For me its Barred Rocks.
Out of all the various breeds I’ve owned, the BRs have been the most aggressive towards me and the other chickens.
Only TWO of the many I’ve gotten have been able to get along with the other chickens; a hen named Checkers and a rooster named JoJo.
What about you?
(silver) Wyandottes. They are just boring and have no personality. We’ve had three and they were all given the same name as there is nothing unique or interesting about any of them.
Naked necks and Brahmas are not great layers but are a ton of fun with their curiosity and interest in following people around.
I pretty much like all chickens: fried, baked, grilled, sous vide. Boiled is only okay if it’s going straight into a soup or casserole.
Who are these “chicken people” of whom you speak?
I haven’t had great luck with Marans. Too broody. I have the best barred rock right now, though. Cher is friendly and always the first to try new things. She’s my favorite of this year’s batch of pullets.
I had a leghorn that laid eggs like nothing else, but she was not friendly and a general pain in the ass.
I have four chicks going now: an austrolorp, silkie, silver wyandotte and easter egger. So, we’ll see how they go. So far the silkie actually likes being held as does the easter egger to a lesser extent. The other two tolerate it.
My favorite chickens ended up being a couple of Speckled Sussex. They were gentle, curious, good layers and mostly quiet.
I loved how fluffy and pretty the Buff Orpingtons were, but they got broody all the time and talked (squawked) a lot. Being on a smaller urban lot I stressed about their early morning announcements to the neighborhood.
Buffs are my all-time favorites, but I have enough space so the talking isn’t a problem. I agree they do go broody if you look at them sideways. One nice thing, though, they don’t peck the crap out of you for stealing the eggs out from under them.
I’ve had Australorps, Barred Rocks, White Leghorns, Rhode Island Reds, Ameraucana and probably a couple of others I’ve forgotten. Least favorites were the Australorps and the Rhode Island Reds. Not awesome layers and stand-offish. White Leghorns were also aloof, but they lay like machines, as previously noted by Fiveyearlurker. The corresponding problem with chickens that lay like machines is they stop laying a lot sooner.
Buffs are reliable layers, sweet tempered and easy to handle. They’ve been my preference for the past 12 years.
Lightlystarched, I’ll have to give the Speckled Sussex a try!
Huh. Our lace winged wyandottes are beautiful and packed with personality.
We had a banty hen that was a rescue; she was a pain in the ass.
Thank you for posting that. Along with the alien anal probe sketch, those are my two favorite KitH sketches to post.
But how did she taste?
We’ve never eaten any of our hens. We treat them well, collect their eggs, then support them for their postmenopausal period.
The bantam we tolerated. When she passed there was minimal mourning.
Interesting.
So all you chicken people, you don’t eat your chickens? You keep them just for the fresh eggs and as a type of pet?
I was only speaking for my own situation, which is contrary to most IME.
Our hens start out as chicks in our home. My gf hand feeds them meal worms and trains them to enjoy handling.
So, you have a chicken graveyard? I can see letting them go to a natural death, but they’d likely still make a good stew/soup, right?
My wife started working for a dairy coop, and was shocked to discover that when the dairy cows production starts to decline, they get turned into hamburger instead of spending their declining years in a nice pasture somewhere.
We have an area where we bury pets; including hens, dogs, cats, a parakeet, and maybe one or two I’m forgetting. We put daffodil bulbs in the area after each burial. It’s a bittersweet reminder each spring.
In a different location there are two horses buried. Much larger holes, of course.
As an urbanite and a carnivore, I would find it very difficult to eat anything I had bonded with. Starvation scenarios excluded.
I keep mine as long as they produce some eggs. After that, they go to “a farm”. We don’t eat them though. At that point, they are older and tougher and it’s just not worth it. They live a very nice life up until then though!
Sadly, Pullet hasn’t been active here since 2013. 