Quote:
Originally Posted by
lonewolf308 
Charge what you feel is fair. In my area in VA I've saw them go from $10-$25. I found it was cheaper to just to buy the chicks, a heat lamp, and wait. If they pay more than $25 they're a sucker!
Well now it seems to me the sucker is the person raising LF birds to 5 - 6 months and then selling them for less than the feed it costs to raise them to that age. Not including cleaning and daily care simply make the loss even more so.
If as the second poster stated it's take approx. 40 #'s of feed to age to 5 mos. of age then the cost to me for Dumor is $12 in feed. Not including labor. So if I sold them for $10 , I'm more than $2 in the hole. Now I was born at night but it wasn't last night.
Add to the $12 one hour of labor per bird for all that time and you've got $19.25 (7.25 min wage) and it makes no sense to bother offering hens for $10.
So as you state it makes more sense to put in the labor and invest in a one time cost of equipment to raise them yourself. Provided you buy from a hatchery and have better odds of getting pullets.
Which is , I will admit, my whole point in beginning this discussion. Also so those who come to a anyone asking to buy a POL hen understand when they ask for $25, that they are not being a Sucker.