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hayhatch

Pekin Bantams

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Hey everyone

Sorry I havn;t been on here for a while, our computer refused to load and my uncle has spent the past few days fixing it! Being the techno wizz that he is, he's managed to get it up and running again.

 

 

 

Anyway just a few questions.

 

Are Pekin's suitable for first time chicken keepers?

Are they friendly?

How many will fit comfortably in a cube/eglu?

And how many would you suggest for a first timer?

And does anyone know of any breeders in the north west/cheshire area?

 

Thanks

Hayley

:)

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Hi, we have 2 pekin bantams and they great little hens to have for first time keepers. You just need to make sure they are kept dry and clean, because they are very fluffy and this time of year, the grass is so wet that they end up looking like little drowned rats!

 

One of ours has a very cheeky personality while the other one tends to be more 'motherly' and quiet and takes herself off to bed early! Both are extremely friendly and im sitting with one of my lap while I type this!

 

They are laying every day at the moment and their eggs are tiny like little ping pong balls.

 

We dont have an eglu but we keep 4 bantams in a house that homes six and have an extended run for when we are at work.

 

Not sure how many to suggest, we got 4 girls to start and apart from a few scares along the way we had no problems whatsover, albeit we did a lot of reading and asking questions first.

 

Sorry cant help you with the area because im too far away but loads of luck with your new girls when you get them. I promise you will fall in love with them :D

 

Faye x

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We've got a little pekin - DD loves her to bits. She's very friendly but a bit of a piggy!! Her eggs are lovely and she lays four out of five days. As long as they are in a covered run their feet aren't an issue. Do check their feet carefully when you buy them though.

 

You could probably cram loads in to an eglu or a cube but I was told that for a bantam you need to allow 80% of the space you would allow for a normal sized chook.

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Hi Hayley

 

I can tell you that we were totally smitten by this little breed when, like you, we couldnt make our minds up and hence visited our local poultry farm.

 

Our little girl was handed a worm by the owner and was told to call one of the Pekins over and to our surprise as soon as she called her name, this little adorable hen hitched up her knickers and ran like there was no tomorrow! She hastily gobbled the worm THEN for the following 40minutes procceeded to follow our daughter around the farm like a new found puppy!

 

We are currently waiting for ours and cant wait. Good luck with your decision!

Troy

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:) Our little Matilda is the smallest chicken we've ever had ... with the biggest personality.

 

She waddles in the house and I often find her settled down on the sofa for an evening in front of the telly. She is regularly under my feet in the kitchen and also helps herself to a corner of the dog's bed - so cute to catch them both asleep together.

 

For a little thing, she's as bold as brass and we love her dearly. Over the winter, she's been off lay (she had a big moult in October as well) but is now laying regular as clockwork every other day.

 

Enjoy your newbies - anything like Matilda, and you're onto a winner :wink:

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Hi,

I have 6 pekins and I absolutely adore them!

I can't really compare them to other chickens because I've only got pekins and one other bantam. I have 4 in one eglu (one cockerel and 3 hens) there is plenty of room in the house but mine free-range almost all the time - I don't think you would want more than 4 in the run full-time. They are very easy too keep, I haven't had any problems with their feathery legs and they are very placid and friendly. Of course they keep sneaking into the house every time I leave the door open but I find that endearing!

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You can keep pekins and large breeds together if they are introduced very slowly over a long period of time. If you just put two bantams in with two large girls the big girls will make mincemeat of the littlies! I would say only considerit if you have space for prolonged introductions! :D

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If you are going to mix bantams and hybrids then pekins are a good breed to go for as they are very feisty and can really hold their own. It's a good idea to add at least as many bantams as hybrids though. Our pekin is our smallest chook but she's by no means the lowest in the pecking order.

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Hi Andrew

 

We spoke to Thornes our local poultry centre who said that pekins should not be a problem to mix with hybrids and that 3 pekins to 2 hybrids would probably even things out a little too. However a watchful eye and a slow intro might be wise. Good luck!

Troy

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