How I make $130 Per Month On Chicks

[123RedBeard]

@Shadow Source ... how is it going?

 

[HAPPYCHICKENLADY17]

I need to find someone in florida who sells silkies.......treasure coast area..

 

[123RedBeard]

I need to find someone in florida who sells silkies.......treasure coast area..

Check out your state's thread here https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/florida-always-sunny-side-up.305793/ maybe they could help you ... ???

And look here for others interested in silkies ... https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chicken-breed-focus-silkie.1048544/ checkout the "focus" thread links in first post ...

Or ... look through these adds ...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/chicken-hatching-eggs.36/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/chicks-1-day-to-8-weeks-old.53/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/chickens-8-weeks-older.35/

OP is on the other side of the country from you ...

 

[Shadow Source]

@Shadow Source ... how is it going?

It is going okay. I am trying to hatch chicks for people in my region. My last hatch was a total failure, out of 30 eggs, 15 made it to lockdown, but only 1 hatched. When I did an egg- topsy, all the chicks made it to day 19, but died. Right now I have 9 Silkies, they are about a month and a half from laying eggs. Both of my Mature Silkie hens have gone broody, so I have no hens laying right now. I built a Cabinet incubator, with the money I have made this year, but I am just testing it, but it seems to work fine.

 

[Shadow Source]

@Shadow Source ... how is it going?

It is going okay. I am trying to hatch chicks for people in my region. My last hatch was a total failure, out of 30 eggs, 15 made it to lockdown, but only 1 hatched. When I did an egg- topsy, all the chicks made it to day 19, but died. Right now I have 9 Silkies, they are about a month and a half from laying eggs. Both of my Mature Silkie hens have gone broody, so I have no hens laying right now. I built a Cabinet incubator, with the money I have made this year, but I am just testing it, but it seems to work fine.

 

[Shadow Source]

@Shadow Source ... how is it going?

It is going okay. I am trying to hatch chicks for people in my region. My last hatch was a total failure, out of 30 eggs, 15 made it to lockdown, but only 1 hatched. When I did an egg- topsy, all the chicks made it to day 19, but died. Right now I have 9 Silkies, they are about a month and a half from laying eggs. Both of my Mature Silkie hens have gone broody, so I have no hens laying right now. I built a Cabinet incubator, with the money I have made this year, but I am just testing it, but it seems to work fine.

 

[123RedBeard]

Sorry to hear about your hatching difficulties ... hopefully your new incubator will solve that problem.

Are your broodies sitting on eggs?

 

[Shadow Source]

Sorry to hear about your hatching difficulties ... hopefully your new incubator will solve that problem.

Are your broodies sitting on eggs?

No, one of my broody hens hatched 2 chicks, but my other broody I am trying to break. She now will sit on the nest box, or guard the nest box, then when she hears someone coming, she chases them off, and attacks them. It is funny to watch, but I don't want her to hatch any.

 

[Harmony Fowl]

This is an interesting topic and it's hard to make generalizations that will be true for all regions of the country. Where I live, a small scale silkie breeder would absolutely make money. There are never enough of them and most people just want some pets and don't care about meeting the breed criteria too much. There are plenty who do, too.

I've recently discovered that turkeys also earn their keep. In a weird niche, turkey eggs here go for just $5 a dozen, even if fertilized. Once they hatch, however, the poults go for $15 easy, even $20 apiece. They just go up in price from there and there's a market for both toms and hens. I guess it's a renewable market, too, since many buy to raise them for food, butcher them and need more next year. I sold my first hatch this year within 15 minutes of posting them and started a waiting list for more. My second hatch has already gone to the first person on the list (though they are still waiting to go home). I have a third hatch in the incubator now and will do a fourth as long as my hen continues to lay. It's not always easy. Like you, OP, my first hatch was fantastic, but my second hatch has brought its share of health issues and sick poults lost. I've also dealt with incubator issues. Still, I will make almost $100 this week, enough to feed the turkeys and all the chickens (30+) for a month. I invested in a pair of poults of a second variety for next year.

99% of the time, the poultry doesn't make any money. The chicken eggs sell for enough to make the cost of the eggs and meat we consume basically free to us, but that's it. Like PPs have said, I have had a very hard time selling mixed breed birds for what I'd like to get for them. Finding something that balances the bills a little bit is a very sweet reward.