Wise Choices in Chicken Breeds

Reader Contribution by Anna Twitto
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Once prospective chicken owners decide on setting up their own coop, the next question is usually, Which breed should we choose? The variety of chicken breeds offered by hatcheries is dazzling, and it’s often difficult to make a decision. So, which breed?

The answer, like with so many other things, is it depends – on what you want to get out of chicken-keeping, your local climate, how much space you have available, and your budget. The most popular reason for keeping chickens is eggs, but some people raise their own meat birds, and other focus on heritage breeds and hatching chicks for sale.

For eggs, I always recommend sturdy reliable egg-layers such as Rhode Islands, Plymouth Rocks or Sussex. These are actually dual-purpose breeds which won’t put on weight as quickly as commercial-raised meat crosses, or lay eggs as soon as commercial layers, but will have a longer and more productive life on the homestead or small traditional farm where the same flock often provides both eggs for breakfast and chicken for the crockpot.

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