The Top 16 Chicken Breeds for Your Backyard Flock

For the past couple decades, chickens have been growing in popularity as people become more interested in knowing where their food comes from, and desire to live a more natural lifestyle. But they are so much more than just egg factories. Watching chickens scratch about the yard is relaxing and de-stressing after a long day at work. Many pet chickens are extremely tame and will eat out of your hand and sit on your lap. Need more convincing that chickens are awesome?

Australorp: This is the Australian-origin version of the Orpington, and have many of the same qualities! Australorp plumage can be blue, black, or white. I personally think the black is the most stunning, with an iridescent green, blue, and purple sheen in the right lighting. This breed is well-known for their high-volume egg laying abilities. Several world records for most number of eggs per year were set by Australorp hens. They will lay an average of 5 large light brown eggs per week. On the whole, Australorps are very docile, sweet, and friendly. Some may be a tad shy. Fluffy and large, these birds have great cold hardiness. As you can imagine, being that they originated in Australia and are very popular birds there, they are also quite heat tolerant.