Picking a Breed.

Choosing a breed of chicken is not as easy as I thought. I pictured those fluffy yellow little chicks that you see for Easter. Picking a breed of Chickens is a whole lot more involved. i had no idea that eggs came in other colors besides brown and white. Oh yes, there are Blue eggs, green eggs, olive eggs, and yummy chocolate colored eggs too!

My dad told me as a child I was so indecisive. Once I was taken to the store and told that I could choose one toy. I agonized over the choice for so long, and then finally chose one. As we were leaving the toy isle I burst into tears. Sobbing I cried, I can't leave the other one she will be sad with out me! I let the store that day with 2 My Little Ponies.

I learned today that that same little girl still lives inside me. Deciding what breed of chicken to pick has been agonizing! They are all so neat. I decided I wanted 2-3 breeds. I can legally have up 10 chickens so that choice has been made for me.

To decide the breeds I wanted I made a list of what I needed from me chickens.

I need..

Heat Tolerant, yeah it gets hot here!
Quiet (No target practice for the neighbor)
Lays fairly well
Tame enough or the kids to play with
Has pretty eggs.
Fun to look at. Ok I am superficial, or maybe its the artist in me, but I want to look at something pretty.

Based on these requirements I have narrowed it down to these breeds...

Orpingtons
These Fluffy butts are so flipping cute I can hardly contain my self. They are supposed to be docile and quiet which is a plus for me.

Ameraucana~ Also supposed to be gentle and quiet, but even better they lay super cool blue and green eggs! I can resist the coolness factor of having blue eggs, t will be like and Easter egg hunt every morning!

Australorp

These are supposed to be very heat tolerant, which is important for the desert. Although I can't quiet figure out how with the black feathers. These were developed in Australia, so I think they could survive our heat.

Silkies
While these are a bantam breed, I fell in love with their look. They look like fuzzy little cotton balls with legs. A plus for me is that they are great with kids and they make good chicken mommies. the eggs are smaller, but eventually I want to hatch eggs and, well my nerves just can't take hatching chicks!

So if I can make the hard choice which ones I want, I think these are in the top running. Knowing me I will find something cute that I will have to have and will have a variety of cute fluffy butts!

Are you crazy?

The shocked look on my neighbors face said more than her snide comment and she wasn't the only one. Many of my neighbors were not as excited as I was about raising chickens in my backyard. The police office next door gruffly mentioned something about not wanting to hear a rooster crowing. Ok so he works the night shift, but was that comment about using my chickens for target practice really necessary?

Am I crazy to raise a flock of Hens in the backyard of my middle class neighborhood? I don't think I am. Chickens are some of the best pets that I have ever had; they are cute and have funny personalities and best yet they make you breakfast every morning!

Although I think my chickens will be the only chickens on this planet with a pool to sunbathe by. Join me as I start my journey in to the world of urban self sufficiency and my back yard chickens! I will be posting about my journey from my coop, to buying my chickens, and more.