What breed of chicken is best?
Today I ’m continuing my Chickens 101 series with my watching on the various breeds of wimp we raised in our Florida grounds .
To reply the question , we first need to consider the meat vs. eggs motion . We ’ll start with meat , then get to the laying breeds next , since most backyard poulet keepers are more interested in fresh eggs than in slaughtering their own crybaby pot PIE .
Meat Birds
There are breeds of Gallus gallus that are bred solely for their meat . The most common example is the Cornish Cross . That ’s the variety provoke by commercial chicken farmers , Joel Salatin and most backyard husbandman .
Cornish Cross chickens look and do like the resultant of a GMO experimentation gone incorrect . They ’re unworthy , stupid , and are fat and lazy . They just do n’t have the noetic spark of other breeds . When you look at them , you ’re looking at a quick meal .
We ’re talking very quick , too . Cornish Cross shuttlecock are ready to be “ glean ” in eight week ! That ’s telling . Their meat is lovesome and delicious , even if raise and massacre them is n’t fun .
One john I discovered for making massacre tolerable is to have friends over . in particular friends who are NURSES !
Nurse Cristina and Nurse Cathy do n’t care if core boo are yucky
nurse can handle all kinds of skanky stuff . Make ally with them . swear me on this .
Nurse Cristina and Nurse Cathy don’t care if meat birds are yucky
We raised two stave of meat bird some class ago and just gave up on the outgrowth . The razzing reek , they deplete like pig , they ’ll have random heart attacks and die if you do n’t harvest them on time , and my wife just thinks they ’re gooey . Which they are .
There are breeds of meat bird that are less disgustful than the Cornish Cross , though they do n’t get big as quickly . A recently created breed isthe Freedom Ranger(TM ) , but I have n’t raise those personally so I ca n’t attest to their behavior or flavour .
In universal , I ’d rather simply raise dual - purpose chicken breed and then eat most of the cock and the hen that get too old to put well .
countenance ’s take a look at some of these form .
Dual-Purpose Chicken Breeds
Most of the chicks you ’ll see for sale in the local feed store ( provided you live in the country , as every good person should ) are three-fold - purpose chicken breeds .
This have in mind they have big enough bodies to be desirable for feeding , but they ’re also decent eggs - layer . Barred Rocks , Rhode Island Reds , Buff Orpingtons and Silver - Laced Wyandottes fit into this catagory .
I ascertain that the hens of these breeds , though tasty , are not calorically impressive compared to their freakishly large - breasted Cornish Cross cousin-german . Buff Orpingtons are in all probability the heavy dual - purpose skirt of the chickens we ’ve raised , but they ’re so pretty and well-disposed I find them intemperate to belt down .
Nurse Cristina and Nurse Cathy don’t care if meat birds are yucky
Rhode Island Reds are scrappy birds that are base - offish for the most part – they just are n’t all that sociable in my experience . If you desire a pet chicken , go with a Buff Orpington .
One of our beautiful Buff Orpingtons
Where the Rhode Island Reds glitter is in their ability to scrounge and lay consistently . Tough birds .
One of our beautiful Buff Orpingtons
We ’ve also raised the Black Star sex - link chick and found them to be quite exchangeable to the Rhode Island Reds . The Barred Rocks and Silver - Laced Wyandottes are both safe birds but are n’t all that braggart for the table … and they ’re not quite as good at laying as Rhode Island Reds or Black Stars .
Though Buff Orpingtons are quite pretty and well-disposed , they do n’t lie in as well as any of the other three-fold - purpose breeds I ’ve mentioned so far . They lay decently , but they ’re not quite up to the production tier I wish to see when I ’m pay for feed .
All of these variety lay brown eggs of undecomposed size .
What if You Just Want Eggs?
My favorite egg - laying chicken stock is the regular old Leghorn . They ’re funny , scrappy , blanched , small - bodied bird that lay big big white ballock . They also have cute floppy comb on the whirligig of their heads and have been quite sweet - natured .
Their egg laying is like clockwork .
I really know these razz , but they ’re too skinny to be much of a repast if you resolve to feed non - productive bird , hence the reason I would relegate them as an egg - only doll .
Skip the Goofy Chicken Breeds
When you look through an online catalog of chicken breeds , the vapourous potpourri becomes a enticement .
“ Hey – we could get birdie that repose blasphemous eggs ! ”
“ Wait , what about those ones with the swab - top ? ”
“ Whoa , await – this heirloom breed lay cocoa - brown eggs ! ”
I used to have an aunt who save Blue Cochins . They were friendly , jerky boo with big bodies but like many of the showy chicken breeds , Cochins are n’t all that with child at laying .
I suppose if you wanted lawn ornaments , you could plunk a funny breed – but if you want to turn poulet provender into volaille nut , skip the silly type .
We ’ve also raised “ Easter - Egger ” chicken , AKA Ameraucanas , and found them to be foul - tempered and nervous raspberry in oecumenical , plus they do n’t lay all that well . The eggs are coolheaded but the homecoming on investment funds is blah .
My Chicken Breed Recommendations
So – what strain of chicken is best ? If you need meat , the crappy Cornish Cross . If you want eggs and some meat , Rhode Island Reds or Black Stars . If you just need eggs , get the White Leghorn .
If I were restarting my own backyard chicken process right now , I ’d get a mix of Leghorns , Rhode Island Reds and Black Stars . I need some meat and some eggs , so my flock would produce both . I ’d allow them hybridize over time , perhaps bring in some Buff Orpingtons for the larger bodies , then incubate the eggs .
Every generation I ’d select for the large and best layers , as well as the best forager and the brightest Bronx cheer until I ’d create a discharge of birds I was glad with . We mixed a choice of good breed together in the past times to try and make our own unique flock ; however , that breeding experiment came to an inauspicious racoon - induced end in its second genesis .
Now if we could just cross a Inferno crap with a Rhode Island Red , we ’d be all set …
