Do your birds "support" themselves?

[fowlsessed]

I'm just wondering if your birds pay for their own feed/care by selling them/their products? I love raising them, but boy can they really poke holes in the wallet!

 

[KrisH]

I'm just wondering if your birds pay for their own feed/care by selling them/their products? I love raising them, but boy can they really poke holes in the wallet!

Maybe in entertainment value, otherwise it's a big fat NO here

RobertH

 

[retlaw]

I'm just wondering if your birds pay for their own feed/care by selling them/their products? I love raising them, but boy can they really poke holes in the wallet!

That's the goal I am after to, besides a good clean food source.
Pasturing helps a lot with feed costs.
Buying grains in bulk direct from farms drops the cost huge.

Us humans think we are so much smarter then the other critters that we share this planet with.
Yet we are the only ones that pay to live here.

 

[fowlsessed]

Thanks for posting. Anyone with an encouraging experience? lol

 

[Scottingitup]

Thanks for posting. Anyone with an encouraging experience? lol

My turkeys come very close. If you count what I personally eat - I would say I break even. This does not count the investments in pens & incubator - I consider those my personal investment in my own food. I buy food in bulk directly from the mill and I do my best to range them as much as possible. Having any kind of oak tree is a big benefit in fall - my turkeys love acorns!

 

[fowlsessed]

Good to hear, thanks.

 

[beanmcnulty]

I am not sure yet if mine do, I can say, based on the calculations I've done the profit margin is the smallest on my heritage turkeys, compared to ranger broilers and free range layers (high production). And I charge a decent bit- $5 a pound. And as others have said saving anywhere you can is the thing to do, bulk feed, minimal management/labor, cheap and easy housing, minimizing losses. It's all a learning process!