cost of your birds

[smom1976]

Ok so everyone keeps saying that it cost more to have birds than to buy eggs in the store..

I have found this not the case.

I have 15 layers. I feed them a giant scoop of food a day and put in lots of scraps and weeds and let them free range when I can watch them..

We eat as many eggs as we can and I sell the rest for $2 a dozen just to friends we end up selling about 5-6 doz a week..

I buy a 50 lb bag of food about every 3-4 weeks at $11 a bag and I use my egg money for that.. so my chickens are basicly free.

has anyone else found this the case?

 

[JessaLynn]

Yeah I do! I either break even or make alittle bit.

 

[MoodyChicken]

My birds sure don't pay for themselves! But I raise low-producing ornamental breeds and I breed for type not production. So that's my fault! Though... this year they may finally break even at least. I'm raising a new variety that's rare and sells for a lot. Blue Golden Duckwing Old English... saw a single bird sell for $800 once! There's only one breeder that I know of on the west coast, and now I'm the second. They're really beautiful.

 

[ScrambledAcresFarm]

My chickens are paying for themselves! I bought 1 as a chick for $1.00, 1 for $10.00, 3 for $8.00 each and 10 were free! I have $35.00 in 15 hens! I buy 100lbs of feed for $16.00 and it last a month! I get 8~11 eggs per day! One hen is broody. That's around 20 dozen per month. I use about 2 dozen per week at home and sell the other 11 or 12 doz for $1.00 each! That gives me $11 or $12 in sales. Store bought eggs here are $1.29 per dozen. That adds up to about $26.00 worth of eggs. All in all I'm paying .50 cents per dozen and my feed is payed for!

 

[sonew123]

thats what my goals are-to collect enough $ just to support my hygely growing habit..

 

[briteday]

Yes, my chickens pay for there upkeep (except for initial costs like coops and feeders) and a little bit more. However, DD who takes care of the egg business reminds me when we eat an egg that it could be part of the profits! So I agreed to let her have a few silkies just so we can have some puny eggs to eat...

 

[digitS']

Selling eggs? No, I haven't done that in over 20 years.

But, over the Winter I figured out what the eggs were costing me from my laying hens. I prorated the expense of their price/chick and feed costs getting them to point-of-lay over their first laying season. Then I added in the cost of their daily ration of feed. (No cost for leftovers from the kitchen.) Their eggs were costing me $1.95/dozen.

Since then, I've gone to a different feed store. I've reduced their commercial feed costs by 20%! So, it looks like I've got the price quite a bit below $2/dozen now

.

Steve

 

[montcapu]

I don't really sell my eggs, but do have neighbors who I share with, and they buy a bag of feed for me once a month, so in retrospect I haven;t bought feed for them for quite awhile, so I guess I am breaking even

 

[Tala]

digitS' :

Selling eggs? No, I haven't done that in over 20 years.

But, over the Winter I figured out what the eggs were costing me from my laying hens. I prorated the expense of their price/chick and feed costs getting them to point-of-lay over their first laying season. Then I added in the cost of their daily ration of feed. (No cost for leftovers from the kitchen.) Their eggs were costing me $1.95/dozen.

Since then, I've gone to a different feed store. I've reduced their commercial feed costs by 20%! So, it looks like I've got the price quite a bit below $2/dozen now

.

Steve

I'm paying over $3/doz at the grocery store so if I can raise these babies to laying and still only be costing me $2/doz I'm saving money! YAY!

I doubt I'll be selling any eggs. My mom will take any extras off my hands. I'm not in this for profits, but breaking or saving a little is nice.​

 

[Judy]

My hens free range and eat very little of their layer feed. I don't have records, though. I probably buy 25 lbs a month, at about $6 a bag. I probably spend more on their treats....

On the other hand, I have 4 left, from a starter flock of 20 last spring. They do not produce enough eggs for my household and my son's household, which was the goal. So the new bunch are fenced with heavy gauge wire and electric. No way that will pay for itself in a year, but maybe over the long run.... and we bought straight run, and will eat most of the roos. Plan is to have enough broodies and a few roos, and reproduce that way. Time will tell.