posts: 109 ✭✭✭

    I love barred rocks, Leghorns and australorps.

  • merlin44
    merlin44 Posts: 426 ✭✭✭✭

    Rhode Island Reds - good layers, tolerate heat and cold, sweet personalities.

  • smockv
    smockv Posts: 44 ✭✭✭

    I LOVE my Americaunas! They all have different personalities, great layers, and awesome mothers!

    I have a friend that raises Buff Orphingtons, she had some cross breeding that happened somewhere and ended up with LAVENDER CHICKENS!!!! They are the prettiest light shade of violet I have ever seen; and, they have all the same lovable qualities of her other "normal color" chickens.

  • MarillynRatliff
    MarillynRatliff Posts: 7 ✭✭✭

    My vote has got to be the Buff Orphingtons, also. They are so friendly and the rooster so gentle. I've only raised Rhode Island Reds and Barred Rocks so I don't have a lot of experience but the buffs are my top favorite by far. Wish I'd started with these.

  • cre8tiv369
    cre8tiv369 Posts: 67 ✭✭✭

    I go for variety of egg colors and recommend weeding out any breeds that are not good for your climate or flock via the dinner plate. Kids love an egg basket that looks like Easter, and that color variety can bring out the kid in anyone/everyone, especially the blues and greens and how they change with season and forage. It’s not purist by any means, but it’s not inbred either, and it is fun with a coolness factor. Who doesn’t mind an extra smidge of fun. So my personal favorite breed is all of them, as long as it gives you a good mix of egg colors.

  • VickiP
    VickiP Posts: 586 ✭✭✭✭

    smockv, two of the chicks we got are lavender, we are hoping they are Lavender Orpingtons.

  • rachelcostenbader
    rachelcostenbader Posts: 11 ✭✭✭

    My all time favorite breed are Jersey Giants, the sweetest girls that I have ever had.

  • Scott
    Scott Posts: 6 ✭✭✭

    Buff Orpington seem to be my favorite. I have good luck with them in the cold weather. They are good layers with large eggs. Gentle and have even hatched eggs.

  • Chris A.
    Chris A. Posts: 27 ✭✭✭

    Over the years I have had Aracaunas, Black Astralorps, Red & white leghorns (mean!), Buff orpingtons, Red and Black Sexalinks, Barred Rocks, laced wyandotes, and out of them all I have settled on the Black Astralorps. They are great layers and great mothers (they are wonderful at hatching out their own and raising them). I have kept them for 10 plus years and they are still laying! Awesome birds, great foragers and beautiful. Though I loved the Buffs, the Astralorps are not as heavy and require a lot less feed; seem to live longer and they are great layers and meat birds if you need to use them for that (the extra roosters!) Though I choose to raise these, I have to say that I love all the different breeds as each one is unique in their own way and beautiful as well.

  • dottile46
    dottile46 Posts: 437 ✭✭✭

    My favorite chickens are the smart ones that successfully hide from the eagles and hawks. I've lost more chickens to them than to anything else. The Americaunas seem to be the most wary of the ones I've tried.

    A friend bought a new house and didn't have a place for her chickens so she brought them to me. A couple of them lay at least extra large sized, dark brown eggs with rust colored spots on them. The spots aren't raised or rough and the eggs. Wish I could figure out which ones and what breed they are. These eggs are so big that you could mistake them for a good sized duck egg. They taste so good!

  • VickiP
    VickiP Posts: 586 ✭✭✭✭

    @dottile46 When first posted this I wasn't sure what we had, they were a mixed shipment of 15, but they sent 18! Anywho we ended up with 10 either Americanas or Easter Eggers. The other 8 are 2 white Brahmas,2 Red Hampshiers, 2 Cuckcoo Marans. and 2 others I haven't ID"d yet.

    They have started laying and we have the same kind of eggs you are describing! Large, brown and speckles. The speckles are large almost a splash rather than speckles. Obviously not the Americanas I am thinking the Marans. But I haven't raised the other breeds either so I am not sure. Here is an image search I did maybe that will help. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=maran+eggs&t=avast&iax=images&ia=images&iai=http%3A%2F%2F3.bp.blogspot.com%2F-RcPd4xg9Biw%2FTZYPjpFX-fI%2FAAAAAAAAAx0%2FEmzNfvXurpc%2Fs1600%2Fsilver%2Bcuckoo%2Bmaran%2Bchicken.jpg

  • dottile46
    dottile46 Posts: 437 ✭✭✭

    The front left looks very similar to the ones I'm talking about. I looked at the hatchery 50 miles from us but still don't know what kind they are.


  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @dottile46 Could you post a picture of the birds? It is easier to tell a breed by that.

    @smockv A friend of mine has had multiple colors/patterns of orpington. She is right on the cutting edge of the popular color fads. Lavender is out (lol) and a new color is in. As pretty as lavender is, the new "Isabel" is beautiful too. It is a variant of lavender crossed with another color, which she succeeded in doing.

    Easter Eggers are considered a mutt in the chicken world (although the eggs can be beautiful). Americanas are just an Easter egger by a different name. There is no standard as far as egg color, feather color, size, temperament or heritage. These birds lay green, pink, & sometimes blue eggs. Ameraucanas & araucanas, however, lay blue eggs only. The araucanas are the original blue layer. The true ameraucana came into being as a project to improve fertility of a chicken that lays blue eggs only. There is another blue layer by the name of Cream Legbar that recently had its name changed to honor the breeder's name.

    As far as favorites, I am sure that you all know that I have many...for different reasons. I am very passionate about my birds. 😍 Some, I am trying to work towards the SOP (standard of perfection), others (like the silkie) are utility...but I still want to pick my best.

    I love seramas. They are tiny, personable and fairly clean. They are a true bantam, being the smallest of all breeds. They are easy to keep indoors, are fairly clean (dry coop, & don't waste food), and don't smell bad. I hope to get a trio this spring. They will stay indoors as our winters are too cold.

    I love my marans. I have four types, all French (feathered legs/feet). Pure black copper, blue copper, blue wheaten and wheaten marans. Of these, my blacks lay darkest (such a dark red), my blues are improving, and my blue wheaten has size. My wheaten are new...and gorgeous. I am working with all of them to improve dark colored eggs & body size. A high rate of lay is not something you want with these, as you will sacrifice egg color. A marans is only considered such if its color is a "4" on the official chart. There is lots of great information on the official site: http://www.marans.eu/echllang.htm#echelle

    I love jersey giants. I have mixed, black & blue. They are truly gentle giants. My roosters are gentlemen. Both hens & roosters prevent hen squabbles amongst the generic hybrid layers. They can forage well, jump strongly and they are fast. Smart too. My hens have been decent layers, but I found that that quality varies with the line.

    Silkie hens are awesome for mothering qualities and hatching anything. They are a fantastic broody. The little roosters are bold, but can be gentle too.

    I am trying Bielefelders this year. I have heard/read so much good about them. I am starting with a pair. My first observation is that they are very humble chickens. I doubt that they would survive long on their own. They are extremely docile. I have yet to see how other claims stack up.

    I still want true ameraucanas. I want to breed olive eggers, F1 & F2. That, of course, would be a fun project.

    My thoughts are pick what you love and put lots of love & effort into them. 🥰

  • EarlKelly
    EarlKelly Posts: 230 ✭✭✭

    I have the Americana and the copper maranta. Love them both. Fun to watch and be around. Trying to decide which breed to try this year. Love to see new chickens.

  • solarnoon.aspen
    solarnoon.aspen Posts: 219 ✭✭✭

    I've only had experience with two varieties Barred Rock and Americaunas. I'm considering trying Buff Orpington, but Really like the Barred rocks. They are friendly, even the roosters, and work hard for us. The Americaunas were quite standoffish and the rooster was a real piece of work. He rarely let me enter the run without my brandishing - something menacing.

    It's good to see the comments about the different varieties here.

    We have another - meat - variety here in western Canada which is a relief from the industrial type that can't walk and have heart attacks and other awful traits. It is called Western Rustic and grows to a very good size, just takes a little longer than the factory ones. 12 weeks is when we harvest them. I can handle that. It is a hybrid. We have kept some overwinter for a year or two cause they lay great eggs and fit in with the flock.

  • VickiP
    VickiP Posts: 586 ✭✭✭✭

    @solarnoon.aspen I had never heard of Western Rustic! I have been enjoying the comments as well, it gives a person ideas. I really like our Buffs they are very friendly and docile. We did have a rooster that was a menace and he attacked my husband every single time he thought he could get away with it, but never attacked me. I finally determined it is because I use a cane, I think he thought I had an extra attack leg or something. LOL He did end up getting killed, probably an owl.

  • nksunshine27
    nksunshine27 Posts: 343 ✭✭✭

    i love my light bramas even the roosters are nice. i have a few americanas, and a few silver lace wyndots had some golden lace and a few buff orpintons, i had a few english fame hens for hatching out chicks they make great moms, and i think my all time favorite is the barred rock roooster i crossed with my light bramas those chicks are the best

  • bcabrobin
    bcabrobin Posts: 251 ✭✭✭

    We had a Lavender/black Astralorps rooster that would sound the alarm when the eagles are flying over, he sounds like the sound the bombs made in England in WWII. All the girls ran for cover. I gave him to a friend who was losing all her chickens to the eagles (she hasn't lost 1 since). The males we have now are not as good.

    The Buffs Orpington have layed ALL winter. They are the only ones that didn't take time off but I do have a problem with one of them will break the rest of the eggs if I don't get them first, she doesn't break hers just everyone else. She's going to be supper when I figure out who she is.

    Love the Silkies, hope to get more of them this year. Lost them last year to the coons.

    I'm down to 4 roosters, I don't normally have that many but we have more than one coop now and have a rooster for each. It has worked out but just lost one protecting his girls from something. He was all bloody but the girls were ok, he didn't last long but he got the girls into the coop and was standing gaurd at the door. So I'm trying to move another rooster but they don't want those girls.

    We don't keep any roosters that are mean. But we have a big red one, that stands in the driveway and will not leave the UPS guy in. The mail lady told me UPS won't deliver, she just drives around he, he doesn't go after them just stands there. I think he thinks he's a dog. If someone pulls in, he come to see who it is. My hubby thinks he's looking for food, I think he's protecting!

  • I love my easter eggers just because I love the multi colored egg basket.

  • nksunshine27
    nksunshine27 Posts: 343 ✭✭✭

    i like light Brahmas they are a dual purpose bird, also wyndots they both have whats called a rose comb. i do have some Americana but they are very flighty bird

  • VickiP
    VickiP Posts: 586 ✭✭✭✭

    Our group had some Light Brahmas, we have enjoyed them very much.