Most children love animals and can learn a lot about life and responsibility from interacting with them. Hens are a more gentle option for children as even a very tame cockerel can be aggressive at times.
Breeds
When choosing a breed of chicken to keep for children avoid those breeds described as 'flighty'. These birds are skittish around humans and are unlikely to ever be hand tamed. Choose docile breeds that are well known to be gentle such as these below.
Pekin: Looking somewhat like a ball of feathers with a face, pekins are cute and cuddly with bags of personality. Pekins come in a huge variety of colours including white, black, columbian, buff, spangled and lavender. Despite being so small, just 24 ounces for a cockerel, both males and females can be feisty with other birds.
Silkie:Curious chickens with 'fur' as opposed to feathers. The very gentle character of silkies make them ideal birds for beginners and children alike. Silkies are natural mothers and are reliably broody if you are looking to hatch a clutch of eggs. The unusual feathers of the silkie means they cannot fly and can be kept in quite a small garden, but they are intolerant of wet conditions so must be given shelter from the elements.
Orpington: Cuddly, docile birds that are tolerant of being handled. Orpingtons can be kept either free range or in a large enclosure. Despite their large size these soft birds can be prone to bullying if kept with other chicken breeds. A healthy happy hen can produce up to 160 medium brown eggs in a season.
Buying Your Chickens
Once you have decided which breed you would like to keep you need to find a reputable breeder who supplies birds at the age you desire. For children, you should aim to buy the birds as young as possible so that you have more chance of taming them. You can opt for day old chicks as these are the cheapest option but you will have the expense of rearing them yourself and the mortality rate of chicks is higher than that of adult birds.
Adult birds are more costly but you will be able to see exactly what you are getting in terms of looks and size. Adults can be more challenging to tame than youngsters and will need more patience on your part to get them used to you.
Taming
Moving chickens from one place to another can be very stressful for the birds. Leave them in their house for a couple of days to settle before starting to tame them. Approach them slowly and quietly, keeping low to the ground. Offer them some mixed seed in your hand held well away from your body to tempt them to come closer. Easily tamed breeds such as those mentioned above will readily take food from a hand, but all chickens have their own personality and some will be more trusting than others.
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