Frustrated about the availability of chicks

[McChooky]

Sounds like so much fun! Why not let your chickens hatch and raise them? Wouldn’t that be easier? Or am I being terribly naive?

I had a hen go broody once but she hasn't gone since.The only way I'll get any chicks is to hatch them myself or buy some

 

[McChooky]

The research I did said to expect large light blue eggs. All other blue layers said medium. I have seen others complain about getting chickens that were supposed to lay blue and ended up being brown. I’ve also seen a lot of places say orpingtons and jersey giants will lay large eggs. I no longer believe this to be true b/c my 1 yr old orpingtons and giants only lay small to med eggs. Hoping they get bigger as they get older. So the answer is, I’m not sure if I was going to get real blue eggs or not!

I only have room for 12 and, being quite practical, I want to maximize my egg production. Hubby wants cool looking birds. These “wants” seems to conflict with each other. Still don’t know what to do, but leaning toward waiting for the birds I really want AND adding a rooster to the flock.

Your young hens will lay bigger eggs as they mature.

 

[Iluveggers]

I ordered 15 sexed legbars & barred rocks in January and the earliest ship date was September 10th .The hatchery is 1000 miles from here

What hatchery are they coming from?

I looked back, and saw I placed my original McMurray order in November. A few coworkers/friends asked me to add on for them, and we did that in February. Stuck some extras in the order at that time in case there are any losses. Ours are coming in June.

 

[NatJ]

I think there’s a little bit of this. But I also think people saw what happened with the supply chain during Covid, and now want to become more self-sufficient. Or people that had chickens awhile ago that want to jump back in. Now that we’ve see that food is not a “guarantee”, I think people want to provide more for themselves and their neighbors. Maybe that is just my optimism…

For at least the last five years, I've been seeing hatcheries sell out really early for female chicks and straight runs of any practical breed. (If anyone wants males or bantams or high-priced rare breeds, or chicks shipped in October, I almost always see some availability....)

So I think part of the issue with chicks now is that people have learned from the previous years: the experienced ones are placing their orders earlier each year, making sure they get their chicks scheduled for the dates they want. That leaves fewer chicks for anyone else to order as the ship dates get closer. Once there is a shortage of the chicks people really want, they are more likely to buy up any breed they can get as soon as they see it.

So even if the demand and supply for chicks was constant, the difference in buying patterns could make them hard to get. But yes, new people getting into chickens would also be increasing demand. That would include the people who get chicks for all the reasons you mentioned, plus the people who got some last year and want more, and the people who want chicks because they saw some at their neighbor's or on social media and just think chickens are interesting. And of course the people who buy chicks, accidentally kill them, and then buy more are contributing to the chick shortage too (although I expect they are only a very small part of the situation, compared to all the rest.)

 

[townchicks]

It may not even be the price of eggs as much as the scarcity that was happening, here at least. For months, you could go to the store and there would not be a single carton on the shelves. Then, a shipment would come in, and the next week the shelves were empty again. Thing seem better now, but my local store had to limit one per customer. That seemed to be a direct result of AI hitting some large commercial egg producers, so it seems logical that some hatcheries may be getting hit and thus fewer chicks available, as well as higher demand. More folks getting into homesteading/self sufficient lifestyle, and a growing public awareness of the horrors of commercial farm factories, wanting to have their own happy hens, all adding to demand. A perfect storm of multiple factors.

 

[SweetieChicken234]

Anybody in Melbourne, FL... I'm at tractor supply and they just got chicks in. Come get them shortly.

 

[alwaystj9]

All kinds of new chicken buyers during covid, and immediately after, bored people wanting to be homesteaders. All was fine for about 2 years. Then no one had eggs, all the homesteader chickens had quit laying. Don't y'all remember all the conspiracy theories as to why people's chickens quit laying? Weird stuff in the feed and all that? Actuality was everyone's covid chickens hit 3 years old (production declines then) their first serious moult, the weather went to crap and days got shorter (Duhhh, December). A perfect storm. Even my chickens loafed through that winter. Remember TSC getting all the new brooders and the chickie death rate at TSC going skyhigh because no one thought to turn on/preheat all those brooders? Every hatchery I have talked to has ramped up chick production as best they can but these 12 month bust/boom cycles are leaving them in the dust. They have to grow out their hens in order to get eggs so they need a plan 12 months ahead. With feed prices and labor, they don't want to over-produce chicks, either.

 

[OphyliaOrpington]

I have a majority heritage breeds, with a few “fun” hybrids like Easter Egger and a Marans mix, along with 3 BYM chicks my broody hen hatched from partially developed eggs abandoned by a broody hen of a neighbor (all pullets, couldn’t have better luck w that!) Last year I added a couple of production hybrids, mainly out of necessity as my family needs eggs all winter (the heritage tend to take longer & longer breaks)…my oldest hens are going into their 4th year and there was a few weeks we only ended up with 5-6 eggs total until the new girls started laying. Am planning to do the same this year. We added a second coop and are keeping 12. I think 2-3 will be production hybrids (or maybe a leghorn or RIR). Figure choosing to have a couple in my flock to have a good quality of life, is better than supporting Big Egg. Not to mention that my Cinnamon Queen & Columbian Rock Cross are two of the sweetest chickens I have ever owned. I used to be totally against production birds, but after a neighbor went 3 months with zero eggs from their 6 heritage breeds & Easter Egger, the reality of what was worse set in…I can’t in good conscience buy eggs from the grocery store for any reason.

ETA: I have an autoimmune disorder that has been under control since making all food from scratch, cutting gluten and many grains, (modified keto), using sheep and A2 grassfed or raw milk products, and limiting eating out to a select few restaurants with good options for people w dietary restrictions. Having eggs all winter has become a necessity but my health has improved so much, knock on wood! If anyone wants more specifics DM me and I’d love to share what has worked!

We are getting a bit far afield from the point of the thread,, but all the hybrid chickens can reproduce, because they are all chickens. Technically, the term hybrid is really meant to be two different species that can interbreed, like a horse and a donkey, and the resulting offspring, a mule, will be sterile. These days, folks often use the term when creating a new "breed" ,for example, the term was bandied about a lot when labradoodles came on the scene. They were called designer hybrid s but really all they were was a mixed breed dog. Any production breed is one that was created to lay more eggs. Egg laying takes it out of a hen, and they often don't live as long as a result. Heritage breeds, are breeds that have been around for decades or longer, and breed true, that the offspring look like the parents and so do their offspring etc. Here's the catch, you can get many Heritage breeds from a hatchery. For example, the Delaware that have been mentioned. Hatcheries breed for volume to sell an many chicks as possible, to make money. They may not care much about health or looks other than it sort of looks like that breed. Kind of like a puppy mill. Not to say you can't get healthy birds from a hatchery, but they are not going to win at a show, or necessarily produce the way another of the same breed would.

We are getting a bit far afield from the point of the thread,, but all the hybrid chickens can reproduce, because they are all chickens. Technically, the term hybrid is really meant to be two different species that can interbreed, like a horse and a donkey, and the resulting offspring, a mule, will be sterile. These days, folks often use the term when creating a new "breed" ,for example, the term was bandied about a lot when labradoodles came on the scene. They were called designer hybrid s but really all they were was a mixed breed dog. Any production breed is one that was created to lay more eggs. Egg laying takes it out of a hen, and they often don't live as long as a result. Heritage breeds, are breeds that have been around for decades or longer, and breed true, that the offspring look like the parents and so do their offspring etc. Here's the catch, you can get many Heritage breeds from a hatchery. For example, the Delaware that have been mentioned. Hatcheries breed for volume to sell an many chicks as possible, to make money. They may not care much about health or looks other than it sort of looks like that breed. Kind of like a puppy mill. Not to say you can't get healthy birds from a hatchery, but they are not going to win at a show, or necessarily produce the way another of the same breed would.

Your young hens will lay bigger eggs as they mature.

Thank you! Was just going to post: FINALLY got a very large egg from one of my Orpington’s today!

 

[OphyliaOrpington]

So is anyone else having issues with every chick being bought up within a small amount of time after arrival at stores?

In my area they are being bought up so fast?

UPDATE: I ordered chicks online today from MyPetChickens.com. They should ship in 2 weeks. So excited! Didn’t get the exact birds I had researched and settled on originally, but I got different breeds with the same qualities as I wanted before. I had selected California Grey for lots of large white eggs. I got, Austra Whites for lots of large cream colored eggs! I had selected Production Blue for lots of large blue eggs. I got “Bountiful Blue Egg Layers” which is what this hatchery is calling the blue layer mutt they created. Supposedly lots of large blue eggs (with a 1/16th chance of brown.). Bottom line — I am happy.

For the record, you guys totally talked me into the Delaware breed and I had my cart full of them yesterday. But I hesitated and they were gone when I went back today. I will consider that breed again later as needed. And I will go to the country fair to talk about and research the rooster idea. Still haven’t ruled it out, but I am not ready to take that leap just yet.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! For BYC in general. For this thread and to the community for ALL of your help! Y’all are the best!!

 

[21hens-incharge]

UPDATE: I ordered chicks online today from MyPetChickens.com. They should ship in 2 weeks. So excited! Didn’t get the exact birds I had researched and settled on originally, but I got different breeds with the same qualities as I wanted before. I had selected California Grey for lots of large white eggs. I got, Austra Whites for lots of large cream colored eggs! I had selected Production Blue for lots of large blue eggs. I got “Bountiful Blue Egg Layers” which is what this hatchery is calling the blue layer mutt they created. Supposedly lots of large blue eggs (with a 1/16th chance of brown.). Bottom line — I am happy.

For the record, you guys totally talked me into the Delaware breed and I had my cart full of them yesterday. But I hesitated and they were gone when I went back today. I will consider that breed again later as needed. And I will go to the country fair to talk about and research the rooster idea. Still haven’t ruled it out, but I am not ready to take that leap just yet.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! For BYC in general. For this thread and to the community for ALL of your help! Y’all are the best!!

The production blue chicken actually lays a brown egg just so you know. They are a pretty blue colored bird but definitely lay brown eggs.