Does it not balance out?

[Finnie]

. Sitting in front of tractor supply thinking it was all a waste of time and perhaps I should just give it up

I guess if you don’t get enjoyment out of it, whether or not it’s profitable, you don’t have to keep doing it. It is work, after all, and monetary returns aren’t always enough to make it worthwhile.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Let them free roam and production dropped.

This is a reality for me as well.. EVEN with feed available.. it's like they're less focused on making eggs or something. Happier more relaxed hens does NOT equal more eggs in MY experience.

Noting that it's always key to check for any hidden nest when production drops after allowed to roam. The molting mentioned happens at a certain age.. but even just decreased daylight can also reduce production.. and most birds lay gang busters in the beginning leveling off more in line according to their genetics as they mature. To combat these lulls during winter, I add some new pullets every spring. Always watching for any possible egg thieves like rats, snakes, crows, or worse one of your own birds turning a happy accident into a nasty habit.. but even my dogs have collected eggs.. and my pigs found and raided one hidden nest before me. *Usually* signs can be seen though.. like other gross eggs with yellow staining or wet nests, yellow crust on the head feathers or comb, egg shells left behind, etc.

if I fed them as much as they want

For most birds this will be under .25# per day.. Mine average .20# per day of flock raiser with oyster shell on the side free choice. With less than 90, it's a lot more doable. So sorry for your losses!

You are correct they still have a limited home range no matter how large your property is when they are homed to a roost site.

Easter Eggers, AmrerIcana.. are some of the most wide and active foragers I've kept out of dozens of breeds.. and the least content to stay contained.. giving the brightest or darkest (depending on your perception) yolks of all the birds.

Silkies.. also did just fine at my place, only 1 acre fenced and inhabited the whole thing.. but birds are creatures of habit and changing it up on them is mostly a disservice.. some will quickly adjust but others, Silkies in particular do not adjust well to change.. as described by others they are a tad handicapped or not super bright. I never lost one to predators free ranging when I kept them.. I lost a couple chicks they raised. Aerial predators being my biggest challenge. Most mine were overly broody.. BUT produced 4 eggs a week easily and mini molts had WHILE brooding the chicks and not having full blown molts every year made up the difference in eggs reduced by the broodiness and IS the ONE place Silkies shined. Plus heat saving if you raise your own chicks. However, eggs at about half size take twice as many.. no biggie for those who enjoy the birds but more of a pain for those who just want eggs. BTW, it was SILKIE eggs I could sell at $65/dozen and chicks for $10 each straight run chick.. all day long as fast as I could hatch them in MY location. We did have a FEW fantastic hens. Chicks raised by a broody mum will learn superior foraging skills earlier in life as well as predator wariness. Too broody and too stupid, not the breed I love and though I COULD make money hand over fist on them.. they HAD to go!

I mostly just wanted opinions on whether keeping them was cost effective for egg return. Not trying to profit, just wanted it to balance out feed $ vs store eggs $ otherwise unless you just love chickens I don't see a point.

It is truly not cost effective.. in any way shape or farm if you aren't enjoying and considering the other aspects/benefits mentioned already to keep chickens just for eggs.. and as noted by another poster.. switching breeds would have definite impact.. a blue egg layer like EE cannot really lay more than 3-4 eggs per week once mature. While a Leghorn will lay larger eggs and more of them for about the same feed.

I think it would be cheaper in finacial and stress terms to find a local free range egg producer.

Craigslist farm and garden section usually has many offerings. My local feed stores offer/take local eggs at $4/dozen. Super market. pasture raised eggs.. cost me $6 dozen last week.. as this years pullets, 4 of them.. cared not how carefully I planned!

I agree and think life is too short.. if you can find a source you and you're significant other are content with then going that route might be your best option!

 

[mcdze]

pends on what you want out of keeping animals .. for me its about being able to sustain myself in an extended crisis and that could be external or internal so to speak .. same with gardening .. unless you 'practice' and experiment you can NOT make it work .. you cant just throw chickens in the woods and expect eggs lol you cant throw seeds in the ground and expect a garden either... you have to find out what is gonna work .. that said with a meager 4-5 hens laying for me and giving alot of eggs away i still toss a big bucket of them to the crows over the fence once in awhile ... you could live off the meat to if you were savvy enough to keep roosters and keep the flock replenished, but you have to figure out how to be set up .. that said, an unccoperative and untrained rooster can keep a flock of hens right around the coop waiting for a handout .. in his mind he's the provider and has everything figured out .. if thats the case shoot him and get a new one and train him right ..

 

[RobertaD1]

I could only read so far before the many distractions at home kept me from going further.... but, have you thought about EGG producing breeds? Has someone mentioned that? The breeds you have are not what I would put my money into if I wanted eggs....
Go get a dozen sex links birds, any color, and watch the eggs roll in! But you will have a surplus that you can sell, and help pay for layer rations!
No offense, this is kinda easy. Your just feeding the wrong type of girls for surplus production.
When I want eggs, I get golden comets. Done

 

[RobertaD1]

Oh.. and dont get me wrong, I think you have noble intentions with wanting them to find their own food but, today domesticated fowl are just that.... domesticated. Fill the feeder and with the sex links, enjoy your eggs. Even grain feed beef is provided with necessary supplements to provide the right nutrition.

 

[TropicalBabies]

I don't know why but this is one of the more interesting threads I have read in awhile. Think it is all of the awesome responses. Bravo all! I hesitate to put my 2 cents in but hey, I often just can't shut up.
My husband has complained about many things chicken through the years and I have tried to adjust accordingly. Usually I just make him a nice meal and hope he forgets his legit complaint... but other times I have to try to find a solution. Cost is a big one. I have sold eggs to the extent that we had none for ourselves. People are crazy for eggs and it is easy to sell but can the girls keep up to the feed ratio and consistently? Eh, maybe... but probably not. So, I decided I should sell chicks especially during this trying time (i'm on an island and things can get a little dicey) that almost worked out... I have A LOT of roosters now. And actually after all of the costs of building this and that and the other...
So, i'm, we, you- are invested past the point of giving up easily. The ONE thing that I did and noticed a big difference in cost is my feeder, and what I did to correct my feed $$$ issue has been done 10,000,000,00 time B4... more or less . I picked up some used 5 gallon water bottles and some 2" PVC fittings and made myself some feeders that were weatherproof and dove proof. I am flabbergasted at how much feed/money I have saved and how much time I have saved at feeding. It's a whole new ballgame. They have all day access to their feed- I cut my feed bill in half, and in Hawaii @ $20-$24 a 50lb bag that is a pretty good thing. Now I can spend all my time cleaning poop boards and taking photos of them.
For me it is a good thing I adore them and yes, therapy, entertainment, bug control... because that makes me willing to find a solution. This has not been a cost effective venture but the pay off has been great.

Above (the messy little 1/4 Silkie supermodel critter is smart enough to figure it out)- my sample feeder made out of used water bottle (still in use) I used a 2" 45 that they can get to the feed pretty easy.
Below- the 2" elbows and it is a little harder for the gang to get at but everyone is still pooping just fine. And this cost $7. from HD for the bottle and elbows $2.50? plus a fresh tube of Silicone... done. Yippee!!!

Whatever you chose to do- I hope you share your info so we can all become a little bit more wise. Aloha!

*** and I would not add the sunflower seeds. They are probably waiting around for those playing chicken jet eye mind tricks on you. Seeing who will give in first... let them earn their own bug treats YUM!
I have 32 chickens... and all are out eating grass and dirt 95% of the time.

 

[De Bauer]

We have a family near us that sells their eggs.. They are portable fenced free ranged.. They just recently increased the price per dozen last year after 14yrs from $2 to $2.50.. These would classify as jumbo eggs and are pasture raised.. The eggs are in a frig in a shed with a money slot box honor system.. Great living in the country where people still have morals..

They are certainly covering costs as its no charity. Now how much they are making per hr for their labor who knows but in terms of cash in out they are positive.. Not sure the retail $ in a store for eggs of this size and quality but it can not be under what we are paying.. As we are 35 mins from the nearest supermarket and they are 2 miles there is also fuel savings and 24hr convienence.. I bet they have over 50 reg customer.

The price and close location is what has delayed me having my own layers and doing meat birds first.

I do not think it could ever be cost effective if you are willing to buy mass produced reg eggs but compare to pasture raised organic is much more apples to apples.. Frankly I do not trust the FDA cert systems. Once big Corp got heavily involved in organic, pastured, antibiotic free etc IMO its all perverted from original intent. Anything a publicly traded company touches becomes profit at all costs.. So I would trust a homestead raised pasture layer produces higher quality than anything in a chain store.
.

 

[Folly's place]

Chain store eggs will be older, almost always, than home raised, although asking the seller would be helpful.
Big commercial companies do follow the rules as printed, but it's interesting to read them, as the actual definitions of 'cage free' and 'pastured', for example, compared to where those birds are actually housed.
However, many 'home raised' birds might have been treated with meds that are not approved for poultry, something that's not going to happen in a commercial flock. Look at many of the threads in 'Emergencies' here for examples.
We grow our own birds for eggs and meat, for the superior quality we have at home. It costs more, our birds have nice lives, and provide great entertainment too.
Mary

 

[ackie]

I am also in the boat of chickens for fun, not cost effective-ness.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Our first birds were Belgian d'Uccles and Silkies from a neighbor, who said they would be fine roosting in the pole barn. Obviously bad advice, but we didn't know any better, then.
Many losses later, the Silkies were all gone, and the surviving flock of d'Uccles developed survival traits, slimmer bodies, nearly no leg feathering, and 'feral' temperaments.
We learned! A good shed coop happened, a decent run, and limited free range time. Also many more birds, and never again Silkies...
Mary

This is the key. You need birds that have the right genes and they need to be adaptable and able to conform to a semi-feral lifestyle.

You’ll find that many of the survival oriented breeds such as gamefowl, domesticated jungle fowl, other exotics like Sumatras, and certain heritage strains, retain value in hatching eggs. I make a profit selling the hatching eggs off my jungle fowl hybrids. I live in the woods in a high predator environment. Predator loss of adults is rare. You just have to let them be chickens and do their thing. Just this morning a hen I didn’t know was setting came out of hiding with a new clutch of bitties. Some clutches will have a near 100% survival rate, others will have a near 100% loss rate, depending on lots of factors. Once you get a breeding population established of a survival oriented breed, you sit back and let them do the rest.