We at the typesofchicken.com team try to stay influential and true with our readers, and since many of you were interested in our opinion on the Keeping Rhode Island Red Chickens – that is what we will give you.
Instead of just writing the pros and cons of keeping this breed of chickens, we will do our best to help you understand each of them.
Remember that this article is written especially for the people who plan to raise these chickens in their backyard.
Pros Of Keeping RIR Chickens
Are Rhode Island Red good layers?
The Rhode Island Red Hens are very good egg layers.
What makes this breed of chickens famous for their egg production is that they can be good egg layers during the winter because of their layer of feathers and slightly different anatomy.
You need to treat them as any other chicken in the winter, but the chances are that the Rhode Island Hen Chickens will be the most productive.
If you feed your Rhode Island Hens in the way we at the typesofchicken.com team suggested you feed your chickens to get the best eggs some time ago, we guarantee that you will be left without words of the quality of eggs this breed can provide.
Are rhode island red chickens good for meat?
Another thing that makes this breed of chickens special is that they are not only excellent egg layers, but their meat is also of very high quality.
The same layer of feathers that helps this breed of chickens be more productive during the winter is why their meat is of very high quality.
This makes their immune system stronger, and thus they are slightly healthier than many other breeds.
This is why many people compliment the meat that this breed provides.
What do rhode island red chickens look like?
The strong red color of their feathers and their proud stance make the Rhode Island Red Chickens a true sight.
They are one of the most beautiful breeds of chickens, and that in our book is a true pro for this chicken breed.
2. Cons Of Keeping Rhode Island Red Chickens
1. This is where it gets a bit tricky. The Rhode Island Red Chickens are a very proud breed of chickens, so they sometimes get moody.
They want your attention, and it is like they know that they are special.
If they are not satisfied with the way you are treating them, they will show you – they will turn aggressive towards you or start ignoring your presence.
This can affect your entire flock, so before deciding to breed the Rhode Island Red Chickens, make sure that you have the time to make them feel a bit special.
2. There are not many left of this breed; this makes them more expensive than other breeds.
Getting to this breed can be a problem for many backyard chicken enthusiasts. It will take some effort, but if you have the right sources, I am sure that you can find a good source for this breed.
The RIR hens that I have also will pull feathers of the other hens I have- I did have a favorite RIR hen that I gave away for this reason! No matter how I supplemented their feed! No I have another one that is doing it to the other hens. Especially if they are in a “spot” she wants to lay in, or a place on the roosting bar. So if given a choice I wouldn’t get RIR’s in a mixed flock especially with hens that have beards and ear muff feathers. They will pluck them out!
I have a mixed flock of 5 different breeds (which I recently added to). My rhode Island red is second in command with in flock and has never plucked a feather. Although she won’t submit to me she will let me pet her on her terms and is always curious what I am up to. My speckled sussex on the other hand has to chase and peck / pluck my wyandotte (even though they came from the same batch of eggs). My honest opinion is that it depends largely on the bird. They may have tendencies of their breed but each bird like us is an individual.
We’ve got 14 chickens, of which 5 are RIR’s. I have found that this breed has a little of everything. We’ve got one who will talk your ear off (really, she does NOT shut up – although we like it), one that wants nothing but to sit on your lap, one that is a bit masculine for a hen, and two who are a little stand offish. All in all, I love them. They didn’t go broody like other breeds, and even though they seem to have a tough molt, they are still one of the most affectionate, albeit needy breeds we’ve got 🙂
Compared to my Black French Copper Marans and Americanas, my RIR’s outlay them hands down. We get eggs all winter long, and their temperament is pretty easy. They are not much into petting, but they are egg laying machines. While I love the blue eggs from the Americanas and the dark chocolate eggs from the Marans, the Rhode Island Reds keep us in eggs year round.
I have six rirs and five le fleche as well as some silver lace Wyandotte and some bantom Colombian buff Wyandotte and the rirs seem to get along well they can be a little pushy sometimes but so can the leghorns I have a few of them as well the egg production is great and they are very smart birds