Do breeders of fancy chickens get mad if the buyer doesn't end up showing them?

[AinaWGSD]

I don't breed them for other people I breed them for myself. I wouldn't come to you for a purebred dog anyways, I'm quite happy with my purebred miniature dachshunds.

I don't think Oregon Blues was implying that you would be breeding for others, or that you would actually come to them for a purebred dog. The point was that breeding chickens (and many other livestock species) is a lot different from breeding dogs or other companion animals. With companion animals, a breeder has a responsibility to know exactly what will happen to each animal they produce and to know what the buyer's plans for that animal are. With chickens, there is a lot less of a vested interest. Sure, you will have some breeders who only want their birds to go to other breeders who are striving to improve, or at least maintain, the breed. But for many, probably most, once the bird has left their property it is no longer their concern what the buyer plans to do with it. If they don't want their birds going to produce inferior or mixed breed chickens, then they simply don't sell them. There are many breeders who are working on project colors or breeds that kill every single one of their culls because they don't want poor quality birds running around out there with people claiming that they are their (the original breeder's) lines. Instead, to ensure that they maintain their reputation as producers of very high quality birds, they wait until they are satisfied with their projects before they offer them for sale. Some serious breeders working on project birds that don't want poor examples of the birds they are working on running around with their name on them will also cart them off to a local auction where no one is really that into breeding and showing and no one knows who's birds they are.

From what I can tell, most breeders that won't sell only pullets/hens and only sell birds as pairs or trios are doing so more because they have a need to get rid of roosters they don't want/need in their own breeding program than because they actually want the buyer to continue breeding the birds. The demand for pullets always far exceeds the demand for cockerels, so selling them as a pair or trio is one way to make sure that the boys sell too. It's not that they will be mad if you don't breed their birds, or if their birds go on to produce mixed breed chickens, but rather a convenient way of getting rid of extra boys.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Oh goodness yes, there are many, many breeders of heritage, show, and super high quality lines of birds. Many of them specialize in just a breed or two as this takes a lot of work and a lot of hatching. Since there are 30 or 40 different breeds, each with many fanciers, this equates to many breeders of quality reputation. Many times one finds them through BYC even, or word of mouth, emailing and asking questions of the right people, directories of breeders by each breed's national websites of fanciers and clubs, attending larger poultry shows and meeting people and again, making introductions and asking people. Very few advertise much, if at all.

 

[3riverschick]

I think you're right. The only one I've heard of is Greenfire Farms, and they have charged $399 for a pair. But that's when they've imported a breed new to the U.S. and there's literally only one flock of them, theirs.
Sandhill Preservation's birds top out, as far as I know, at $6, except for their Cuckoo Scots Dumpies, which are sold as a set of 15 (to encourage serious breeding only) plus 10 of another breed, for a total of $150. Twenty-five rare and/or heritage chickens for $150? Wow. Quite a range.
Are there others? I'm new to chickens, so my knowledge is extremely limited.
Odd as it sounds, I'm kind of glad that chickens are regaining popularity at a time of economic difficulty. We have very little money but have been able to buy chickens for $3 (hatchery) to $6 (breeder, his birds are actually descended from Greenfire Farms stock circa 2003) and have made do with cast-off building materials to house them. For a small flock, it is possible for chickenkeeping to be a very inexpensive hobby. I'm not a real breeder, so I have no idea of the costs involved in that.
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There's Edgar Mongold's Speckled Sussex for a breeding pair. But then, getting a chance to get them is well worth the money.
Like the other top lines of Speckled Sussex, they can save years of breeding up by starting at the top. So how much is that
worth in time and money? Well worth what Edgar's asking, I think!
Karen

 

[NYREDS]

Actually a lot of birds get sold for $100 each and up. It's not at all uncommon.

 

[Fred's Hens]

There's Edgar Mongold's Speckled Sussex for a breeding pair. But then, getting a chance to get them is well worth the money.
Like the other top lines of Speckled Sussex, they can save years of breeding up by starting at the top. So how much is that
worth in time and money? Well worth what Edgar's asking, I think!
Karen

This is a great point. If one had to hatch out hundreds and hundreds of chicks, and raise them and breed them for 5 years to attempt to achieve something nearly as good, what would that cost? Indeed.

Starting out, at the top, as you say, with a breeding trio of top birds?, or a few dozen hatching eggs from top birds?, or a half dozen chicks from top birds? Pretty cool and not all those options would break the bank. Still, these aren't mass produced birds. Most of the great birds I've inquired about are hatched in relatively small numbers. They often aren't hatched year 'round either, only a relatively short window of opportunity.

 

[aoxa]

I don't think there are that many breeders who fetch $100 a bird.  I dunno, but I doubt it.

I know someone that fetches $50 as a starting point for their juvenile silkies and it only goes up with quality - sometimes getting over $150.

$50 is for silkies that are not showable, but good form. These are for pullets. The roos start at $25 and only go up. He sells out right away.

 

[Fred's Hens]

I understand. I know of birds that have fetched $250. But not all breeders of quality stock can fetch that amount. I just didn't want to have the impression left that ALL quality birds were hopelessly expensive, that's all. I know of breeders selling very, very high quality stock, stock that within three generations of hatching and culling would/could produce SQ birds at reasonable prices, ie $30-$50 a bird. I also know that many top notch breeders offer hatching eggs for around $10 an egg.

Again, just didn't want the impression left out there that obtaining quality birds is so absurdly expensive that hatchery stock was the only way to go.

Now back to the OP's original question, I guess. Apologies if my comments created a diversion.

 

[aoxa]

I understand. I know of birds that have fetched $250.  But not all breeders of quality stock can fetch that amount. I just didn't want to have the impression left that ALL quality birds were hopelessly expensive, that's all.  I know of breeders selling very, very high quality stock, stock that within three generations of hatching and culling would/could produce SQ birds at reasonable prices, ie $30-$50 a bird.  I also know that many top notch breeders offer hatching eggs for around $10 an egg.  

Again, just didn't want the impression left out there that obtaining quality birds is so absurdly expensive that hatchery stock was the only way to go.  

Now back to the OP's original question, I guess.  Apologies if my comments created a diversion.

Oh sorry, didn't think of it that way I have bought some very good birds for $10 as well. Not all are that costly.

On to the subject the OP was discussing:

Yeah.. I've had someone shoot me down when I wanted just a hen.. They wanted to know what was the point if you didn't breed them. :/

 

[WarrenHound]

its different with chickens than with animals like cats and dogs.

if you did that to a reputable show breeder of cats or dogs or horses then yes they would get mad they would also have a contract that would be a royal smack down...and they ALWAYS know.

i have a dog i bought from a reputable breeder out of state before he was born i had to read and agree to a 6page contract that said that if i ever had to give him up he would go back to the breeder and if he was bred without a CH title to an unapproved female i would pay 1,500 for each pup born of the transgression. dog show communities are pretty open ended everyone knows everyone elses dirty secrets. a woman in alaska tried to break a contract by both altering and dumping her dog at a shelter and withen 1 day people in alaska knew and ad reported it to the breeder who went there to collect the dog and sue for breach of contract.

its not the same with chickens because they are still deemed more livestock than pets and they can be eaten by man or beast. so a mixed flock isnt exactly unacceptable ..

in both pets and livestock however mixes generally do not fetch as much because you don't know really what characteristics you are getting thats like a pugXbeagle that has the pugs breathing problems and the beagles desire to run..bad combination doesnt always happen but does with that mix and many others...corgi to dachsund both have back problems and would just make for more or a corgi to a basset ... you dont know if it will be better or worse or what characteristics the litter will have or the chicks. i have a mixed flock of chickens but i have a general idea of what i will get.

just put a turken Xsilkie in the incubator with my purebred bantam cochin eggs and amerucana and orpington eggs i plan to separate my cochins from the others for breeding purposes .
no contract from the breeder? then they have no right to get mad if you cross the birds you bought it all rights are yours

actually knew a woman that bred birds for show and the culls were fed to her dogs and snakes

 

[normanack]

actually knew a woman that bred birds for show and the culls were fed to her dogs and snakes

On the one hand, they are being useful as food, not so different than a chicken dinner.

On the other hand, blurgh. I hope they were humanely killed first.

And, blurgh.