Things I've Learned: Chickens

As I do with everything, I research thoroughly every breed of animal/bird I get. I don't care about them being the ultimate best, but I go for what will be best with me. I look at temperament, appearance, and use primarily. When I research, I read books, search online, and even join Facebook groups on the subject. I'm not an expert, but I'm always willing to share what I've learned. Especially because I see others might not know. Today, it's chickens. 

When you're looking for chickens, you first need to decide their use for you. Are you wanting them for eggs? For meat? Or both. We wanted to start with egg layers. 

That brought us to temperament. As we were beginners, we wanted a breed that were easy to work with. The top three are Plymouth rocks, Rhode island reds, and leghorns. The first two had a slightly better temperament than leghorns, so we went with them. Plus, leghorns are boring white, so appearance factored in as well. 

Now, here's what I've learned (or already knew). Unless you want to reproduce the chickens, you do not need a rooster. So many people don't know this, so I had to share. Second, they can be loud, dirty, disgusting, mean and I sometimes think spiteful, but, they are also trainable, great at eating insects, and produce truly great tasting eggs. Next spring, we do plan to try our hand at a couple of other breeds, some for meat and some for different colored eggs (mine produce brown). For now, we're happy with our hens.