Hatching raising and selling.

[ChickenGeek_101]

First of all I'm not sure if this is the right place but oh well.
Anyways. I'm wanting to get into hatching ,raising and selling chickens and maybe turkeys or ducks. (Emus is possible)
I'm almost 17 so I'm starting to figure out what to do when I graduate from high school.
My parents say I'm not a typical teenager, I love the outdoors, I love playing with my chickens and siblings. (I actually enjoy doing my schoolwork) and I'm also homeschooled.

I currently have 15 adult chickens, 11 chicks and 2 ducks.
My main goal is to have a flock of about 60 this summer to next spring.
My adult chickens are, Old English Game Bantam, (At least I've been told) Calico princess, Mille Fleur, black jersey giant, golden laced Cochin bantam, and a speckled serama.
The chicks I have is: 1 Black Copper Maran, 1 light Brahma, 1 Dominique, 2 Blue Andalusians, 2 Black Australorps, 1 silver laced Wyandotte, 1 polish, 1 speckled Sussex, and 1 turkin. (I had a lot more but something happened this past Monday morning and lost a lot, and also going to get some more tomorrow)

So do y'all have any suggestions as to a breed I should try, or advice that you would be willing to share? Or just ask any question and I'll try to answer the best I can!
Any will be greatly appreciated!!

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

15 to 60 is quite a step. I raise between 27 to 60 depending on the year. You’ll need some permanent brooding areas and a coop large enough to fit 60 chickens at 4sqFt per bird. I raise Rhode Island Reds for meat and eggs. What are your plans for the birds?

 

[ChickenGeek_101]

15 to 60 is quite a step. I raise between 27 to 60 depending on the year. You’ll need some permanent brooding areas and a coop large enough to fit 60 chickens at 4sqFt per bird. I raise Rhode Island Reds for meat and eggs. What are your plans for the birds?

My plan is hatching chicks selling them, eggs adult chickens and meat. So basically everything.
I will also have a separate flock for like my 'pet' chickens

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

My plan is hatching chicks selling them, eggs adult chickens and meat. So basically everything.

So a mini hatchery. Check with your state egg board and the state fda for selling eggs and meat. There are permits you’ll have to get and you might have to be zoned for it. My processing building has to be on agricultural zoned land so I had to petition my county for a rezoning. I was granted but it took a year and I live in the country.

 

[aart]

My processing building has to be on agricultural zoned land so I had to petition my county for a rezoning.

Does the USDA have to be involved for selling meat processed there?

 

[Ridgerunner]

I'm almost 17 so I'm starting to figure out what to do when I graduate from high school.

If you want to go in this direction for a career instead of just a hobby or sidelight, get a degree in poultry science. That way you learn from experts and may discover early this is not the field for you.

Pick one breed, doesn't matter which as long as it is a recognized breed and color/pattern, and start breeding it for show. You will learn more by doing and this will force you to discipline yourself. If you want to sell these chicks I'd consider New Hampshire or Delaware, if bred to the SOP they make decent dual purpose meat birds. That way you are more likely to be able to sell the males you hatch though getting rid of excess males might be a challenge anyway. You can branch out later once you know what you are doing when it comes to breeding.

Learn all the regulations and laws that apply to what you are doing. HMO's, counties, towns or cities, state, and/or federal may apply. Each jurisdiction can impose laws or regulations and they can be different from county to county, let alone state to state. Often federal rules do not apply unless you are crossing state lines or exceed certain volumes. The state you are selling into may have different rules than the state you are selling from. Local health departments can have pretty strict rules on how you handle meat or eggs for consumption. Some Farmer's Markets even have their own rules. You can run into a lot of regulations if you start selling food on a commercial basis.

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

Does the USDA have to be involved for selling meat processed there?

Yes they do. They do the inspection. I forgot about that! Thanks!

 

[aart]

Yes they do. They do the inspection. I forgot about that! Thanks!

Do they have to be there when you slaughter or just inspect the facility on what timeline?

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

Do they have to be there when you slaughter or just inspect the facility on what timeline?

They inspect quarterly. They call and let me know when they’ll be there. Since I sell less than 1k birds I could file for exemption but I want people to know I am a clean facility.

 

[aart]

(I had a lot more but something happened this past Monday morning and lost a lot, and also going to get some more tomorrow)

Fix what ever made this happen^^^

Another thought is what will you do with all the males you hatch?
I hatch sex linked OE's, want to sell pullet chicks and need to figure what to do with males, raptor rehabbers might want them as frozen day olds, am running that option down now, before I fire up the bator.