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?

Barred Rock: Barred Plymouth Rocks, or just "barred rocks", are some of the sweetest, most inquisitive, quirky birds we've ever had. They are very friendly, intelligent, and great with kids. I hate to play favorites, but of the nine different chickens we have had now, Dottie and Zoey take the cake. They're the ones who always come running first, follow closest, and are most inclined to jump up for a cuddle. They also have a reputation for being talkative, but with a distinct sweet, softer coo and chatter, much different than the others in the flock. These black and white spotted cuties are steady layers of large, light brown eggs. You can expect an average of four to five eggs per week while they're actively laying. Barred rocks have a large single comb, and are both heat and cold tolerant. This breed can take well to "confinement" but are happiest when they can range freely.