"culls?" What to do with them?

[KatyTheChickenLady]

remember just because they aren't "good enough' for your breeding program doesn't mean they won't be a step up for someone elses!
I can't keill mine either although I am learning that I can take them to the butcher . . . some of them!
I sell most of my culls . . . I've given away a few roos, but most I sell . . . it pays for my chicken habit!

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

I try to sell, keep as an extra, or eat. Sometimes I give as a 4H or FFA project for someone.

 

[TK Poultry]

Quote:
i only breed swedish ducks real hot and heavy im just a mino in a huge pond with chickens but i just sell my ducklings to older people who want pets, 4H kids b/c mine arnt bad birds, egg "wanters" (yes there are people who love duck eggs) i WONT kill mine

 

[thecochincoop]

Quote:
I know what you mean. A lot of my culls are better than other's breeder's not trying to knock anyone either I just don't know what to do with the ones that are going to come out the wrong color and I know there will be a few. and given that it takes almost a year for a bantam cochin to reach show potential, and the fact that I have limited space, I'm not sure what to do with these birds that are just the wrong color etc. I can't really sell them because there is no way to make a fair price being as you don't know what they will look like. When I'm only breeding for 2 colors and get others what should I do with the ones that I don't want to raise? I have been thinking a lot on this lately and am going to have to figure out something by next spring

 

[horseyjess]

I do free adds on Craigslist. I dont have the heart to eat. I came close with one but I wasnt going to be the cook and the cook got sick so he was stuck on Craigslist also. I did take a few to the auction but I would rather give them on Craigs list where they have a chance of being a pet or a flock hubby. At the Auction there is no chance they are dinner plus then I have to go and make sure I get my cages and then somehow I get something I dont need but had desided I want lol!!

 

[thecochincoop]

The problem that I have with selling cheap or free is people breeding them for show or something. My culls may only be a color that I do not want to keep but other than that may be a very good sq bird of a different color. That is where I am running into problems. What to do with those birds. From a breeder standpoint, would that be the time to cull? I hate to needlesly cull, but I don't want them ending up being exploited either, if you understand where I am coming from. I would absolutely hate to give away a winner to the wrong hands and they go on just to make some money off of it. It sounds very confusing, but I am only breeding mottleds in blue and black and I'm sure I will get some solid birds which I do not have the space to raise. I can only finish out about 40-50 birds and can't use space to raise solid birds instead when a mottled could be in that space. Hopefully this makes sense and a more experienced breeder can chime in here.

I think this is also what silkielovr is trying to get at

 

[saddina]

I would absolutely hate to give away a winner to the wrong hands and they go on just to make some money off of it.

So sell them as pets, or to the asian markets (BTW nothing worng with eating silkies I've had quite a few). Frankly if they're culls you didn't have plans for them anyway, so you'd rather they'd be eaten instead of shown.

 

[thecochincoop]

Quote:
well the problem I have here is that my cochins take at least 6 months before you could even think about eating them or I would just do that, silkies are probably about the same. I am talking about getting rid of them as soon as I can tell color or sex, anywhere between 2-6 weeks old so you see no soup pot there unless you cooked them whole, which just doesn't sound very appetising

i dont' have the room to grow out that many birds and don't want to spend the extra money on feed either. so that is my dilemma

 

[TK Poultry]

i get that but my culls are culls so i just give them good homes and move on every once in a great while i get an update email

 

[thecochincoop]

I guess the problem that I'm having is that my culls are not going to be culls so to speak. There could be some very nice blue, black, or splash birds, but at 2 weeks old I have no way to make a price on them. If you do the basic math for me to have 30 pullets and 10 cockerels to finish out I will have to cull 20 mottled males not to mention the others which are correct in color, but not what I am after but still have the ability to produce the mottleds later. Were probably talking about at least 40 birds that I am not going to be finishing out and with the 50/50 ratio that is roughly 30 males and 10 females. Is this when culling comes in with breeders going for top quality? Or is this when you would start auctioning off straight run blue, black, and splashes and cull the extra mottled males?

Mainly I guess it will depend on demand at the time. I had to give away a LOT of roos this year because more hatched I think it was 60/40 instead.