Hatchery or private stock?

[aurorarose25]

I don't get it too much, but what is the big differences between buying from a private breeder and a hatchery? I keep hearing to not buy from a hatchery because their stock is not that great.

Any info is great

 

[Katy]

A hatchery breeds for quantity, not quality like the good breeders do.

 

[steve2495]

it just quality versus quanity. hatcheries produce mass amounts of chickens and usually do not specialize in any one breed and do not selectively breed their chickens. good breeders will spend many gens perfecting their chickens and getting them as close to the standard as possible

 

[rancher hicks]

It's a matter of quantity vs quality. Hatcheries breed for numbers. Private expert breeders can only afford to keep the best. All chicks are not created equal. Ya have to cull alot of second rate chickens to get and keep the good ones. At least I think that's how it goes.

 

[cmom]

All of my birds have either come from Ideal Poultry in Texas and Townline Hatchery in Michigan. My total number of birds has been 45. I currently have 40 birds. Five birds have either been killed by a predator, illness (heart attack) or re-homed. I have no complaints. I ordered pullets and so far only one turned out to be a Roo which came from Ideal.

 

[Judy]

Probably most people who just want eggs or meat buy from hatcheries (or from a local feed store, who buys from hatcheries.) If you want to show, or try to perfect a breed or two, then breeders is the way to go. You may get bigger or healthier birds from a breeder, but you also may not get the egg production that hatchery birds generally provide.

 

[Marlinchaser]

I will step in and defend the hatcheries here. MOST hatcheries do not have thier own stock, they purchase thier eggs from others that raise a certain type of bird. The person raising those birds probably does not selectively breed to ensure that the birds you get come out of SHOW quality stock, but then again neither do most private persons. In fact most that are selling on craigslist/classified adds got thier birds from a hatchery. So unless they got high quality birds and have selected out only they best birds, all you will get from a private breeder is second generation hatchery stock. Most likely no better than pet quality, but somewhat true to the breed standard.

That said, if you go to a showing breeder you will have a better chance of getting quality birds, but dont expect to pay $3 a bird and think you will be getting the best birds available. And on that note, just because you get birds from someone who has excellent birds does not mean you will get excellent birds. There is a lot of culling that goes on to get show birds. So if you dont mind PET quality birds, check with a breeder of whatever type you would like and ask how much for pet quality and you could wind up with good, just not great birds.

 

[kathyinmo]

Well then, that raises another question in my mind. What is a "good," bird verses a "great (or excellent)" bird? Meaning what? Great layer, great appearance, great disposition??? What are "quality," birds?

 

[popcornpuppy]

If you go to a breeder, make sure they are a trusted breeder. I went to a local hoby/breeder and I'm not 100% sure what breed my chickens are. I think the are crosses. The ones I got from the hatchery are all what they are suposed to be. They are not show quality, but at least I know what the hatchery birds are. If you do a web search on any specific type of chicken, you can usually find out what the breed standards are for that particular chicken. I just want eggs, so my hatchery birds work for me. The ones I got from the hoby/breeder are good pets, but not so reliable for eggs.

 

[Katy]

Quote:
I had hatchery birds for most of my 56 years and they were good birds for the most part and gave me plenty of eggs. Then a few years back I decided that I wanted to have birds that actually looked at least somewhat like what the APA standard called for since many of the hatchery birds didn't and also breeds that I couldn't get through the hatcheries. Case in point are my SLWs. The ones I had over the years from the hatchery laid me plenty of eggs but for the most part really didn't look like a SLW is supposed to either in coloring or body shape. Took me a while, but I finally got some that actually have the lacing they're supposed to and have the round body shape that a wyandotte should have. I am also finding that there is a big difference (for the better) in disposition in a lot of the birds I've hatched from breeder eggs. Will they lay me as many eggs as my hatchery birds did? Probably not, but that's one of the trade offs I'm willing to make at this point in my life. You do have to do your research tho and ask a lot of questions to find a "good" breeder who's parent stock didn't just come from the hatchery a couple of generations back.