How to choose chickens to raise in my backyard

Image courtesy of Simon Howden/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Local zoning laws have some restrictions on my chicken keeping.  In my neighborhood I am allowed to have up to six hens.  Although my husband is probably relieved to know there is a  limit to the number of chickens we'll be raising - this puts me in a dilemma.  With so many different kinds of chickens, how do I choose? 

I started by reading blogs, browsing poultry catalogs, and pinning all things chicken on Pinterest.  I talked to friends, read books, and came up with four things I was looking for:

1)  Quantity of eggs;
2)  Climate considerations;
3)  Ability to be "cooped up" (confined); and
4)  Friendly or gentle disposition

At a glance, I found several chickens that looked like they would work well for the suburban chicken keeper.

Sampling of Possible Backyard Chickens

Breed	Egg Laying	Climate	Free Range/ Confined	Personality
Andalusian	Good	Heat tolerant	Both	Active, talkative
Australorp	Excellent	Cold and heat hardy	Both	Docile, quiet, friendly
Barnevelder	Good	Cold hardy, damp	Both	Docile, calm, friendly
Delaware	Very good	Very cold and heat hardy	Both	Calm
Golden Buff	Excellent	Cold tolerant	Both	Docile
Jersey Giant	Good	Very cold hardy	Both	Calm, easy going
Leghorn	Excellent	Heat tolerant	Both	Active, skittish
Maran	Good	Varies	Both	Calm, quiet, gentle
Orpington	Good	Very cold hardy	Both	Docile, quiet, affectionate
Plymouth Rock	Very good	Very cold hardy	Both	Docile, curious, friendly
Rhode Island Red	Excellent	Cold and heat hardy	Both	Docile (hens) but bossy
Sussex	Very good	Very cold hardy	Both	Calm, curious
Wyandotte	Very good	Cold hardy	Both	Generally docile

 

Chickens for Eggs

I admit it.  I feel grocery store guilt when I buy my eggs.  Even though I buy cage-free eggs, I worry over the treatment of the hens in factory facilities.  I prefer to gather eggs from pampered hens.  The number of eggs each hen lays in a given week varies by breed and environmental conditions.  For example, most chickens tend to lay less eggs in the winter due to decreased sunlight.  If you are raising chickens to have a healthier egg (less cholesterol, higher Omega-3's) you should know that this is a result of good feed and not based on shell color.  Also, newbies should know that a hen does not need to have a rooster in order to have eggs.

A backyard chicken will typically live 8-10 years, but will have limited egg production after age 3.  So, if I want to maintain egg production, I will need to start with less than my allowed 6 hens, and in 3-4 years add a few more chickens to my flock.  When choosing chickens, it's also good to remember chickens are social and will be lonely with less than 3 in their flock at a given time.

We have a small family, so a dozen eggs a week is plenty for our tribe.  I plan on having extras for friends and family. (Hint!  Nice comments on this blog may get you on the extra egg list.)  I focused first on hens that did a good job of laying large eggs.

• Excellent layers lay 5+ eggs a week
• Very Good layers lay 4-5 eggs a week
• Good layers lay 3-4 eggs a week

We chose one excellent layer, two very good layers, and one good layer for a weekly average of approximately 16-20 eggs.
 

Chickens by Climate

Chickens are a lot like Goldilocks -- they like their room temperatures to be "not too hot" and "not too cold."  I live in central Utah.  Spring and fall are temperate and should be comfortable for most chickens.  However, we have hot summers and very cold winters.  In addition to climate-control provisions in our chicken coop, we selected hens that are all cold hardy.  Two of the four are also heat hardy. 

Chickens and Confinement

I work away from my home during the day.  While I am away from home, I want to make certain that my chickens are kept safe in a coop with a screened run.  I looked for breeds of chickens that were comfortable being in a confined space versus free range.  This way, when I am away from the home I know that my chickens are not only safe from predators, but comfortable.  Then, when I am home, I can let the chickens have supervised free-range time in our yard.

Chickens as Pets

I love animals.  Over the years I have had a variety of pets, including cats, dogs, ducks, geese, chickens, rabbits, and sheep.  So, although egg production is a nice perk with chickens, there will be many years where my backyard hens are not going to be laying eggs.  In commercial farming, many hens are butchered when the key laying years are over.  However, like many suburban chicken keepers, the idea of having our pet chickens butchered is unthinkable!  Yes.  I know that to the rural farmer, this is ridiculous -- as I will still be driving to the store to pick up chicken for dinner.  Just not my chickens!  So, I wanted to pick out chickens that had personalities that would interact with me and my family.  Friendly and docile hens are a must.

And Our Chickens Will Be...

We have chosen a Black Australorp, a Delaware, a Buff Orpington, and a Silver-Laced Wyandotte.  The girls are due to be hatched on June 3rd.  The brooder box is ready.  Now, to come up with names.