# Rhode Island Red, White Leghorns, Barred Rock, Whatdo you think?



## Adrescher7 (Nov 23, 2011)

Im looking to make a flock of a total of a hundred birds.
Im thinking Rhode Island Reds, primarily for brown eggs, maybe eat one or two roosters,
Pearl White leghorns, Primarily for white eggs
And then Barred Rocks for meat.

What do you think? My biggest concern is cold hardy-ness. Im from New York, where it can get pretty cold. I know the barred rocks and rhode islands can take the cold becuase I've been raising them for a few years. But ive never done or even seen leghorns around here. Can they handle the cold? or would you suggest a different breed?


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## maverickxxx (Jan 25, 2011)

That sounds like my plan except not that many birds. I'll be watching to see what everyone says


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## Adrescher7 (Nov 23, 2011)

Well the goal would be to sell the eggs and maybe some meat to cover the feed costs and hopefully make a little profit


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## klickitat (Dec 26, 2008)

Wow. Is the demand for eggs that high in your area? That would be like 7 dozen eggs a day. Can you sell that many from your location? What kind of price do you get in your area. Can you justify the infrastructure costs? 

Some times you can cut your own throat by flooding a market. The trick is to find the sweet spot where you produce just enough to keep the supply slightly short to boost demand and price. This way you can maximize your profits by increasing the price of the product using your capitol to the greatest efficiency.

This is not to say you have not looked at all this or that your personal situation, such as per-existing infrastructure or access to cheap feed allowing you to make such a huge leap into production. for most it is best to start smaller and work their way up to fill a demand. 

I have found out that if a business works it's way up playing with price to control demand, one can put in fewer hours for the same benefit and using less upfront capitol for infrastructure. This allows you to free up cash flow for diversifying into other areas.


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

It seems most people wanting farm eggs prefer brown. They think brown eggs are healthier. (We know they aren't, it is how they are raised not the color of the shell that matters.)

You might have some issues with the straight comb but usually it is the roosters, rather than the hens that have problems. I had leghorns in Colorado at 7k ft with no problem.

Leghorns are never going to be cost effective for meat. They are egg laying machines, thin, stringy and flighty. Barred Rocks are slightly better for meat, not much. Try getting some dark Cornish or white laced red Cornish roosters to put over your Barred Rock or RIR hens for meat birds.


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## Guest (Jan 31, 2012)

Adrescher7 said:


> Well the goal would be to sell the eggs and maybe some meat to cover the feed costs and hopefully make a little profit


 In that case I'd first determine if white eggs had a market in my area. For whatever reason there is a strong preference for brown eggs amongst the folks who want something more than factory eggs from the store.

If it appears white eggs will sell then definitely get some of the Pearl White Leghorns.

Then I'd get some good commercial red sex-links from a reputable hatchery such as Townline in Michigan. I have their ISA Brown birds and they are the most reliable layers I've ever had. More and larger eggs on less feed than any other birds but for the Pearl Whites.

If the need for a profit enters into this at all I would not bother with either the Rhode Island Reds or the Barred Rocks. Neither are going to lay well enough to turn a profit if you're buying your feed. If you really want birds to butcher other than your spent hens then order some of the sex-link roosters. They'll grow out faster than the "heritage" breed roosters so you'll lose less money on the meat they provide.


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## Adrescher7 (Nov 23, 2011)

Cyngbaeld said:


> It seems most people wanting farm eggs prefer brown. They think brown eggs are healthier. (We know they aren't, it is how they are raised not the color of the shell that matters.).


Ohh I know. Maybe its poor morals for a business but i certainly don't stop that belief. might even encourage it from time to time  I want to lay white eggs to satisfy everyone. Some "City slickers" I sell to, have eaten white eggs their whole life, never even knew eggs come in colors other than white. And some are difficult to convince that just because the shell is brown, its the same on the inside. One even tried to tell me its brown because theres a chick inside...I figure just offer both and give everyone what they want


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

Yes, if you have a market for them. Most of us can't sell white eggs, people think they came from the store.


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## Vickie44 (Jul 27, 2010)

I am in NY and have Leghorns and Domeniques. The Doms are great cold weather birds as they have very small combs.


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## RebelDigger (Aug 5, 2010)

See the photo under my thread called "Caption This".

http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/showthread.php?p=5681430#post5681430

I have the mix you are talking about in my flock with a couple more, aurcana being one as well as Dominique. I have 10 hens and 3 roosters currently--Shamrock, the white rooster in the pic is likely going to freezer camp this week cause he is junk yard dog mean, flogged me the other day and drew blood. I get 9 eggs a day (Tammy Faye, the aurcana seems to be on strike since before Christmas). Maybe one or two days a week I will get 6 or 7. Cannot address what your kind of cold will do to these birds, we just don't get that kind of weather here, it gets in the single digits but rarely stays there long and I have a heat bulb in the hen house anyway.


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## plowjockey (Aug 18, 2008)

I don't bother with brown eggs and no one has ever asked for them. They can get them at the grocery store.

I wished I had severn dozen eggs a day. I could easily sell them. I don't think the kids would like gathering, cleaning and packing that many.


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## FCLady (Jan 23, 2011)

What's your long term goal? I like the RIR for laying the brown eggs. I have 100 hens just as layers, I like them better for the long run because I have a separate breeding house and can hatch and raise my own without going back to the hatchery for more peeps every year...

We sell 40+ dozen eggs a week - brown eggs. We had 25 leghorns to sell to the market and they couldn't GIVE them away. Finally had to get rid of them.

After 6 years of trying this and that for meat birds we're going with the white laced red cornish. We can hatch and raise our own without going to the hatchery every year.

Another market we have found is hatching and selling pullets. We just bought a Sportsman Incubator last May. I've hatched 638 since then. People who only want a dozen or less birds have been putting deposits down to get the next batch that reaches 4-5 months old. Yes... half of those are roosters. We give those to our Amish friends. They raise them up for dinner. We have several families who will take all that we hatch and I don't have to feed them or put them down.

We have had to develop the market for the eggs and worked our way up to where we are. We are also certified to sell eggs to stores and restaurants.

We raise the meat birds to fill our freezer. I don't like butchering well enough to build the meat market up. We even did caponizing one year and we were really disappointed in the results compared to the cornish; comparing the length of time to get to the freezer and amount of meat on their bones.

I like the RIR hardiness in Ohio, they forage well. I don't get mean roosters because I hand feed them when they start maturing. They know I'm a food source not a threat to "their" ladies.


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## Adrescher7 (Nov 23, 2011)

FC Lady,
Well the eggs are for selling. Everywhere there's a desire for eggs Il sell them. The meat is mostly for myself and family, might sell on or two locally.Ive been incubating a little but havnt had good enough results to increase the flock alone so im going to have to buy new birds...


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## FCLady (Jan 23, 2011)

I've raised the RIR, Orpingtons, Barred Rocks, Black Star, White Rocks, New Hampshire Reds, Golden Comets, White Leghorns, Coronation Sussex (my toys) and Delawares. They all do okay in the Ohio winters. The only one I have complaints about are the Golden Comets, seems IMO that the hybrid isn't near as hardy as the pure bred ones. Out of those breeds RIR and Black Stars lay the best for me. The Leghorns were so skittish I hated gathering eggs in their coop! When it is REALLY cold, I just leave the birds closed up for the day or two in their coops.

If you're into the "egg business" you may want to put a good incubator into you plans. Replenishing 100 or so birds every 1-1/2 to 2 years gets expensive. My incubator paid for itself in 6 months. I hatch my birds in the fall and let them grow through the winter so I have fresh young pullets in the spring - also the best time to sell my "older hens" at the auction. Right now the incubator is full of eggs I'm hatching for someone else.

It's all been a process... one step at a time finding what market is in your area. 

You'll also need to find a source of egg cartons - new or used whatever you're going to be using. I run a regular ad in a local paper for used egg cartons and pickup flats from a local restaurant.

I currently have about 300 birds on premises, from day old to 2 years old. An ounce of prevention is worth SOOO much more than burying 7+ dozen eggs a day when the birds are on antibiotics!!!!


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## lisa's garden (Apr 1, 2010)

I agree that the Barred Rock isn't real great as a meat bird...they are called dual purpose, but I have eaten some of mine and they aren't that meaty. The Buff Orpingtons were better IMHO.

White Leghorns are the best for white eggs and in my flock the Rhode Island Reds have been the best brown egg layers, second best has been the Black Australorp. I like have the Easter Eggers...some of my egg customers are disappointed if they don't get at least one green egg in every dozen. 

If you haven't had good luck with the incubator, maybe you could keep a few broody hens? My Black Australorps seem to be the most inclined to go broody in my flock.

This has probably been posted here before, but this chart is fun to look through when you are considering which breeds to purchase.
http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html

Have fun picking out breeds! If I were starting all over with new chickens, I think I would pick out more variety of breeds. I like the ones that I have had, but I'm always thinking about the ones I haven't tried and wondering if I would like them better...I think this is called a 'chicken addiction'. Good luck!


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## lisa's garden (Apr 1, 2010)

Oh, I forgot...the white leghorns are more prone to frostbite on their combs. Roosters especially. But if you have a draft free coop and keep a heat lamp on, they should do fine through the winter.


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