Our New ISA Chickens at Ocoee Farm
If you’ve ever thought about raising your own backyard hens, ISA Brown chickens are one of the best breeds to start with. Known for their gentle personalities and impressive egg production, these friendly hens lay beautiful farm-fresh brown eggs almost daily. They’re hardy, low-maintenance, and perfectly suited to small farms or family coops.
This week, we welcomed a few new residents to Ocoee Farm: a small flock of ISA Brown chickens, gifted to us by our dear friend Matt before he moved back to New Orleans. Matt lived just down the road from our farm for years, and when he told us he was relocating, we were more than happy to give his hens a new home. They’ve settled in beautifully, and already, they’ve begun rewarding us with the most gorgeous brown eggs.
ISA Browns are a hybrid breed, originally developed in France in the 1970s. The name “ISA” comes from the company that created them, Institut de Sélection Animale, which specialized in selective breeding to produce hens known for their remarkable egg-laying abilities. These hens are calm, gentle, and incredibly hardy, traits that make them a favorite among small farms and backyard flocks alike.
Our new ISAs are, indeed, all hens. They have lovely reddish-brown feathers with hints of cream on their tails and necks, and they’re friendly enough to wander right up to us when we walk into the coop. They’re known to start laying earlier than many other breeds, and it shows: each morning, we collect an array of rich brown eggs that range in shade from soft tan to deep chestnut.
The eggs themselves are one of the reasons so many people love this breed. ISA hens are famously prolific layers—often producing around 300 eggs per year—and the shells are thick and strong. The yolks are a beautiful golden hue, and they make for the fluffiest scrambled eggs and the most decadent weekend pancakes.
There’s something deeply satisfying about collecting eggs still warm from the nest boxes and knowing exactly where your food comes from. These ISA hens have already brought so much charm and life to our mornings, and, of course, to our breakfasts.
And, every time we walk out to the coop, we think of Matt. We love knowing that a little piece of him is still here on the farm, clucking contentedly in the sunshine. It feels like he never really left, just passed along a bit of his good care to be carried on here at Ocoee.
Caring for ISA Chickens
ISA Browns are low-maintenance, making them a wonderful choice for both beginners and experienced chicken keepers. Here are a few of the simple routines that keep ours healthy and happy:
1. Fresh Feed and Water:
We feed our hens a balanced layer pellet designed for egg production, supplemented with vegetable scraps and a bit of scratch grain as a treat. Fresh, clean water is essential—and in the summer months, we make sure to refill their waterers twice a day.
2. Clean Nesting Boxes:
Keeping the nesting boxes tidy helps prevent dirt and bacteria from transferring to the eggs. We use straw as bedding and change them out regularly to keep things fresh and dry.
3. Daily Egg Collection:
Collecting eggs at least once a day (and twice during peak laying season) keeps them clean and discourages hens from developing the habit of egg-eating. We store ours unwashed at room temperature or refrigerate them after a gentle cleaning if needed.
4. Safe Space to Roam:
ISA hens enjoy stretching their wings and exploring. A secure, enclosed outdoor run gives them space to forage safely away from predators, while also providing plenty of sunshine and fresh air.
5. Seasonal Care:
These hens handle a variety of climates well, but we add extra straw and wood chips in winter for insulation and provide shade and cool water during the hotter months. A little attention to comfort goes a long way toward steady egg production year-round.
PJ made these boxes for our chicken coop out of leftover wood we had in our storage building
There’s definitely a peacefulness about tending to these gentle little creatures each day. They remind us that farm life, at its best, is about small, steady rhythms (feed, water, collect, repeat) and the quiet rewards that come from caring for something simple and good.