We're getting chickens! Please advise!

[Buttholelane]

So, we're thinking of getting three.

I really wanted blue orpingtons as I wanted a gentle, laid back chicken that would be good with the kids and dog and not try to escape all the time that also laid lots of eggs.

But now I'm hearing that orpingtons are a bit crap on the egg laying?

What type of chicken should I get?

I want a good egg layer, preferably friendly and cuddly?

We've just decided to get chickens too! I found this website that has some nice breeds on it:

www.martins-wood-chickens.co.uk/light-sussex.html

That's the breed I'm looking at as well as the goldline, it gives good info on friendly breeds.

It's exciting isn't it! We're in the middle of preparing the space for our run and hoping our coop arrives soon so we can get out birds by Tuesday!

We have light Sussex and they are lovely. We got them last year and they were patchy on the egg front as they were just coming into lay but this year we have had nearly one a day from each since February. I also have a Hamburg which is pretty but skittish and a general farmyard mix who is also skittish but my best layer. I'd definitely go Sussex to start, when they are laying they let you pat and stroke them, they are beautiful proper looking chickens and if you want to raise your own chicks they are very good broody too

I have had alsorts of breeds over the years, hybrids are your best bet for lots of eggs, you cant beat a good oold brown hen. How would you feel about rescuing ex batts, they make lovely tame hens once you have brought them back to henny ness. The current hens I have are vicioous, but that is the breeder and not the breed I will never get hens from them again. Find somewhere that you like and the hens look well looked after and handled.

My dream chook next will be a lavendar aruacana, lovely green eggs. I looked after a friends (other breed that lays green eggs I cant for the life of me remeber the name) and that was loovely.

Battery hen welfar trust in case your interested.

I will look into some Sussex...

I definitely don't want to breed them!
Don't have room for that.

I did think about ex battery hens but, this will sound really mean, although they will treated as pets, really, we want eggs and as far as I am aware batteries are bred to produce like mad for a couple of years then nothing.
That isn't going to be any good for us as we want fresh eggs.

I have had ex batts before and they laid loads,, however they were all dead within a year :( lovely watching them potter around. My girls have been out loads over the llast couple of days, I have a bluebelle, a warren (normal brown hen) and a black rock. alll goood egg layers.

We have two bluebelles and two white stars. We were supposed to get one white star and one amber star which is supposed to be less flighty than the white stars but ours are great and very friendly.

Since the white stars started laying last September I think they have only missed 2 days each! And one of the bluebelles regularly gives us huge double yolkers.

We've had our girls since last June (they were 6 week chicks) and I'm so glad we got them, they're great fun :)