Chicken boarders

[Sageandonion]

Ok here goes, question no 1 from the new chick on the block!

 

We're looking to get some chickens in September - probably hybrids as we understand they're better for 1st timers. We have 3 "enthusiastic" children and want to get one for each of them. Ideally we'd like 3 different types - easier for ID purposes! We also have a mad dog and are surrounded by neighbours. So if possible we'd like some that are laidback and placid. So just wondering if some types would fit the bill better than others and which combinations get on best?

 

Thanks

[wayside]

Hi there

 

I got my chickens last summer (4 warrens) and they are marvellous. Mine is a mad house - 2 boys (4 & 5), 4 dogs and 3 cats (one of them is a bengal) and they all get along. Nothing seems to phase them! I'm sure there are other breeds that will be good for 1st timers, but I can't recommend Warrens highly enough (fantastic layers by the way ).

 

and on Thursday I get my Yeay!!!

[Sageandonion]

Thanks for that - 4 dogs wow - lucky you - I'm only allowed the one . Will show the kids the Warrens then definitely .

[Laura & CTB]

Most of the breeders that sell hybrides sell a selection of different breeds / colours that will all happily live togetherand are easy to care for. You should have lots to choose from.

[migsy]

I've got 3 boys who have a Black Rock, a Speckledy and an Amber Star. We live in an urban area and have a small garden and the chooks are not noisy at all. I guess they can't be heard over the aeroplanes, traffic, nearby school etc anyway! They are quite chilled out. The Speckledy is the most nervous and doesn't like being picked up but I think that is just down to individual temperament. The Amber Star is quite cuddly!

[honorandkit]

We're first-time chook keepers, and like you we have 2 young children, dogs, a cat and neighbours!

 

We chose 4 different hybrids, so we can tell them apart - magpie, cuckoo maran, Black Rock and a Bluebelle-type.

The Black Rock is brilliant, as is the Bluebelle (the maran and magpie are less friendly but still fab!).

 

All of them get on well and look pretty.

[the bradley bunch]

have you ever thought about re-homing ex-bats? they have excellent temperments, are extremeley friendly and are superb egg layers!

although they are all Rhode Island Red hybrids , you can buy leg rings in different colours so that you can easily tell them apart... and it could be fun for your kids to each pick their colour for their own bird!

i can't emphasise enough how rewarding it feels to save a bird from slaughter. we were pretty certain one of our girls thought she was in heaven when she found her beautiful new house and cosy nest box!

any ex-bat owner will testify that with some tlc these girls blossom into the most beautiful birds, and you can really see their happiness with being part of a family who loves them... even our kitten couldn't resist falling in love with his new sisters! (i'll upload a pic if i can ).

check out the link on my signature if you want more info on re-homing and rescues in your area,

and feel free to pm me if you wish! (that goes to anyone looking for advice on re-homing ex-bats!)

[Guest]

When I first got chickens (only a year ago) I went for bantams. They are great little characters if a bit broody but easier to look after because they are smaller.

 

But for best eggs I would say hybrids but remember they have a shorter laying span of about 2 years.

 

Pure breeds and some bantams are longer because of winter rests.

[Redwing]

I agree, bantams are fab

[Guest]

They are.

 

Im sure redwing can explain about the amazing world of wyandottes. Personally i think one of the best looking bantams. But will never beat my Bob or Betty or Genie in looks .

 

 

Wyandottes have the best patterns of all bantams though.

 

The barred ones are like optical illusions.

[Redwing]

well ok since you've mentioned them...

 

Wyandotte bantams are lovely, they are friendly and cheerful, dont have feathered legs or crests to worry about, are generally hardy, lay a decent sized egg for a bantam and come in so many colours - barred are my fave - my avatar is my wonderful cockerel Tarzan

[Guest]

I knew you were just waiting for someone to say something

 

 

I must say he is an absolute stunner. Wish I could have some but not enough room after i get the pekins and if the duck eggs hatch

 

Oh well I will get them when im older

[Lavenders_Blue]

Oooooooh yes, get some ex-batts!

 

Ex batts are Warrens and are great fun, friendly characters. For birds that have been so badly treated they just love human company (once they get settled into their new home) and mine are laying for England at the moment!

 

I can't recommend them enough

[gargan]

While there may be some differences between breeds, a lot depends on individual temperament. My Black Sussex is really loud (although very friendly), but the Amber and the Cambridge Blue are generally calmer. It may even be that the CB is mute

[Mollie333]

Hi the bradley bunch,

 

Its nice for you to bring up Ex Batts but i was told by my breeder that she would reccomend getting Hybrids first to get some experience, then think about getting ex battery hens. Also ex battery hens are older girls than POL, so therefore you may get blood spots and thin eggs.. Alot to think about, and if you want a regular layer, although some ex girls will lay, some wont be regular.

 

Sorry if i sound a complete so and so.

[MissMac]

We just got ours last Friday and we're truly thrilled with how well they've settled in.

 

We've 3 children, including one with severe autism, a dog, two cats and live in a general madhouse. We bought point of lay birds, and the Bluebelle is already laying for us. Both she and the Lohmann we bought are very friendly and have slotted right in. They're very friendly little creatures and very comical too!

 

The neighbours on one side noticed them after a bit of 'bocking' after they'd first arrived and were still pretty freaked. Neighbours on the other side haven't noticed them at all as they're really quiet. No problem at all in an urban setting, although we're keeping a close eye out for foxes.

[the bradley bunch]

Hi the bradley bunch,

 

Its nice for you to bring up Ex Batts but i was told by my breeder that she would reccomend getting Hybrids first to get some experience, then think about getting ex battery hens. Also ex battery hens are older girls than POL, so therefore you may get blood spots and thin eggs.. Alot to think about, and if you want a regular layer, although some ex girls will lay, some wont be regular.

 

Sorry if i sound a complete so and so.

 

no offence taken mollie! - everybodies advice is valuable because everybody experience differs!

 

forgive me if i'm wrong but i thought ex-bats were hybrids

whilst it's a rightful point that ex-bats will be older than girls bought at POL, they are certainly not old ! (most are around 18months old when rescued).

and my girls lay beautiful thick shelled eggs everday that taste great in fact they're probably the best layers because this is what they have being bred for. in some cases an ex-bat won't continue lay because they are simply not strong enough to do so - one of my girls has not laid since rescue, but i still get 2 eggs everyday from the other girls so we have more than enough to feed ourselves and the neighbours! so this shouldn't be an issue if you get 3 girls. they may lay thin eggs later in life but that can be said for any breed, and feeding them oyster shell grit can be an effective solution to this problem.

i also think that a breeder will be biased towards buying birds (rather than rescuing) because it is their livelihood.

 

obviously all of the above is simply my own opinion and me sharing my own experience,

but i think that anybody else who has experience owning ex-bats will agree that the majority of them are excellent layers who produce beautiful eggs, and that they are one of the friendliest and most family-friendly birds you could home

[lillybettybabs]

I have a warren, Amber link and two Skylines, Battle Axe Betty (warren) is so friendly she follows me around

and wants to have her beek in everything i do, The others only want to know me when i have food .

She is such a lovely hen

[Sageandonion]

Many thanks for all your replies - very much food for thought .

[Mollie333]

But i was just saying what i thought, too. That if they are first timers and expecting eggs everyday..

you don't need to tell me that im wrong, i know its good to save ex battery hens, i didnt mean to offend or put anyone off. Sorry..

[the bradley bunch]

i'm so sorry if i caused any upset mollie i didn't mean it to come across that i was saying you were wrong, i think it's really important that everyone shares their own thoughts and advice and values each others.

as an ex-bat mommy myself i just wanted to tell my own experience and try to get other people to share their's so that anybody thinking of re-homing ex-bats has the most info possible to help in making their decision, as like i said earlier i only know my 3 girls so i can't claim to be an expert!

i've just read back my post and i realise that it's hard to interpret the 'tone' of a written piece, so i'm really sorry if it came across a bit like a telling off

 

i hope there are no hard feelings!

[Chook n Boo Mum]

When I first started out I had 2 children plus the neighbours' 3 most of the summer, 3 Labradors and a slightly stroppy neighbour, plus a noisy building project in progress...........having weighed up the pros and cons of hybrids and batties, I decided to go for 3 young healthy hybrids so that I could, in theory, ascertain that chooks were indeed going to fit in with my family........I then after about 2 months put my name down for some batties who were an absolute joy, although they arrived bruised, confused and featherless just before the snow in Jan/Feb 2009 so didn't see the garden until they had feathered up and the weather improved in the spring:roll:

 

I've also added Orpingtons, Pekins and more hybrids, and hatched several broods of various breeds with the exceptionally helpful support of this forum.

 

As I had so many "scary" factors, I felt it unfair to bring haunted and ovenready batties into our family until the rest of us were deemed chook-friendly.....I will however probably add some more to my flock in the future as I only have one of my first batch of batties still with me ...I just need more houses for intros

 

Good luck with your decisions

 

Sha x

[Mollie333]

Nope, totally my fault.

 

I was just saying what the ex battery helpline told me, that if im expecting eggs everyday than get some POL birds, since ex battery hens can lay soft eggs and some have blood spots in it. Thats all i needed to say, sorry if i caused anyone to feel upset or put off by my post.

 

No hard feelings?

[the bradley bunch]

cool no hard feelings

lets be friends x

[gargan]

May I add my two cents as well:

 

I grew up with chickens but that was in a different country, different conditions, different time! In the UK I started thinking about chickens because I had heard about ex-batts and thought that it would be a good deed and that chicken is chicken. My neighbour was going to go for ex-batts too. However, after researching ex-batts and talking to several people we both decided to go for hybrid POL. Arguments against ex-batts, that we heard, were:

 

- Ex-batts not really suitable for a start as they can come with all sorts of problems

- Not really suitable for people with small children, as they (the hens) need a lot of time and space to relax and find back to their ways. Children could be an stress factor for the hens.

- Ex-batts can come bruised, feather-less and "disabled". So, they can be hard to take care of, and they may not be a child's best first point of contact with chicken.

- Other reasons were: they may die after a few weeks, they may never lay ...

 

All of the above reasons probably apply to ex-batts. I guess the risk is that you don't get to chose your own ex-batt (and that is good so), and you can end up with a very healthy one or a weak one. However, none of the above reasons would have held me back if I did not have children. Considering that my son is only 3 1/2 I did not want to take a risk. It turns out he is very good with them, loves them, doesn't scare them ... But I didn't know that beforehand and he was initially scared of them, and needed some time to get used to them. Young chooks that were calm and smaller, helped him getting used to them. Maybe an ex-batt would have not been the best choice in that situation.