Rural/Farm Life

Hens will cackle when they lay, or if they are threatened, but are generally quiet the rest of the time.

There are so many kinds of chickens to choose from; it depends on your preference and your needs.

I prefer dual-purpose birds, rather than those bred specifically for big egg production or fast-growth meat production. Here are some of my favorites:


For egg color, Marans (and maybe Wellsummers?) give a rich, chocolate brown egg, Auracanas, Americanas, and "Easter-eggers" (mixed breed birds) will give green eggs, sometimes blue.

For temperament, I like Buff Orpingtons, Australorps, and Brahmas. All of those are larger birds.

For all around beauty, eggs, and meat, the Rhode Island Red and offshoots are good.

I prefer rose combs; they don't freeze as badly as single combs in my area. Brahmas and Wyandottes have rose combs; I'm not sure about others.

Modern production breeds don't brood well, but if you aren't going to keep a rooster, that wouldn't matter anyway.

If you just want efficient egg production, and don't care about size for meat, temperament, or egg color, go with leghorns.