I'm not sure where exactly this kind of post would go, but I figure this may be a good place to start at least!
I'm new to chicken breeding, as in I've only been doing this for a couple years, and I was wondering how useful creating my own poultry selling website would be and what other people's experiences are with their own websites. I breed various colors of Silkie, two colors of Booted Bantam, Red Golden Pheasants, and several colors of Ringneck Dove. As I'm the only dove breeder within a 100 mile radius, selling the doves isn't that hard, but selling the chickens, especially the Booted Bantams, can be like pulling teeth. The chicks and their parents are of good quality, but it's just hard finding the right buyer. In the past I've been keeping the chicks until they're 8 weeks old, that way they don't need a heat lamp and the chances of them surviving are much better, but I'm going to be keeping them for only a week before selling them from now on. People don't want to pay the very small extra amount for an older chick, they'd rather buy week old chicks and potentially have half of them die. Which is fine with me, it means less feed to buy and less of a hassle! Besides, a lot of the people I've sold to and I've since talked to again have told me some or all of the chickens they bought from me died due to predation or whatever, so I suppose waiting until they're 8 weeks old doesn't pay off in the long run either, since people don't seem to know how to keep chickens alive. To sell my chickens, I've been primarily using craigslist, however I am very tired of dealing with the mostly less-than-intelligent people who respond to my ads on there. I don't ship my chickens due to the complications that can occur during shipping, not to mention for half of the year the temperatures are too hot here to easily transport live animals.
With that being said, I was hoping that maybe making a website will make things a bit easier. I'll be able to have one place where I can advertise all the birds I raise, though I'll likely still have to use primarily craigslist to sell them. I would also be able advertise this website, which may garner some buyers, and I'd also be able to upload care sheets. I've been asked before if I had some kind of site that tells new buyers how to care for the animals, especially the doves and pheasants, so I know that a website would be good for at least being able to direct my buyers to a place that I know has accurate care information. But, I'm still leery about making a website, since I know it'll take a while to get everything on it in order, so I wanted to know what other people have experienced with their own websites?
I'm new to chicken breeding, as in I've only been doing this for a couple years, and I was wondering how useful creating my own poultry selling website would be and what other people's experiences are with their own websites. I breed various colors of Silkie, two colors of Booted Bantam, Red Golden Pheasants, and several colors of Ringneck Dove. As I'm the only dove breeder within a 100 mile radius, selling the doves isn't that hard, but selling the chickens, especially the Booted Bantams, can be like pulling teeth. The chicks and their parents are of good quality, but it's just hard finding the right buyer. In the past I've been keeping the chicks until they're 8 weeks old, that way they don't need a heat lamp and the chances of them surviving are much better, but I'm going to be keeping them for only a week before selling them from now on. People don't want to pay the very small extra amount for an older chick, they'd rather buy week old chicks and potentially have half of them die. Which is fine with me, it means less feed to buy and less of a hassle! Besides, a lot of the people I've sold to and I've since talked to again have told me some or all of the chickens they bought from me died due to predation or whatever, so I suppose waiting until they're 8 weeks old doesn't pay off in the long run either, since people don't seem to know how to keep chickens alive. To sell my chickens, I've been primarily using craigslist, however I am very tired of dealing with the mostly less-than-intelligent people who respond to my ads on there. I don't ship my chickens due to the complications that can occur during shipping, not to mention for half of the year the temperatures are too hot here to easily transport live animals.
With that being said, I was hoping that maybe making a website will make things a bit easier. I'll be able to have one place where I can advertise all the birds I raise, though I'll likely still have to use primarily craigslist to sell them. I would also be able advertise this website, which may garner some buyers, and I'd also be able to upload care sheets. I've been asked before if I had some kind of site that tells new buyers how to care for the animals, especially the doves and pheasants, so I know that a website would be good for at least being able to direct my buyers to a place that I know has accurate care information. But, I'm still leery about making a website, since I know it'll take a while to get everything on it in order, so I wanted to know what other people have experienced with their own websites?
