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Millie-Annie

Had my shopping list but now confused

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Since I lost my wonderful Marigold I have set my heart on a couple of pure breeds, because I am more interested in them living longer than laying.

 

I like three chickens, so whilst I had my three ex batts I left it, but Holly chicken went to the big hen house in the sky on Tuesday so now I am down to two and ready to expand.

 

I think ( :whistle: ) I only want two and had set my heart on the a Welsummer and a Cream Legbar. Just rang a local breeder who has both breeds and Marans, Rhode Island Reds and Orpingtons and like everyone else he says "if you want a friendly chicken you want an Orpington" and he also said neither Welsummers nor Legbars are particularly friendly, his recommendation would be an Orp and a RIR

 

Your thoughts?

 

He was a farmer so was on a totally different wave length to me. He said do you want to train it? Which I don't but I want a character like my Marigold that makes me smile

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I think a better word to describe orps is docile. This means they aren't flighty (cream legbars are) so won't try to fly off at every small alarm, and don't spend their life bullying other chooks - I think some welsummers can be a bit bossy, as can RIR and marans, but like any breed the actual behaviours are down to strain and the individual and I'm sure there are plenty of non-bossy birds out there! Orps are placid and most will willingly come to the hand to be fed (because they are large and quite greedy birds). Most of mine have disliked much handling and I wouldn't describe them as friendly, atlhough they are quite curious and will put up with being picked up. My LF orps have always made me smile, with their size, lack of grace at the run and general gentle and nosy nature. I have had a few which have been a bit stand-offish, but the majority of them have been full of character. Also, if you want eggs then orps aren't the best producers - the other varieties you mention are much better.

 

I would go for whatever your heart desires - after all, you will be the person looking after them and having to look at them every day :D

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Thank you, I am not worried about friendliness or handling them, but I want another (my description of Marigold) feathered ball of cheerfulness. I miss her toodle loo I have caught a frog, I miss her mugging me for my biscuit, I miss her stealing the cats food (they don't) I just miss a lively happy chicken

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Having heard my big fat orpie whining louder and louder I sometimes feel I'd like a much longer garden. She can be extremely irritating and very manipulative - more so than the others.

 

I've have a Faverolle in mind for next and a French wheaten maran - Faverolles should be friendly birds, and both good layers apparently. I have loads of others on my list too - mainly because I haven't heard anything quite as irritating as a desperate orpie that echoes along the street! :shock: Although she might be feeling a bit randy and wants a jolly good stroke! :lol: But she is a lovely girl - be warned she dishes out very sore noses if you are not holding her properly. They are very huge and heavy - which makes handling smaller birds such a doddle! Actually we all love our big fat lady. Amazing how fast she can run if she thinks you have goodies. Very lazy too - muscles in when other girls have found something interesting to eat. She's 5 now and still lays but seems to be about 2 a week if I'm lucky. Probably down to weight, but at least she keeps the other girls thinner and tip top condition! :lol:

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If you want a 'character' to make you smile you maybe need an araucana.

Mine isn't 'friendly', but she's completely batty, looks like roadrunner as she chases nothing in particular and just makes me :lol: almost every time i see her with her daftness and antics

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Thanks Merlina, been a looked on here and it says they are prone to broodiness which I definitely want to avoid if possible. I had a White Star she was a complete fruit loop.

 

I've not had mine a year yet, so that may be true, but she hasn't done the broody thing yet (crosses fingers!)

 

She's just so fabulous I think everyone should have at least one! :lol:

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I have a cream legbar that isn't at all flighty, she is very nosey and always first for treats. My orpington Bella isn't particularly friendly but very greedy. My welsummer [rip] was a very docile bird but spent a lot of time being broody and she was evil when she was. I also have two araucanas who are quite indifferent but lay a blue and an olive green egg. Go with what you really want as you'll probably end up getting it anyway I have just bought a 10 week old gold laced appenzeller after three years of wanting one.

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I'd go to your local breeder with a totally open mind and just pick the individual chickens that you like - that seem cheerful when you are there. Perhaps one or two will come up to you, or make you laugh then and there. If so then go for those girls, irrespctive of breed.

(Oprs by the way are known for their broodiness :think: )

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I'd go to your local breeder with a totally open mind and just pick the individual chickens that you like - that seem cheerful when you are there. Perhaps one or two will come up to you, or make you laugh then and there. If so then go for those girls, irrespctive of breed.

 

That really is the best advice. I swore I would not have another bluebell after having a poor relationship with my first. But the feisty creatures I saw when I went to buy hens was nothing like my first bluebell - so I came home with Parsley and she's a very different character to her predecessor

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Well I have three 12 weeks old chickens, a Welsummer and a Cream Legbar. To be honest there were too many of them to be able to pick one, he had dozens, he just tried to find me two nice looking ones. Then I spotted this ball of feathers and yes came home with a 12 week old Orpington too. She is bigger than my ex-batts already.

 

I need to some introduction advice so will post that on a separate thread

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I think they are all so individual, irrespective of breed. We have had a lot of Sussex hens (5 white in the past and now one black) and they have all been so different from one another. My hen with the most character at the moment is an ex-bat... she's so funny, I could watch her all day.

 

I think its a good idea to see which one takes your fancy when your at the breeders, we didn't plan on getting a black Sussex but when we went to get three new POL hens there was a black Sussex with a Big floppy comb and a funny look about her. I immediately wanted her (and the breeder spent ages trying to catch her in a coop of about 60 hens :lol: ). She is now our Daisybelle and is also turning out to be a real character... and a fantastic layer! :D

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Definitely go for what takes your fancy when you're there - when I bought my first 3 hens, I didn't really want Pekins as I'd heard they go broody and I came home with two of them..! After losing Astrid to a seagull attack 2 weeks ago, I went to buy 2 more hens from the breeder on Saturday, determined to come home with a bantam RIR and a bantam Wyandotte - so of course I came home with a bantam Silkie cross and, of all things, a Sumatra cross... Both are beautiful and I don't know what they're like yet but I'm glad I went for the 2 girls that stood out to me in a pen of 60 hens xx

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I have them, I have a Welsummer, a Crested Cream Legbar and an overgrown feather duster, that apparently will grow into an Orpington. They are 12 weeks old and the Orp is already bigger than my two ex-batts.

 

It wasn't the sort of place where anything stood out. There was just a barn with about 100 12 weeks old chickens in of mixed breeds and it was just a case of him catching the breeds I wanted.

 

He did go and get the Orp, when I said ok I will have three what shall I have, he came back with this ball of black feathers

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I've had a welsummer and 2 cclegbars they were all lovely and friendly. You could get a couple of chicks or growers as they can both be sexed then they'd be super friendly where you played with them every day. My orps Dolly Doolittle and Miss Kitty are both easy to pick up but do whinge and groan rather loudly (as others have said). My Marans is a friendly enough girl and is nice and big to get hold of too.

 

So I'd say go with your heart, you'll only hanker for them if you don't.

 

(Sorry didn't get as far as reading page 2, glad you went with what you wanted and weren't talked out of it.)

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