advice for buying breeding stock at shows

Date sort Score sort
cracked_egg

cracked_egg

Chirping
9 Years
Jun 2, 2010
198
3
99
So, I'm wanting to breed show quality chickens, I have a breed picked out, I'm trying to educate myself about the breed, etc.

I plan to buy some chicks at the Ohio Nationals in November (and possible via internet)....

What should I know before hand? You breeders out there, if you had to start over again what would you do different when selecting stock? What should be a red flag? Would you invest in started pair/trio or just get chicks and cull later? What is a better investment?

Any advice is welcome! I want to be as educated as possible before I go pick out chicks!!!

ANY and all advice from personal experiences is welcome...
 
Quote:
First, if you dont fully 100% trust the seller, walk away. Don't feel pressured into buying anything, if they try to pressure you, walk away.

Before you go to the show, find the standard for the breed and study it, even bring it with you, so you know what your looking for.

If the birds look sickly, do NOT purchase them. Any crusting around the eyes, nose, discharge from that area, swollen around the eyes, etc. Leave the birds there. Best to purchase 2 pairs from 2 different breeders. That way you have 2 different lines to work with and you have an extra rooster incase you lose a rooster from a predator, etc. If you only purchase a pair or trio and the rooster dies, you have no way of breeding them.
 
Learn the standard commit it to memory! Then talk to other people and find out who they think the best breeders are. Go to the shows and look at the birds ask about the birds for sale as well. An amazing breeder could be selling crappy birds so really look over the birds your thinking of buying. Invest in started pairs or trios started birds are generally the better birds the breeder was considering keeping for breeding stock not birds with obvious faults.

Good Luck,
Henry
 
I don't ever remember chicks for sale at the Ohio National, There will be lots of young started fowl and adult fowl. What breed are you planning on starting with ?
 
My advice is:

Don't buy chicks or eggs, in particular in November- that should be your first red flag. Quality breeders don't sell chicks or eggs except under rare circumstances.

You can study the standard all you want ( and you should) but there is nothing like working with the birds and studying them at a show with breeders around to discuss what is long -tall - deep-scant-etc. Don't buy them at your first show if you help it, but I would understand if you did.

Try to get someone to help you look at the birds that doesn't own them. This maybe hard but you may just ask some one around the Rock isle in the show- what do you think about those Partridge Rocks of Don H's.

Try to look at the birds when the owner is not around, less pressure.

Do your homework not just on the birds but on the breeders selling them. If they are bantams join the ABA and study the Yearbook, it will list all the winners and the ads will help. Pretty much the same with the APA for large fowl but they don't list the winners like the ABA does but they do list peoples points and you can study the ads.

Ask a long time (20+ years) exhibitor who they would buy from if they wanted a certain breed. I may not own any white rock bantams but if I was going to buy some I know who I would get them from.

Have a plan- nothing ticks me off more than someone who calls or e-mails me and it goes like this- Got any birds for sale? ( yes what are you looking for) What do you have? Can you send me a list with prices and pictures of what you have for sale. At this point I politely inform them that I am not Wal-Mart and no longer have anything for sale.
If someone calls and says that they are looking for a breeding trio of BB Red Moderns, I will do what I can to help them out. Even if I don't necessarily have something for sale.

If I had to start over what would I do? I did start over 10 years ago after a 5 year layoff. --- Buy the best birds money can buy from the best breeder you can find. Life is too short to work with crap. Build cages and pens twice as big as you think you will need them. Get only 2 breeds and 2 varieties at most. Raise and many chicks as you can and only keep a few after grown. Go to as many shows and make as many friends as you can. Don't get sad when you lose ( for more than 5 minutes) and don't get full of yourself if you win a ribbon or something.

OK, I am thru
Bob
 
I would think a show is a good place to make some contacts with breeders that you may later recontact.... but not necessarily buy birds...Shows can be a stressful period for birds and can potentially expose them to infections or parasites....JMO...but I would just as soon pick up birds directly from the breeder/showman without the show stop included...I don't sell chicks or eggs only because I wouldn't want to sell You or Anyone SQ birds when really you were gettingPotentially SQ birds...its hard to tell what the adult bird will look like through the shell and chicks aren't developed enough to judge either...If you wanted commercial birds eggs or chicks would be the way to go...again JMO
 
Quote:
I HIGHLY disagree with this statement.

Of course you do, you are in the egg selling business

Then the same goes for other quality breeders who also sell their eggs. There are many many, quality breeders out there who also sell excess eggs that they don't have room to incubate, or enough space to care for more chicks etc. Any money I do make from selling their eggs, goes directly back into the birds (food, bedding, etc). I find your statement very RUDE and ignorant! Plus, its much easier for me too sell hatching eggs, rather than to sell and ship live birds.

If you dont want to sell your eggs, I could care less, but dont go making generalized statements that every breeder who sells eggs is not a quality breeder. That is just wrong.
 
Last edited:
Thanks guys!! My breed is Wyandotte, and I'd like to raise the SL, SP and columbian...

I was told there are sale pens at nationals. I dont know if they mentioned whether they'd be chicks or not? Your right on the disease issue, but I assumed most show people at a higher level are careful about not bringing sick birds to a show..?

So I'm better off spending money on started birds? What should I expect to spend for a trio? I did go to a local show and the judge was AWESOME! He went over all the wyandottes there with me to show what was bad and good. Obviously he isn't a breeder but I thought it was a good start!!!

If I get two pairs (or trios) how do I avoid rooster issues?? I was planning to only "breed" when I needed too and keep selected hens away from all roos in a dog run until ready to breed (I have 3 4x14 dog runs along with a 12x12 dog run... The runs are set up in the barn, no dogs in them...) So that was my solution to having one coop but a bunch of varieties... Then I was going to convert another stall so I'd have a grow out pen, and that one is 12x24 mare and colt stall, right next to current coop....
 

Similar threads

S
    • Like
    • Love
Feedback on breed selection for 1st timer
2
Replies
13
Views
2K
Erkaderka
Erkaderka
HoneyBeeHomestead
Breeding questions from an aspiring breeder
Replies
8
Views
985
HoneyBeeHomestead
HoneyBeeHomestead
athomas718
Clan Spiral breeding question
Replies
1
Views
499
bentlema
B
P
Rooster aggression by breed - Hatchery stock
2
Replies
15
Views
3K
Rare
Rare
newchickychick
    • Like
Newbie question - frizzle x frizzle carrier?
Replies
5
Views
270
chickajuju
C

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom