I'd suggest you join the forum BackyardChickens.com- Lots of great information for

beginners in chicken keeping. also much info on the different breeds. Plus you can

ask these type questions and there's many serious breeders and experts there.

Thanks mr1010, that sounds great

in the meantime I kept on digging,

didn't get all details solved, but I found a produictiv larger dwarf breed, found a list of breeders and a telefone number for that breed,

and when I rang up, I ended up talking to an enthusiastic, young expert breeder, breeding for ten y,, third generation (I mean, his grandpa started it all ;-) ), and he selected the dwarf type for heavier weight so his line is much more productive, laying 220 eggs per year, instead of 180 eggs as the regular types.

so I just need someone near by for medical advice etc, but I'm hopefull that I find someone willing to give advice if the rest of the bunch is as talkative and helpful as that young bloke.

so now my vision of chooks in the backyard got much more realistic :-)

have a nice week,

bye, Lin

and the young bloke sent a bunch of pics per Wahtsapp, so that's what the hens look like, weight almost 2.5 lbs

All my research (reading, tslking to "chicken persons) indicates strongly the contrary,

so, excuse my French,that's utter Bollocks

I am doing chickens, and started last May. What you buy may depend on where you live - for me, in the hills of western Massachusetts, I needed winter hardy egg layers, and picked up black Australorpes, buff Orpingtons, buckeyes and Wyandottes. They are all thriving, and are mostly friendly. The Wyandottes are more "pretty" than friendly, but the others I'd highly recommend.

I also think Delawares, Barred rocks, and speckled Sussex are worth looking into.

If you are interested, I'll send you a link to my blog - mostly about food but I have a homesteading track with info about raising chickens as I've been learning about this.

The "broodiest" chickens I've ever raised were Buff Orpingtons, they want to set on a nest all the time. My friendliest chicken ever is a 7 year old Speckled Sussex, she'll fly to meet visitors. The loudest/most talkative is a Welsummer, she's always "chatting". The Ameracuana lays blue eggs and the grandkids like that. All of those are winter hardy, I live in Northern Michigan and do not heat the coop, and they don't seem to mind.

Like Artemis, I think you're confusing roosting with wanting to set. Chickens roost naturally, they like to get up off the ground to sleep, that old predator vs prey thing. And, of course, if you don't have a rooster and you let a hen just sit on the eggs you'll get rotten eggs, plus the hen doesn't lay while she's setting.

The picture you posted is a pretty chicken, but remember, the smaller the chicken the smaller the egg, usually. I know people have bantams, but you have to have about 6 eggs for breakfast!

Good luck, I spoil my chickens a little and enjoy having them.

Annie

hi there

re roosting/ brooding: yes, was a language mix up on my part.

I got figured out most of it, have been to visit a breeder (which helped a lot), reading... and a knowledgable friend with a dozen chickens roaming in her garden.

and that breed of our choice is not so great with brooding/ sitting on eggs, so, for us that is a plus.

yes, the hens (and their eggs) are smaller, but not too tiny, the hens weigh about 2,4 lb something

and first aim is to have animals/ pets, eggs are a benefit on top.

we got permission to go ahead, so, there will be chicken, yea.

@annie

thanks for the lovely descriptions of the different breeds, a speckled 7 y old! Sussex flying to greet you sounds great (when did she stopp laying?)

and interesting about the Welsumers, I had considered the dwarf type, but they were soso layers. (and too much chattiness could cause problems with the neighbors...

so have fun with your lovely chickens,

thanks, Lin

Lin, the Sussex still lays about 3 eggs a week, I'm constantly astounded. Her five "old" friends are one Australorp, one Arucauna, one Golden Laced Wyandott, one Welsummer and one Barnevelder. "Sparkle" is 7, her five friends are 6 years old. I get 2 or 3 eggs per day from the "old ladies", but they discontinue laying in the winter completely. Poor old girls need a break, I guess, so I don't get year round eggs from them, but I get pretty good production from April until about October when the days get short. By November, they are finished for the winter, but I'm relatively impressed. And, double bonus, they each lay a different color/shade of egg, so I know which ones are laying and which one is slacking off. I'll give you a hint, the Arucauna lays blue eggs and I get 1 or 2 a week, LOL.

I hope you enjoy having them, they can provide endless entertainment if you watch them.

Annie