which breed is best 4 us???

[keelan]

heyyy
ok so im buying some chicken and maybe a cockerel so what breed would be best for us as we are converting our shed into the chickens house, we would like friendly chickens/cockerels and i would be nice if they layed over 200 eggs a year does any one have any advice on what breed? thanks

[Mo]

I've never kept a cockerel.
If you want eggs the ones I got first were Black Rock, they are a hybrid, so even if you did have a cockerel you couldn't breed them to be the same. They laid well for me.
One was mostly black, the other had more brown in it, so I could tell them apart, and I had a White Star, which started well but didn't lay well the second year.
Agents here http://www.theblackrock.co.uk/agents.htm it shows a map of where you can get them.

[keelan]

thanks for your reply

[Richard]

I'm with Mo on those.

One wee problem is that cockerels don't always take too kindly to humans!

[keelan]

my friend has 7 hens in a house that can keep 50 haha she said that they had a cockerel once and it got on fine with them so im just going to have to ask around a little more, are the 1-3 day old chicks they sell at pet shops for bird food any good for rescue (before they become food that is?) if so what injections shall i have them get? thanks ....keelan.... :mrgreen:

[Mo]

You'll be doing it the hard way. My Grandma used to raise day-olds in a tiny arc with a glass covered run on the lawn. I seem to remember all sorts of panics and emergencies. And they may have had a setback in the petshop; if they are sold as food they may not be kept on the best conditions. They'll need warmth and coddling.

The easy way would be to get point of lay hens from a reputable, experienced breeder.

Good luck if you try the chicks though (aaaah)

[keelan]

ive have another idea ha ha ha is it a good idea to keep 2-3 quail hens and 1 male in the house (shed) with the chickens :