I'm exhausted!

[hencrazy]

I have been up since 5am. Butchered 62 of my project meaties, 14 blrw bantam roos, 9 white cochin roos, 4 lavender bantam cochin roos, and 15 old laying hens. I am very pleased with the results. Wasn't sure if I would get them all done myself. I usually have help, but I am VERY picky about how clean the birds are so I tend to annoy everyone. Sounds dumb, but it's a really good feeling knowing I can do this myself. Just put them into the freezer. Kept out one old hen to make chicken dumpling soup tomorrow. Yum!

I'm really trying to raise/make as much as I can myself. Started with doing some canning and raising laying hens. Now in a year I can over 500 jars of fruits and veggies. I have one large freezer dedicated to chickens and one dedicated to fruits and veggies. I sell around 10 dozen eggs a week. I make my own bar soap, shampoo, and laundry detergent. I sell handmade dishcloths and towels. I even tried selling perennials and started flowers and veggies plants this spring and did amazingly well. Now if I could only do this for a living I would be in heaven.

 

[AngelzFyre]

Now I'm exhausted from reading all you've done!!

 

[RareBreedFancier]

Wow!!!

You've had a busy day!

Congrats on doing all those by yourself. I wish you could come here and give me lessons with my first meat birds.

I hope to be doing all the things you are down the track. I have only done a limited amount of preserving but I'd love to do more. 500 jars? That's impressive!

 

[LilyD]

Wow you are doing exactly what I want to do. I am raising my own pork, goats, and lambs. I was raising cornish X but I have a real problem with the birds themselves because it's so much work to keep them alive until butchering time so now I am starting my own dual purpose birds and I will be processing them and my laying hens as they get to old to lay anymore. It's the only way to go in my opinion.

 

[itsy]

As exhausted as you are... I'm totally jealous! Good for you for doing all of that yourself!!! Selling 10 dozen eggs a week? That's great. Are you on a busy road? How much do you sell each dozen for?

 

[hencrazy]

All the eggs I sell are to friends and family. My sister buys 3 dozen each week. I would never sell to someone I didn't know. Should they get sick I don't want them to blame me. I sell eggs for $2.25 a dozen. I'm definitely not making a profit from eggs.

I just got my parents started in chickens again. I'm hoping to talk them into raising beef and pork again. I wish I had the room to do this. I'm hoping the in about 10 years I can buy a bigger place with more land. Then lookout! I will be raising and growing everything I possibly can.

 

[hencackle]

Just curious...how much meat does a bantam BLRW roo yield--is it anything like what the grocery store calls a Cornish Game hen? I have considered adding a bantam breed, I'm a rooster magnet.

 

[itsy]

Quote:
Making a profit is one thing.... helping to offset the cost of chicken feed is another thing! We'd be happy to sell 10 dozen a week!! I can't wait for our layers to get in production. I'm thinking another month and we'll be off.

 

[hencrazy]

My blrw bantams I did not weigh - but I would say somewhere between the 3-4 pound range. They look small but are very heavy. They were hatchery stock that I have been breeding cuz I like the meat they produce. To me they look more like cornish/wyandotte crosses. Whatever they are they sure taste good.

I definItely know what you mean by being a roo magnet. I have 14 d'uccle bantams I just put outside yesterday. 10 of them are roos. I don't think those will be worth butchering though!

As for making a profit on eggs. The only way I figure that is possible is if your birds can free range all day. I can't do this due to the neighbor dogs. Or the birds would have to be leghorns and you would have to treat them like the big egg producers do - no thanks.

I have no intentions of becoming what people call self sufficient - that, I believe, is impossible these days. I am interested in doing as much as I can for myself. You guys should really try selling started plants and perennials - I made over $700 profit this spring doing this. I was very happy with that.

 

[PikeCo]

You are one busy person. I commend you.