Chicks and Record Keeping

[MarthaTheRooster]

Hey everyone! I've got to say I'm a huge sucker for record keeping, maybe it has something to do with me being an accountant, who knows. But anyway, I was wondering what, if any, types of records you keep for your chickens. I've kept all my receipts since starting and I keep them cataloged to record my costs but is there anything else that I should be recording?

 

[azygous]

Keeping flock records is definitely a good idea. How detailed it ends up being is entirely an individual choice.

I merely jot down on a calendar notable events such as a predator attack, the illness or death of a chicken, when I bring hope baby chicks to keep track of the ages of my chickens, how many eggs I got that day, etc. It's helpful to keep all these calendars to refer to when I need my memory refreshed.

 

[Raptorsgocluck]

I sell eggs to support my growing chicken habit. I keep track of notable events like azgous does and I also keep track of egg/rooster sales and how much I spend on food, coop materials, fencing...ECT. So I at least break even on my costs. Good thing the chickens pay for themselves or I'd be living in the coop with them!

 

[Ebony Rose]

I don't keep records on my chickens, as I don't incubate their eggs (yet). I do not keep financial records of any type on my birds as I consider them pets, I do however keep records on my quail EGGS.
I record: Who is laying, what do their eggs weigh on hatch day, what day I put the eggs into an incubator, noting when I need to lock down, what they weigh when candled on day 9 (can't tell anything other than developed or not as mine have big dark brown spots on the shells) and whether or not they developed. I note which eggs were not fertilized as I remove them from the incubator. What the eggs weigh on lockdown day, this helps me estimate if they'll have a sufficient air sac, again... can't safely cull anything because the eggs are so dark that I can't tell by candling. I still do the candling process (quickly) hoping that I get better at discerning information from the process, but for me the weighing process gives me more information than candling. (Could be a lack of experience issue). I also record which eggs hatched (and on what day) and which ended up being quitters, failed to pips, failed to thrive, etc. After a hatch is well overdue, the eggs that failed to hatch are eggtopsied to further my understanding of the hatching process and to determine the cause of failure, be it with my flock, the incubator, or myself.

 

[wild chick]

Good thing the chickens pay for themselves

LOL, mine don't! Do you raise a certain breed to sell? I'm raising mutts, but they are healthy good laying mutts! I don't actually keep track of the money, but I have a spreadsheet of hatch dates and death dates. I can only identify 6 of the layers eggs by hen out of 16, but I keep an egg spreadsheet also. The 6 hens with eggs I know are weighed, the rest just go under "brown".

 

[Abriana]

Probably I should start record keeping... but I don't.

 

[Raptorsgocluck]

LOL, mine don't! Do you raise a certain breed to sell? I'm raising mutts, but they are healthy good laying mutts! I don't actually keep track of the money, but I have a spreadsheet of hatch dates and death dates. I can only identify 6 of the layers eggs by hen out of 16, but I keep an egg spreadsheet also. The 6 hens with eggs I know are weighed, the rest just go under "brown".

Basically I raise the chickens for eggs and meat. So I have dual purpose breeds that I'm crossing to make good egg producers and good meat. The best roosters I sell locally to free range chicken owners as flock protectors. I kinda fell into that as people in my area are always looking for a good roo to take care of their free range hens. The roos that are either overly aggressive or docile I use for meat and make bone broth that I sell locally. There are so many ways to make money off the chickens besides just meat and eggs. End of the day it's not about making money, it's all to support the cost of my core flock which are essentially my pets. And also I'm trying to cross breed to sell or keep for myself ornamental pets. People pay really good money for a hen with a docile personality that is really unique (half red half black hen). I truly love doing all this and couldn't finally support it without raising the money from the flock paying for itself.

 

[aart]

Yes......Yes, I do keep records.
Have a spread sheet file with multiple sheets.
Some sheets are linked to track and calculate costs of feed vs egg sales.
Some to track other debits and credits.
Others are year to year population records, hatching/slaughtering.
Some are just general notes.

What you keep track of depends on what you need or want to keep track of.

 

[MarthaTheRooster]

Thank you all for all the helpful input! I've read a few other threads on this subject and I have decided to keep the following records: Income/Expenses, Egg Chart, Hatching/Breeding Records, Flock Inventory, and Equipment Inventory. Along with these I also set up a notebook/diary for the flock where everyday I will right down temps, behavioral changes, things that are out of the ordinary, or really just stuff I think will be important to note for future reference.

I downloaded some spreadsheets from online and adapted them for my own use and compiled them in a binder that I will record my data in regularly. If anyone wants to take a look at the way I've organized or created my spreadsheets I'd be more than happy to share! Thanks again, everyone!

 

[aart]

I downloaded some spreadsheets from online and adapted them for my own use and compiled them in a binder that I will record my data in regularly.

That is key, IMO.
Not sure why you use a binder, I just enter right into computer daily.