I'm working on my chick order list and I would like to get a breed(s) that is known for going broody and being a good mother. Any suggestions? Seems like I remember folks talking about the bantam Cochins and Silkies being broody. Am I remembering that correctly?
Are there any standard breeds that are know for going broody?
Also, do you know of any stardard size breeds that are known for having gentle roosters that don't turn mean?
I know spring is in the air when it's time to go chick shopping! ;) lol
Thanks!
Glenda
I need help picking out some chicks. .....I mean chickens!
Silkies are the #1 for broody.. Also, the bantam breed Nankin are fierce moms.. but they are small so they can't handle a huge clutch of full sized eggs..
As far as roosters, that's a crap shoot.. Some are geltle, some not.. doesn't seem to depend on the breed at all.
Have fun! :)
My bantams do go broody, and it's just sad since we don't have a rooster. They are from English bantam stock.
And when you're doing research, for heaven's sake don't google "sex link chicks." Trust me.
The only breed of rooster that I can speak for is us (HUMANS) We are very gentle when properly trained and thats worth crowing about...Cocka...diddly...dooo...LOL
Brigidlily is right on about those sexlinks...Good luck in your search...Haystack
ROTFL!!!!! Oh you all are sooo funny!!! I'm sitting here laughing out loud!!!
Haystack, I agree with you, my dear! Just wish it didn't take so long to train you boys! ;) LOL
Brigidlily, I will certainly take your word for it! No Google-ing for me! Haha!
ZZ, Silkies it is then! I want to be able to put eggs under her and let her hatch some chicks. This will be new to me so wish me luck! .....I need to do some reading on the subject. I have no clue what a brooding chicken-mom-to-be needs to have to hatch a bunch of chicks and take care of them..... Can she and her babies stay in the same coop with the rest of the clan? .....Yep, I need to dig my books out and look into this. :)
There are so many threads on that subject.. In fact, right now there are active threads about brooding.. it's so fun..
My best advice to you is.. Read threads here on DG! Never know by the title what you'll learn.. trust me.. we rarely stay on topic.. but there are tons of personal experiences and tried and true methods, as well as flops.. LOL
When you get sick of reading, and start narrowing it down, it gets easier. :)
I don't let my broody hen stay in with the clan after the chicks hatch.. Just in case the Dad decides to take out the competition.
Remember Silkies can't fly well, so they don't need a roost way up high.. and they are somewhat vulnerable to predators too.
As always the great people on this forum have given you great info! We got a Silkie with the hope that she would be an incubator. She's a year old now and never gone broody. I believe that she is the exception to the rule. But, she's a Lifer here, she's adorable, sweet and loves lap time. I have two EE'ers that have babies now, both are BroodZilla's and I have the bruises to prove it LOL Good luck in your search. Oh, and I agree, don't even think about Google-ing "sex link" or you'll need to bleach your eyes.
LOL Annie, THAT I don't need! ;)
Can't wait to place my order. The elevator is taking orders now, but I think I'll wait till April. That way they'll be ready for ouside around the end of May first part of June. We can still have some chilly days in June, here in Michigan.
Last year was my first time having standard Buff Orpington (hope I spelled that right) hens, and I REALLY liked them. All of mine have had a gentle temperment with no fighting, and I love that big-full feathered look they have. They look like an elegant painting of a chicken. They just look "fuller"; you know what I mean? .....Are there any other breeds that have that big full "art-like" look, like the Buff Orpington?
ZZ, I'll start digging through DG first thing tomorrow. You're right, I should be able to find the info I need here. .....I just love DG and all the folks here. :)
Glenda, I'd like to give you the heads up on hatchery silkies. They are not real pretty after they are grown. I'm speaking from experience.
I had no idea there was such a difference in qualities in chickens. This is my third year to own chickens. I knew nothing about chickens and thought they were all pretty much the same so I bought hatchery chicks. I don't really regret it, I needed them at the time, but what I really wanted were the gorgeous "show quality" silkies.
It took me awhile to figure out "the game". What I do now is buy the adults, so I can see what they look like. If beauty is not an issue, then the hatchery chicks are fine. Mine are very healthy. I learned a lot from them, and their eggs taste just as good.
Anyway, that's my two cents for what it's worth.
This is one I bought recently from bidbird.com There are lots of other sites with auctions too.
I'll put in a vote for standard Cochin Roosters. I have a White and two Partridge, and all three are sweet. So are the two Banty Cochin Roos. The Big Guys may not be the brightest bulbs in the box, but I like them very much. Plus, their huge feet make them easy to catch *G*. My only broody now is a mix that seems to have Game in her.
If you like big chickens, Glenda, you might also check out Jersey Giants and Sussex. The Jerseys have much the same look and disposition as the Orpingtons only bigger. I have not had the Sussex but they are on my list of "wants".
Last season we had a little golden comet go broody. They are not supposed to do that I have learned but this one did. I got 10 fertilized eggs from the neighbor's farm and put them under her. She hatched out 9 of them. Unfortunately, six turned out to be roosters. :) They were very handsome but I didn't want six roosters so I gave them away on Craig's list. I hope nobody goes broody again. I'd rather just buy female day old chicks. That's me though. It was fun to watch her with the babies though. She was a very good mama.
Aww, Loon, I love the picture!! Yes, that's what I'm hopeing for! :)
Hey, are the standard Cochins and Silkies known for going broody, or do only the bantams tend to do that? If the standards tend to go broody too, I rather have a standard. (bigger eggs. ;-) )
My standard Cochins did, and were great Moms. I have been told that there are standard sized Silkies, but have never seen them, so can't help there.
Loon, if one goes broody again, just take the eggs one night, and replace them with the female chicks. Mommahen will be happy, and you won;t have to worry about keeping the chicks warm, etc.
If, like me, you can't bear to trash eggs that have begun to develop, just replace each egg she lays with a substitute, like a wooden egg or golfball, until she begins to set....
ok why can't you get looking chicks that are show lookers? can you take the full growen hatch thier eggs get good quilty chicks? how can they tell what is going to look good?
I'm sure even if you breed from show quality stock you have to cull the offspring a little to get more show quality birds.
Awesome!! Thanks Catmad! Then standard Cochins it is!! ~: >
Lucky you! Cochins are so pretty, love all their big fluffy butts.
Cooksteranne, yes that's what I want to do. That's why I am now buying adult birds, birds I can see pictures of at least.
The top of the line adult silkies sell for up to $300 each. The bird in the picture costs $60 for two hens, then add $60 for shipping. Not cheap, but not bad if you can raise some nice birds, at least that's what I'm hoping.
I'm not looking for all show birds, I just want some that are pretty, the ones with the larger crests and cushions.
The last puzzling thing that is happening is, I bought this really nice pair of more expensive white show birds. She is a year old now and no eggs so far. So, what's up with that? If anyone knows I'd like to hear the answer. Maybe she's just waiting for spring. ????
I LOVE puffy feathered chickens! ......Question....if two roosters are raised together from chicks, will they fight with each other later on after they're grown? Can they both be kept in the same coop with all the hens?
Light for Jesus, I LOVE your silkie!! She/he's is beautiful!!! :)
Speaking of the roosters, Glenda. Whether they can be kept together if they are raised together is really a question that is determined by the temperment of the individaul roosters. I have three together now and they get along just fine but even those that are raised together does not guarantee they will always tolerate each other in any given situation. Generally speaking though if they are raised together they will tolerate though at times like boy's they will have small skirmishes...
Forgot to also ask... Can a bantam rooster (cochin -or- buff Japanese) manage to mate with a standard cochin or orpington??? Or are they just too short to get the job done. :-S
Thanks Haystack, I may give it a try and see if I get lucky. I just don't want an all-out cock fight in a 4' x 8' coop!
I have two roosters that were raised together and they are now about 15 months old and so far so good... Others have a lot more experience so I hope they answer your question.
Thanks Glenda. I just smile each time I see them in the yard. Presently I have four pretty nice hens and five roosters that aren't too shabby.
About the roosters fighting, a lady from NY that raises poultry said if they are raised together as siblings they will usually not kill each other. She said a rooster will normally not kill his own son he has raised either.
I'm sure each breed is different, as well as each individual rooster. People on here talk about the relationships of their roosters, some have several together, they have a pecking order but no fighting to the death. However, one lady is presently nursing a rooster who has lost one eye and the other eye is damaged from fighting.
I have three silkie roosters living together in the same pen, no hens with them. They tussle around a bit at times, but nothing major. They were hatched out together as chicks and raised together. They are in close confinement which probably makes it worse and they get along. I hope to be able to give them more room some day. One rooster though has to be kept in a pen of his own. He just wouldn't behave!
LFJ, I think Silkies are the slowest to mature and start laying..
I have a RIR hen that has fertile eggs! She is in with 2 Serama roos and a bantam Ameraucana.. so that answer is Yes! Unless my boys are just exceptionally studly and acrobatic.. LOL
on the roosters we have about 14 or17 roosters in a pen 18 by 18 with the hens about 220 hens all get along fine they get bread, chicken feed, water and go out side even in this michigan weather , the boys watch over them hens all are of different ages 1 yr to 5 yrs, lot of them are showen at the fair
Two hundred twenty hens in an 18x18 would be considered sardines...and I am afraid they would also smell like sardines. I had fifty girls in a sixteen x sixteen at one time and felt a little crowded...Haystack. To each his own but I would never have that many roosters in the same pen, thats a little over the top for me...Hay
LFJ. I was just reading up on silkies, and on this one site they said that some silkies will be eighteen months old before they start laying. I don't know as I have only had two in my life but that is what they said...
Oh Glenda you really had me rolling, speaking of bantams and standards mating. I have two Serama Bantams in with six hens and they mount them all the time and look totally confused each time. I never really wanted to be a bantam...LOL...Hay
Quite a while ago I ordered 10 blue ameracauna Day Olds from a breeder. They have been unable to fill the order becasue of the high demand. So, today I changed it to 10 Standard Cochins, all the talk about them and those big fluffy butts, just had to have a couple!
I would have waited for the blues. I don't like the Cochins. Feather footed and lousy layers. Fluffy Butt isn't good enough for me, not at these feed prices. We pay seventeen bucks a bag...Arghhh...Hay
I like the bantam cochins for pets.. they are absolutely darling and very friendly. But I have to kinda agree with Haystack.. "Either fish, or cut bait" LOL Can't afford a bunch of pets anymore.
Cochins are lousy layers? Are we talking the size of the egg or how often they lay an egg?
As of right now, I'm thinking of getting 12 or 13 chickens total: 1 or 2 standard cochin hens just for possible broodiness, 1 rooster, 5 white and 5 buff Orpingtons for sweetness, that beautiful "art" look ;), and laying eggs.
I think I'll stay with the bantam roosters until my six grandbabies get a little bigger. Every rooster I've had has eventually gone mean and started attacking so I'm afraid to have a standard rooster free ranging in the yard. Our grandbabies range in age of 5 to 10 years old. I know adults who were severely injured by roosters when they were children so I rather err on the side of caution. ....That being said, I was looking at bantam roosters today. So far, the bantams Golden Laced Cochin -and- the Buff Japanese roosters look beautiful! (On McMurray Hatchery's website) I'm hoping the Golden Laced Cochin is gentle, but I don't know anything about the temperment of the Japanese roosters....
You're right, but I like yard decorations too. I'll only keep two pullets and give the rest away. They're supposed to be great broodies and gentle so I'm thinking it would be a great 4-H project for my DN.
Haystack, my hatchery silkies began laying at 5 months. They lay every other day.
Catmad, do your sweet Cochin roosters stay in a pen or do they free range? I don't have a pen, just acreage for my flock to free range. I'm wondering if roosters feel less-threaten by being in an enclosed pen.
Mine all go where they please. The Cochins don't go very far, the big ole White boy (Marsh) sticks to within 25' of the coop, the Partridge Twins (Rusty and Mags) come as far as the front porch and garden, maybe 700'? The small game roos go farther, as do the Ameracaunas.
The only confined roo I have is a huge Lemon Blue Cochin (so far known only as Mr. Fluffy Butt), but he has plenty of hens, and soon will have a yard to roam in. We'll see how that goes:)