Does anyone know this? Help.

[rancher hicks]

The hatchery near us charges $1 per week per bird added to the initial cost of the chick. So if the initial cost of the chick was $2.50, and you picked it up at 10 weeks, the cost of the bird would be $12.50.

We cheerfully paid the $1 per week because we are not able to raise chicks until they're ready to go in the coop. After looking at the costs I felt like that charge was very reasonable. If we'd wanted to wait longer, I would have happily paid more. I felt like I was basically paying someone to raise my birds to an age that was convenient for me...and you have to pay for convenience.

ETA: The hatchery is raising a fair number of chickens, so the cost is spread out. I'd say if you are only raising a few, then the cost would go up because the overall cost wouldn't be distributed as widely. It would depend on the actual cost of feed, electricity, and man-hours.

I did do a check of costs from hatcheries but only found one. That hatchery only had white leghorns, and red and black sexlinks. Which are all egg producers. They were $13.65 or thereabouts.

I agree with you it is not a bad price. Most of us we don't live near a hatchery. Also of course we can't get a discount on large quantities of feed. It goes without saying that the private breeder can not compete with a commercial hatchery. Also one is limited to hybrids from hatcheries, since hatcheries may or may not sell POL pure breeds. I didn't find any that sold pure breed POL.

 

[NCnarrator]

I did do a check of costs from hatcheries but only found one. That hatchery only had white leghorns, and red and black sexlinks. Which are all egg producers. They were $13.65 or thereabouts.

I agree with you it is not a bad price. Most of us we don't live near a hatchery. Also of course we can't get a discount on large quantities of feed. It goes without saying that the private breeder can not compete with a commercial hatchery. Also one is limited to hybrids from hatcheries, since hatcheries may or may not sell POL pure breeds. I didn't find any that sold pure breed POL.

I would expect your cost to be higher, especially since you're talking about hens that are ready to lay (as opposed to mine, who won't be laying for a bit yet ).

I would think that if the person asking is looking for hens that are ready to lay or are already laying, they would be willing to pay more. If we'd waited until our girls were over 20 weeks and ready to lay, we'd be paying close to $25 a bird, and that's at a hatchery where their cost is lower. (The hatchery we went to was not quite 2 hours away.) I think I'd say at least $25 per hen...and definitely more if the chickens are pure breeds instead of hybrids.

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Roughly half a bag of feed (approx 25lbs) to get them to 20 weeks is what I've found over the years. This is for most of the layer breeds. Point of lay birds in my area typically run in the $10-15 range.

 

[FireTigeris]

Roughly half a bag of feed (approx 25lbs) to get them to 20 weeks is what I've found over the years. This is for most of the layer breeds. Point of lay birds in my area typically run in the $10-15 range.

Really? is that fully pastured, partially pastured or coop-in-run combo?

I'm losing food...

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Coop and yard or tractored. Free-ranged would likely be a lot less feed if the range was any good.

This is a rough estimate on my part and includes any wastage which is inevitable in my experience. I can minimize it, but I've never yet been able to completely eliminate it.

Just sold a small flock of layers at the swap last weekend for $8.00 each, but they'd been laying since last September and I really needed them gone. If I'd had the time/space to hold onto them I'd have asked $10 each. For quality point of lay pullets I'd ask $15 each in my area.

I have been coming to the conclusion these last couple of years that for non-show stock or rarities then I'm going to ask at least double my feed costs. Except for common roosters.

 

[FireTigeris]

Thanks

 

[lonewolf308]

Just think it's funny how you add in labor and equipment costs like these are the only two chickens you are raising. Seems to me like you're just trying to pass the buck to someone else who seems to be in need of a couple chickens? I understand the food cost but anything else is stretching it when you clearly are raising other chickens who you "labor" and "provide" for. Charge what you want but we do it a little different tin the south.

 

[FireTigeris]

Not true if someone wants 7-10 of a specific cross, like Ameraucana*Marans, ect and I am not hatching or brooding anyway the electricity for the chicks counts in full, if I am already hatching or brooding it is a % of the total electricity... perhaps 25%.

I also have to collect eggs differently and pick out the eggs wanted, store them differently, mark them and do all the work.

Now electricity for a Styrofoam incubator is not that much, neither is the brooder light... but if it's not for me and you can't or won't do it yourself my time/electricity is worth something.

 

[rancher hicks]

Well it seems to me that even if you based your price on feed and your buying retail then to sell for $15 means you've cared for and labored for 49 cents. Hardly worth the effort. Even if I sold every hen in the coop it still would be a waste of my time and money. I'm not sure how many times others clean in the 5 months up to POL but here that's alot of effort and time.

That doesn't include the time spent making sure things hatch out ok. Monitoring humidity and temp for 21 - 23 days.

Now as for the 250 watt bulb? I don't know how electricity prices are in the south but here they aren't cheap. I don't run a big farm and I only hatch for myself as a rule.

Now Lonewolf, I know a woman in the South (Alabama) and she gets what she wants for her silkies and it's not $15. As for "needing", chickens? No one needs chickens, IMO. Perhaps things are cheaper in Virginia? But I have received more than one call asking for POL hens. I could probably sell a dozen easy. At least if I charged $8 which I won't. 2 hens here and 2 hens there and it adds up.

Lest you think I'm a total skin flint, I have given away more than I've sold, but I am not about to give away a hen who is just coming into her season. Anything in year two and I just give them away.

 

[LunaticCafe]

In your place, I'd be asking myself a number of questions:

Do I have excess chickens, or will selling two leave me with less than I really wanted? If the first, I'd sell for a little more than my cost to raise them. If the second, I'd add enough money to make the transaction worthwhile to me. If this is more than the chickens are worth to the buyer, then they are welcome to go elsewhere.

Is this a friend, whom I would like to oblige, or an acquaintance who heard I have chickens? If the first, the price will be my cost. Or maybe free, if the friend has done nice things for me in the past. If the second, again the price will be what that chicken is worth to me, especially since if I sell too cheap I may have the buyer's friends trying to get the same deal.

In calculating the cost to raise the two chickens, I'd include anticipated losses in the equation. For instance, say I buy 25 chicks, but know I'll likely lose one or two by the time everyone is full grown. I'd take the cost of the 25 chicks, plus the cost of feed to raise them all to point of lay, then divide by 23 (expected number of grown hens) to get the cost per hen. Then I'd add maybe 10% to cover the cost of other supplies, such as electricity, bedding, etc. That would be my minimum charge.

I've never had anyone try to buy chickens from me, but I work with computers, and for years have dealt with people who want to buy computers, computer parts, or have me fix their computers. I long ago learned to charge a price that didn't leave me feeling taken advantage of. Some people are quite happy to pay my prices and thank me for dealing with them; others are surprised that I charge anything, and pass on the deal. I'm OK either way; either I have completed a fair transaction, or I still have my equipment and time.