Input on charging incubating eggs and hatching

[ladyh]

I have someone asking me "how much would you charge to hatch some eggs out? And how much to raise them till they are a month old?" I only do my own and don't know how much to charge someone for doing this...anyone experienced that has done this?

 

[appps]

Not sure on that but make sure you get paid up front. Other wise you may get left with a bunch of chicks you didn't need or if she is buying shipped eggs no payment because they didn't all hatch.

 

[ladyh]

Ok what about the time consuming and cost of electricity? She didn't say if they were my eggs or not. If she were to pay up front and my eggs aren't fertile, that certainly would be a waste. Never was asked this before.

 

[AmyLynn2374]

Ok what about the time consuming and cost of electricity? She didn't say if they were my eggs or not. If she were to pay up front and my eggs aren't fertile, that certainly would be a waste. Never was asked this before.

First find out if you are supplying the eggs or them. If you are supplying the eggs you will want to charge more. If you are supplying the eggs, I would look around your area and see how much day old chicks of that breed sell for. Take that price and add what you think is fair for your electricity and time/experience. Once you get that price, calculate how much feed you'd use for a month for an x number of chicks and add that to the overall. That's what I would do if I was being asked to incubate and raise them for a month. If you wanted to be real picky you could figure in a little for bedding for the brooder and electricity for the brooder heating as well. The incubating and hatching, isn't that bad, it's when you get into raising them and feeding them for an "x" amount of time, that the cost gets greater to you. I'd probably ask for a reasonable deposit as well as I've seen too many people hatch for others and then the others not get them after.

Or, you can just name a price that sounds fair to you.