Chickens Come in Many Varieties. Choose the Right Breed For You

There are many varieties of chickens available, so when you decide you're ready to raise your brood, you may have trouble deciding which breed you want.

As with any critter, what you choose to raise depends on what you want.

Different Uses, Different Breeds

Or maybe you want both. If so, the self-reliant and hardy dual purpose bird may be right for you.

Or maybe you'd like a few colorful birds strolling around your front yard. There are several ornamental strains available.

But whatever you want, there's a bird out there that you're bound to love.

Eggs, Anyone?

A good laying hen will provide you between 250-280 eggs per year for your table. Unfortunately, all that energy is going to producing eggs, so she won't be as meaty as other types.

Also, good layers are not very broody, meaning they're not as likely to stay on their eggs until they hatch.

If all you want are eggs, this won't be a problem, and in fact, many producers prefer this. But if you want to increase your flock without the use of an incubator, consider a dual-purpose breed.

Excellent layers include the Rhode Island Red and the Leghorn.

Looking For A Few Good Fryers

These birds grow fast, have broad breasts, and are usually ready to butcher within 8-10 weeks of age. That's a much faster turn-around than a layer, who can take up to five months to produce eggs.

Depending on their size and age, these birds are called either fryers or broilers (3-5 pounds) or roasters (6-8 pounds).

The best breed for this purpose is the Cornish Cross.

Just Give Me Both Please

The best part about these birds is they tend to be self-reliant and make good brooders. They can hatch out their own eggs, so you don't need an incubator.

Also, they have a respectable amount of meat on their bones and lay a decent amount of eggs per year.

The Rhode Island Red, Wyandotte and Sussex are varieties that are excellent as self-reliant breeds and dual purpose birds.

The Plymouth Rock, Red and Black Sex Link and the New Hampshire birds are also good dual purpose breeds.

Lawn Ornaments Apply Here

They also tend not to be good brooders, so if you plan on breeding them, you will need to use an incubator.

Different breeds and varieties abound with everything from a bouffant-type crest - such as the Polish have - to curly feathers and ear tufts.

How Many Should You Have?

Not all of your chicks will survive to adulthood. It's common for some chicks to die either from exposure to the chill air too soon or from predators.

When we bought our first batch of chicks, it wasn't the cold, but our dogs who took out a quarter of our flock.

They killed ten of our chicks in one morning. After that, we invested in an electric "dog fence" to protect our birds.

If you order your chicks by mail, then you will have to order at least 25 of them. Expect to lose at least six of them to natural death and predators.

That will leave you with 19 birds for eggs and meat.

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