The Chantecler is an ideal dual-purpose bird for a Canadian climate, reaching 6-8 lbs and laying approximately 200-220 eggs each year.
Finding the best poultry breeds for your small farm can be a bit like trying to find the perfect farm truck: you want your truck to have all the essentials, like fuel efficiency, ample box size, tow capacity, and with enough power to get the job done. A truck is purchased with an eye towards the uses to which the farmer intends to put it, and the same holds true for poultry.
In order to come anywhere close to the perfect poultry match, a small farmer needs to identify his or her expectations before going out to find the breed that fits the bill. Some of the things to consider before selecting a breed include the purpose for raising poultry (ie. eggs, meat, or both), location and environment, how they will be kept (ie. free range, free run or penned), and personal farming style.
Don’t underestimate the importance of the last point, because farming style will have a big impact on the breeds you will be able to raise successfully. To determine your farming style, ask yourself if you want a delicate breed that needs checking on in the middle of the night in winter, or if you’d prefer a more resilient breed that can fare on its own?
Sometimes a farmer may start with one breed and then realize it’s not the right fit (much like a truck that was shiny and cool looking, but turned out couldn’t pull a loaded hay wagon). Trial and error can often be the best way of finding your perfect match, but no one wants to invest in livestock that won’t do the job.
Below is a list of some of the best—and tried-and-true—small farm poultry breeds, along with breed specifics for each breed.
Dual Purpose:
A typical small farm flock with a mixture of dual-purpose and egg-laying breeds. Some of the breeds seen here include Black Australorp, Rhode Island Red, Barred Rock, Welsummer and Araucanas. Note the ear tufts on the Araucanas differentiate this breed from the similar Ameraucanas
Dual purpose breeds are birds that can be raised for both egg laying and meat purposes. They are typically adequate egg layers, but will also grow to a size that makes sense to go through the time and effort of slaughtering them.
A dual-purpose breed needs to be the superman of the bird world, productive enough to make raising them worthwhile but without eating a small farmer out of house and home, with a calm temperament and an ability to withstand the cold and heat. Dual-purpose breeds are the breeds commonly seen in small flock and small farm environments.
It’s important to note that some abattoirs won’t process dual purpose breeds; their equipment is set up to handle the slaughter and processing of birds in the typical broiler breed size, like the Cornish X. If you are planning on selling meat birds to customers, check with your abattoir before committing to raise a dual purpose breed.
This photo shows how much larger a Columbian Wyandotte is than other breeds, including the Rhode Island Red rooster to the left.
My favourite dual-purpose breeds are Rhode Island Red, Chantecler, Black Australorp, and Wyandotte. The Australorp has a bit of a reputation for being stand-offish, but I’ve always put that down to independence.
Egg Layers:
The difference between a poultry breed used for egg laying and a dual-purpose breed used for both egg laying and meat production lies primarily in the breed’s ability to convert feed into meat. Egg layers were bred specifically for maximum egg production, sacrificing their feed to meat conversion ratio.
Egg layers were also bred to eliminate the urge to eat their own eggs, or to brood them, a habit which can make collecting eggs problematic. There are some dual-purpose breeds on the list below, an indication of the high egg production levels of some dual-purpose breeds.
Says columnist Amy Hogue: “While this Welsummer chicken doesn’t make the short list of egg laying breeds, I’ve always been partial to these friendly and pretty birds. They also make great moms.”
My favourite egg laying breeds are Aracauna or Ameraucana (who doesn’t love a blue egg?), Rhode Island Red and Red Shaver, both prolific breeds. An honourable mention should also go out to the Welsummer (not listed below), a beautiful breed with an adequate egg production (up to 200 eggs per year).
For small farms, Bantam breeds should also not be ruled out; they are prolific layers and will not only brood their own eggs, but will also brood eggs from full-sized breeds. Plus, customers love the half-sized eggs you get from a Bantam.
The Plymouth Barred Rock is a popular breed for small flocks, with an average weight of 6-8 lbs and laying more than 200 eggs each year.
Broiler Breeds:
Broilers are poultry bred specifically for their ability to gain weight quickly and to achieve a substantial size in as few weeks as possible. Raising broilers involves an intense competition to see how quickly birds can grow to maturity while consuming as little food possible. Less food means more profit, and with the slim profit margins that exist in the broiler industry, more, or any, profit is typically the desired end goal.
Commercial broiler breeds are typically hybrids, but along with their superior feed conversion rates comes a fragility that can make raising some of the hybrids problematic. Intelligence and hardiness was not among the desired traits when these breeds were propagated, and anyone who has raised them can tell you this quickly becomes obvious.
The small farmer can choose a non-hybrid alternative and sacrifice some size for hardiness and resilience. I’ve raised Cornish X in the past and while they grew to an impressive size quite quickly, I found they suffered from too many ailments for my tastes. A sturdy breed like Freedom Ranger or a non-hybrid breed like the Jersey Giant would be a better choice for my purposes.
- Amy Hogue