Brahma selling descriptions?

[Mosey2003]

He says the birds are all good quality and come from a winning line.

Your specific chicks you're selling, he's seen them? If so, then go ahead and list them that way.

I'm just saying, coming from show lines in chickens means less than in some other animals, as you still get a wide range of individuals.

 

[sourland]

Your birds are flat out strikingly gorgeous. I don't know what the market will stand in Ireland, but to me they seem underpriced. 'Show Quality' is in the eye of and to be determined by the person doing the purchasing. In most instances if someone is looking for 'show quality' they know what they need - needless to say kids would be another story.

 

[Mosey2003]

To be clear, I'm not saying they aren't beautiful birds and aren't necessarily show quality individuals. And it very well may be different in Ireland. Just saying how I've seen show breeders typically list birds for sale.

 

[aart]

He says the birds are all good quality and come from a winning line.

Of course he did...but he may be selling his 'culls', nice birds but may be lacking.
Buyer beware...anyone can all themselves a 'breeder' and 'show winning'.
Sorry, I am a skeptic, but have been duped myself and seen many other stories of less than honest sellers.

 

[PirateGirl]

I agree, with others, from show quality lines you could have show quality birds, breeder quality birds, and pet quality birds. Birds could hatch with a flaw in color pattern or a comb that isn't perfect or other flaw (or recessive trait) that does not meet the SOP for some reason. Keeping this in mind, if you wait until the birds are older to sell them, it will be more apparent which ones are truly show quality and you will be able to charge more for them. The downside is that by this point you may have spent considerable resources raising others from the same hatch that cannot fetch as high a price. It may be nice to sell at different stages of development for different prices. You could sell day old straight run chicks at a relatively low price and the buyer would be taking a gamble on how well they will show, you could sell others at a few weeks old where sex is more obvious and any flaws may be a bit more obvious at a slightly higher price (in particular I think of those in 4H that are just getting into showing where actually raising the bird is an important part of the process), and then you can have older birds still that sell at an even higher price if they are the best example of the SOP (a big advantage of this is that you can keep the best for your future breeder stock at this point). Just some things to think about. Hopefully others that breed for show can advise if selling at a certain age is more advisable/profitable than others.

 

[Mosey2003]

I agree, with others, from show quality lines you could have show quality birds, breeder quality birds, and pet quality birds. Birds could hatch with a flaw in color pattern or a comb that isn't perfect or other flaw (or recessive trait) that does not meet the SOP for some reason. Keeping this in mind, if you wait until the birds are older to sell them, it will be more apparent which ones are truly show quality and you will be able to charge more for them. The downside is that by this point you may have spent considerable resources raising others from the same hatch that cannot fetch as high a price. It may be nice to sell at different stages of development for different prices. You could sell day old straight run chicks at a relatively low price and the buyer would be taking a gamble on how well they will show, you could sell others at a few weeks old where sex is more obvious and any flaws may be a bit more obvious at a slightly higher price (in particular I think of those in 4H that are just getting into showing where actually raising the bird is an important part of the process), and then you can have older birds still that sell at an even higher price if they are the best example of the SOP (a big advantage of this is that you can keep the best for your future breeder stock at this point). Just some things to think about. Hopefully others that breed for show can advise if selling at a certain age is more advisable/profitable than others.

Agreed. The 4H angle probably only applies in the US though, and the OP is in Ireland. From what I can tell, 4H kids actually need their chicks to be hatched as close as possible to January 1st in order to show well in the summer. I guess there's a rule that they have to be that year's hatch? And they also typically have to have their birds at a certain time, say before March (I don't know the actual dates) so the 4H kids are the ones that will be buying batches of day old chicks.

 

[PirateGirl]

Agreed. The 4H angle probably only applies in the US though, and the OP is in Ireland. From what I can tell, 4H kids actually need their chicks to be hatched as close as possible to January 1st in order to show well in the summer. I guess there's a rule that they have to be that year's hatch? And they also typically have to have their birds at a certain time, say before March (I don't know the actual dates) so the 4H kids are the ones that will be buying batches of day old chicks.

Ah, yes, I don't know if there is a 4H equivalent in Ireland! I just remember that when I was buying approximately 6 week old pullets from a breeder that there were 4H kids there with one of the breeders looking over various birds to select one that would be a good choice for them to raise and show. I guess at that age it may be a bit more obvious which birds would show better I have also seen others raise half a dozen birds or so and then pick the best one when it comes to show time. Two different approaches I suppose to purchasing a bird to one day show and be close to the SOP.

 

[PirateGirl]

See below ad for "show birds" I came across online today. I'm not saying this is the perfectly written ad, but I do like how it notes the best points of each bird, like where it mentions the ideal tail, ideal comb, etc. Also the fact that each bird for sale is described individually makes it seem like the owner/breeder knows what they are talking about and what traits are desirable and can help you pick which bird is best for you based on the the strengths and weaknesses of each individual bird. Even if you don't describe each bird individually in your ad, you could write a line that explains that you can help them pick the best bird for them by going over the strengths of each individual that is available.



"Are you in search of a show bird or simply a pet? If so, we have the birds for you!!

Bird #1: This bird is a high quality silkie. This bird has a beautiful medium sized crest and nice slick, short back. Her parents are very high quality and come from champion blood lines. Parents are in the first picture.$25

Bird #2: This is also a really nice silkie who has slick feathers that will do you well in the show. This girl has very feathery feet and ideal tail. Her parents come from Texas and have won many big shows. $20

Bird #3: This black neared feather legged silkie Bantom pullet has a ton of potential. Her crest is coming in nicely and has a ideal comb for a silkie Bantom. Her parents are the same as #1s and are in the 1st picture. $25"

 

[Mosey2003]

I do wish they had spelled bantam correctly That sort of thing bugs me, simple misspellings like that, or calling breeds the wrong name. I've seen Bard Rock and Dominecker rather often in ads around here, and I always wince. If someone is doing a search for those breeds, your ad won't even come up.

 

[PirateGirl]

I do wish they had spelled bantam correctly That sort of thing bugs me, simple misspellings like that, or calling breeds the wrong name. I've seen Bard Rock and Dominecker rather often in ads around here, and I always wince. If someone is doing a search for those breeds, your ad won't even come up.

I cringe at spelling errors in general, especially in something that is published. The newsletter at work kills me sometimes. With farm ads around here I like to think it's a case of English as a second language that is playing a part. All that aside, to the OP, please do make sure someone who is good at spelling proofreads all of your ads before you post them!