One of my goals for this year is to build a chicken coop and get a few chickens. I'd like to start out with 8 or 10 good egg laying beginner chickens. I've done a little bit of research, and right now I'm leaning toward Plymouth Rock. From what I've read, they are good a good natured breed, which is good, because we have kids. They are also pretty tolerant of both heat and cold. They are good layers, and they have pretty good meat. We live in northeast Arkansas, where summers get into the upper 90's and occasionally lower 100's Fahrenheit; winters have occasional nights in the teens or sometimes below freezing. Space won't be an issue; I plan on giving them plenty of room to roam.

Plymouth Rock Rooster

By Kevin Prichard Photagraphy

Image Credit

Does anyone have any experience with this particular breed? What do you think about them? Keep in mind, this will be our first foray into keeping chickens.

Also, what do you feed your chickens? How much and how often?

Finally, I think that I would like to have a mobile chicken coop, but I would like for them to be secured in some sort of fence when they're outside to keep them protected from predators. Is there a way to combine those two features?

Any and all advice is greatly appreciated!