I really would like to try some Favorelles.

If anyone is looking for a bantam I highly recommend D’uccles. They do real well free range for me. Good brooder, great mothers, roost high...they are just good survivors. And pretty to boot!

Mine is insulated w 2" pink foam sheets behind osb plywood. The roost is mad from 4' closet dowels and is hinged at yhe top so it can be lifted up to a ceiling hook to clean under it. I have a single Heat lamp cage suspended down about 2feet above the floor.
The Red heat lamp also is keeping my Rubber water pan completely thawed. I use a rubber Oil pan for water and pour it outside each afternoon rinse it and fill with one bucket of well water.

Egg boxes are sm/ med totes screwed to the wall with screws and big small hole fender washers.

No heat excwhat comes off of the red heat lamp over the water.

I, too, am impressed with the leghorns. I always keep a few of them around. Small but hardy and pump out the eggs.

I didn't like the Buffs. Loud and annoying.

I get nervous anytime I see giant eggs like the one above. Those chickens always seem to get bound up and croak before long if it continues.

bielefelders

One of my neighbors has Brahman and they seem to do well in the cold and free ranging. Have been thinking about getting a few for myself as I've heard they are good demiener, good egg layers, meat birds and handle the cold real well. Anyone have any experience with brahmas?

Cotton, what else can you tell us about them? I know they are autosexing...are they a fairly broody breed?

I have quite a few bielefelders. Definately my favorite breed. Huge chickens, great temperament, even the roosters. Lay well and lay huge eggs.

have a few black americanas that are broody egg sitting son a guns.like doin it that way-kinda why we have over forty when we started with a dozen.

Your missin the boat on those bantam eggs! We have 8 oeg hens that lay pretty good. I like em boiled, mustard eggs and spicy pickled.
I'm guna go eat a couple right now!

Skunk Buster, I'm a very green chicken father. Just got my first dozen last year and went with Buffs. I have a 3 and 4 year old and wanted to get something that encourages them to start doing some chores, selling eggs, give them some responsibilities, etc. I love the Buffs so far. The kids carry them around like dolls and we've never had any problem with them being aggressive. They started laying at between 5 and 6 months and all winter they've each laid between 6-7 eggs a week. They've been cold hearty. I insulated my 8'x6' A-Frame coop and just heated it with a heat lamp. We have all hens and they're very quiet birds......but again this is coming from a rookie chicken keeper. Long story short, I'll go with Buffs again.

not had a hen get broody yet, do like chickens tho and man do they sell high around here.

Got some Dominique and buff orp chicks now.

I have 31 right now (27 hens, 4 roosters). Looking to sell off my polish flock of 4 hens and 1 roo, and replacing them with better bigger birds. As soon as I get the roof done on my meat bird coop, I'll be getting 75 meat chickens.

Haven't had chickens since i was a kid and am planning on acquiring both meat and laying chickens. Are there any issues in growing theses two breeds together? Can a coup be adapted for both breeds?

I would keep them separate. Your meat birds (likely Cornish cross) are going to rapidly outgrow your laying hens. Cornish cross are lazy and spend there days laying around gorging on feed and are pretty messy. By 7 to 8 weeks they have packed on the weight and should be butchered. Additionally your meat birds will need a higher protein feed to help them with their rapid weight gain.

Divide your shed/coop and raise them separate.

I remember dad buying 500-1000 poults for meat on the farm. I hated Saturdays because mom would sell to different women at work and we had to kill and pluck chickens .

They are very pretty birds. Did you have any trouble with the roosters getting aggressive? I have heard the D'uccle roosters are known to be on the agressive side, but I have never raised any myself.

Wouldn't mind trying a few someday.

What Cameron said^^^

I built my laying coop attached to a cattle loafing shed, which I am converting into a meat bird pen. My layers free range for about 12-18hr/day, and often get into the same pen as my meat birds but it hasn't been an issue. I raised Red Rangers for meat birds and they forage for a lot of their own food, so I set up a 600sqft run (without a canopy) for them to get out and be chickens. They will scratch and peck, chase bugs, take a dust bath and do everything else regular chickens do if you let them.

No I did not. But I am very hands off with my chickens. I have found that the more my kids played with the roosters on any breed the meaner the became. Also the strain or breeder has a lot to do with that.

As a whole I would not think D’uccles roosters were any more agressive than Cochin bantams.

D’uccles are kind of “girly” and most men will shy away from them but I have found they really are all all around good free range bird.

I never had them but Wyandotte bantams may be good too.