Lone Orpington in a flock of Brahmas - good or bad?

[A Swede in France]

Hi!

Low stakes question - I'm usually here when there is an emergency so this feels nice for a change

I've got space for two new girls in my flock of big breeds. The four current members are all brahma of different colours, including one rooster. One of the new girls will be a buff cochin because hubby loves them. They are super hard to get where I am (south of France) and I don't want two of the same colour, so looking for another beauty to integrate together with the Cochin.

Enter the gold laced Orpington! Pretty! And I like chicken eye candy I've never even seen an Orpington in real life, and I'm worried that she'll feel out of place and small considering the company.

What do you say - will a single Orpington be happy in a flock of giants, or would she risk being bullied? Edit for clarity - she would arrive together with the buff cochin so they'd be new and integrate together, not alone.

They are smaller, right?

I have another mixed flock with huge size differences, but there nobody stands out because they are all different. And the biggest hen is definitely the boss lady. So what I'm worrying about is a situation where one hen is smaller than the rest.

Sometimes I also wonder if they are happier with at least one of their own breed around. I mean, they all speak differently... Do they understand each other? What do you think?

Photo of their future flock mates for your pleasure

 

[Amer]

Orpingtons are a very large breed but not as large as Brahmas. Normally I wouldn't see an issue with this but the Brahmas are already familiar with each other and the Orpington is a lone hen. Every situation is different so the integration could go fine but I would recommend adding two strange birds at the same time, preferably ones that are familiar with each other.

 

[A Swede in France]

Orpingtons are a very large breed but not as large as Brahmas. Normally I wouldn't see an issue with this but the Brahmas are already familiar with each other and the Orpington is a lone hen. Every situation is different so the integration could go fine but I would recommend adding two strange birds at the same time, preferably ones that are familiar with each other.

Yes absolutely, that's why I'm adding two and looking for a friend for the already confirmed buff cochin

Great that you don't see any breed based things to worry about, thanks for taking the time to respond!

 

[A Swede in France]

Orpingtons are a very large breed but not as large as Brahmas. Normally I wouldn't see an issue with this but the Brahmas are already familiar with each other and the Orpington is a lone hen. Every situation is different so the integration could go fine but I would recommend adding two strange birds at the same time, preferably ones that are familiar with each other.

And sorry, my original post was not clear!

 

[Amer]

You are going to have a gorgeous, fluffy flock!

 

[A Swede in France]

We love a good fluff!