Why do people have Chickens?
Many here have them as ornamental pets. That is a wonderful thing because I believe that chickens are beautiful quirky birds.
Others serve that market.
Some raise them to strict standards of the breed searching for the perfect genetics and creating the perfect bird of a particular breed, which is fascinating and takes a lot of time and knowledge. Kudos to you.
Some raise them as a sustainable source of food, both egg and meat as well as beneficial creatures to the small homestead type farm.
What I would like to discuss, is a sharing of ideas to help others as well as myself solidify and maybe even expand their ideas on marketing my favorite bird.
I am first and foremost an entrepreneur. I have a used car lot, am a landlord, an apprentice auctioneer and a farmer. I have dabbled in many things, yet there are a few different things I/we can do to maximize the potential while still enjoying my birds.
Subject- Brood hens vs Incubation.
I have 80 layers more or less. I also raise meat birds (Freedom Rangers) in season. I don't know or have access to the genetics so to the Freedom Rangers so I have a nice big trailer built for brooding and transporting chickens and hogs replete with removeable tarp top, hooks for heat lamps, water buckets with nipples and a side door for easy access. So for me, incubation is relatively streamlined.
I have toyed with the idea of changing, or tweaking my chicken system geared more to profit.
Currently I have a hodgepodge of free ranged birds, some purebred, but hatchery birds, not heritage, or "fashionable" birds, and a bunch of hybrid 3,4,5 way plus crosses, that lay eggs.
I also raise the meat birds, and I raise heritage breed hogs. I am not certified organic, but I use no chemicals on the farm other than Sevin dust for fleas for the dogs. That said, I use regular feed, not non GMO.
Currently I market my eggs on Craigslist and Facebook. I live 80 miles from a city, where I grew up.
I get $2.00 per dozen and basically it pays for my gas to and from. I consider it a loss leader to introduce my other products. It is my belief that it is easier to upsell current buyers than to find new.
I have started to rethink my process though recently. I have thought about redoing my flock to a heritage breed. They still lay eggs and those eggs as a purebred heritage breed are much more valuable as hatching eggs and if I incubate, the chicks are more valuable but in the end they are still chickens.
Now to the subject of broody hen's. If I have several different breeds, how do I keep them separate, yet maintain the free range status? If I could keep the Buckeyes with the Buckeyes and the RIR with the RIR, I wouldn't have a problem. My issue is, the Buckeye Roo doesn't know that he is only supposed to cover in his own breed.
Thoughts?
Shawn
Many here have them as ornamental pets. That is a wonderful thing because I believe that chickens are beautiful quirky birds.
Others serve that market.
Some raise them to strict standards of the breed searching for the perfect genetics and creating the perfect bird of a particular breed, which is fascinating and takes a lot of time and knowledge. Kudos to you.
Some raise them as a sustainable source of food, both egg and meat as well as beneficial creatures to the small homestead type farm.
What I would like to discuss, is a sharing of ideas to help others as well as myself solidify and maybe even expand their ideas on marketing my favorite bird.
I am first and foremost an entrepreneur. I have a used car lot, am a landlord, an apprentice auctioneer and a farmer. I have dabbled in many things, yet there are a few different things I/we can do to maximize the potential while still enjoying my birds.
Subject- Brood hens vs Incubation.
I have 80 layers more or less. I also raise meat birds (Freedom Rangers) in season. I don't know or have access to the genetics so to the Freedom Rangers so I have a nice big trailer built for brooding and transporting chickens and hogs replete with removeable tarp top, hooks for heat lamps, water buckets with nipples and a side door for easy access. So for me, incubation is relatively streamlined.
I have toyed with the idea of changing, or tweaking my chicken system geared more to profit.
Currently I have a hodgepodge of free ranged birds, some purebred, but hatchery birds, not heritage, or "fashionable" birds, and a bunch of hybrid 3,4,5 way plus crosses, that lay eggs.
I also raise the meat birds, and I raise heritage breed hogs. I am not certified organic, but I use no chemicals on the farm other than Sevin dust for fleas for the dogs. That said, I use regular feed, not non GMO.
Currently I market my eggs on Craigslist and Facebook. I live 80 miles from a city, where I grew up.
I get $2.00 per dozen and basically it pays for my gas to and from. I consider it a loss leader to introduce my other products. It is my belief that it is easier to upsell current buyers than to find new.
I have started to rethink my process though recently. I have thought about redoing my flock to a heritage breed. They still lay eggs and those eggs as a purebred heritage breed are much more valuable as hatching eggs and if I incubate, the chicks are more valuable but in the end they are still chickens.
Now to the subject of broody hen's. If I have several different breeds, how do I keep them separate, yet maintain the free range status? If I could keep the Buckeyes with the Buckeyes and the RIR with the RIR, I wouldn't have a problem. My issue is, the Buckeye Roo doesn't know that he is only supposed to cover in his own breed.
Thoughts?
Shawn