If you’re looking for egg laying chickens that are also kid-friendly, you came to the right place! After raising backyard chickens for six years, we decided to share with you our favorite breeds!
There are a lot of egg laying chickens out there. In this post we will share the ones we have experience with and some that we have heard wonderful things about. Raising chickens has been such a joy and a gift for our family. If you are considering getting some egg laying chickens for your crew, I highly suggest picking a few breeds from this list!
Why we LOVE our friendly, egg laying chickens
Not only to they give us delicious and nutritious eggs, they are also so much fun for the kids! Friendly chicken breeds are important to us. As you can see below, our chickens are very well loved and held… A LOT. So we are always looking for egg laying chickens that will also be good with the kids.
We absolutely love raising chickens. It’s helped our kids learn how to take care of animals, and they are so full of joy when bringing in the eggs. Raising chickens has been fun, to say the least. But we really feel like they are such a blessing to our family!
Choosing your egg laying chicken
There are a lot of great options out there, but my biggest piece of advice would be to handle the chickens often. It’s best if you can get them as chicks so they will be used to your family holding them.
When our kids were really little, we didn’t play with them much. Now that they are older, they hold and play with them often! We recently got a flock of laying hens and they were not held at all. It took some time but, after a few months they have really gotten used to the girls.
Hatchery suggestions for ordering chickens
10 egg laying chickens that are also kid friendly
1. Plymouth Rock (Barred Rock)
What a pretty chicken breed! Barred Rocks were one of the first chickens we had, and they were great with the kids. Besides being pretty, they are a great egg laying chicken! Barred Rocks lay about 4-5 pinkish brown eggs per week. They are a friendly, docile breed and get along great with people. They also get along well with other breeds.
2. Buff Orpington
This egg laying chicken is the “golden retriever” of chickens. They are friendly and love to be held. They produce 3 brown eggs per week. All Orpingtons are friendly, but the the Buff Orpington is especially very calm and great with kids. They are actually a breed that loves to be cuddled.
They also tolerate a lot of things that kids do, so these would be great with toddlers. I have many videos of our oldest daughter when she was around two, just chasing them around. She LOVES her chickens, so thankfully the Buff’s didn’t mind.
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3. Wyandotte (an AMAZING egg laying chicken)
Wyandottes are incredibly friendly and smart. They lay pale brown eggs 4-5 times per week and are great winter layers. We are currently raising this breed and are in the middle of winter, and they have laid great!
They also have broody tendencies and make great mothers if you are wanting to raise chicks. Wyandottes will fiercely protect their chicks! They are also a cold hardy breed and are fairly easy to find from a hatchery.
4. Silkies
We have never personally owned these, but they are on our list to get this Spring! They tend to lay about 3 eggs a week. They are also gentle, funny and a very quiet breed.
The photo below is of my niece, or as I like to call her – the chicken whisperer! Silkies are such a great breed for kids. They are so fun – I mean look at those head feathers.
5. Australorp
Australorps are extremely calm, easy going and friendly. They are one of the top egg laying chickens around, laying about 5 pale brown eggs per week. They also make good mothers and sitters
Australorps are a great beginner breed if you’re just getting started. It’s been said that they can be shy at first, but they are a fast growing breed and adjust well. They also don’t mind being held, so they would be great to add to your flock!
6. Golden Comets
Golden Comets are a cross between a White Rock Hen and a New Hampshire rooster.
I went to a friend’s house last year and she had Golden Comets. I could not believe how friendly they were! They didn’t run from the kids (and we had a lot of kids there). They were completely content being held. I was sold on Golden Comets after that! We have now added them to our flock and they’ve adjusted well.
They are an excellent egg laying chicken, laying about 5-6 brown eggs per week. Golden Comets get along well with other breeds and are a great for a beginner.
7. Ameraucana
Ameracuana’s are known for their light blue eggs. We are currently raising this breed and their eggs really are so pretty! I love seeing them mixed in with the brown eggs. They will lay around 3-4 blue eggs per week. They are energetic and friendly – making them and a great breed for kids.
8. Jersey Giants
Jersey Giants are one of the largest chicken breeds. They get along well with other chicken breeds and are docile and calm and are also great with people. They start laying eggs around 5 months old and their eggs can very in color from dark brown to light cream. Jersey Giants lay around 2-4 eggs per week.
They are another breed that will go broody and will make excellent mothers if you are wanting to raise chicks. Kids love them because they are incredibly sweet and some even love to cuddle!
Because of the large size of this breed, it’s a good idea to be careful with very small children.
9. Sussex
The Sussex breed is very intelligent and friendly. They adapt well, are great for beginners and are a great egg laying chicken. Sussex’s are a great breed to have because they are kind and calm, but are also energetic and alert. They will lay 4-5 brown eggs per week.
10. Cochin
Cochin’s aren’t known for their egg laying abilities, but they are one of the sweetest, friendliest chicken breeds. They are very ideal for kids and lay about 2-3 brown eggs per week. They are cold hardy and are also great mothers.
Now, time to start your flock of friendly, egg laying chickens!
I hope this post helps you figure out which breeds you will get for your family. Once you get everything set up for backyard chickens, they really are one of the easiest animals to care for. Right now, our oldest is six and she can fully take care of them.
We are so excited to grow our flock even more this year. If you would like to know more about what we’re planning to do on our mini farm, check out this post: Mini Farm Plan for Two Acres. This will be our first year hatching chicks and we cannot wait!
Let me know below if there are any breeds we missed, it’s so hard to narrow it down to ten! Thanks so much for being here, good luck with your flock!
