King County, Washington!

[NWchickenherder]

Hi ochochicas. Thanks for your feedback on Baxter Barn. Have you ever purchased any birds from them? I'm curious because I'm looking to add two hens this spring/summer and my personal experience with Baxter Barn has been nothing but positive. I previously purchased an Austrolorp from them 2 years ago and have had great success this this hen and she is still laying strong. However, I am not a breeder, etc. so I do not get caught up into the pure bred aspects of the chickens I have.

I just want to make sure we're all making informed decisions. Thank you again for your feedback.

 

[ochochicas]

I have not purchased birds from them because I know two people who have been sold birds with no guarantee. I can understand if you buy a $3 chick from a feed store then you might get a surprise. However, a business that specializes in selling purebred poultry at inflated prices should be selling what they advertise.

Another lady bought chicks from me after visiting there. The guy there had her so paranoid about diseases, parasites, vaccinating, etc. that I'm surprised she even went through with owning chickens. She claimed he was "the expert" and then sold her about $300 worth of feed and medication just to get them through the first two months of life. You can be knowledgeable without taking advantage of inexperienced people.

Edited to add: IMO, you'd be better off giving your business to a local breeder. There isn't any difference between this place an a feed store other than the amount of money you'll spend.

You are right about people pawning off older hens on Craigslist. I bought two from a guy in Federal Way and they never laid a single egg. Fortunately my neighbor has a hen retirement farm and she took them for me. On the same note. I did buy two other hens that I found on Craigslist. They are great birds and still lay eggs at close to 4 years old. We even hatched out some of the Australorp's eggs and have adorable little babies now.

 

[farmerasam]

My family went to Baxter Barn we learned so much and had fun. Its a true working farm that's clean. Baxter Barns chicks start at $3 and their Natural Starter 50lb is around $20. I recommend going there first before posting. All we have seen was great help and good prices. They have rare chicks also that you cant find. Sam

 

[LuvsBlueberries]

Hi all!

I'm in South King County. Had never heard of The Grange or Baxter Barn, so thank you for that info.

Anyone know of actual breeders in Western Washington?

I know of Erhard Weihs (Kummer Poultry Farm), near Black Diamond. We visited his place a few years ago to look at his Welsummers. He's been involved with chickens for a long time and is so knowledgeable! His spangled Russian Orloffs are beautiful and very sweet-natured.

We weren't able to follow through on restarting our flock back then. But I'm getting ready now! Trying to decide on breed and breeder/supplier. We used to order from Harder's Hatchery, but they appear to be gone.

 

[ochochicas]

Hi all!

I'm in South King County. Had never heard of The Grange or Baxter Barn, so thank you for that info.

Anyone know of actual breeders in Western Washington?

I know of Erhard Weihs (Kummer Poultry Farm), near Black Diamond. We visited his place a few years ago to look at his Welsummers. He's been involved with chickens for a long time and is so knowledgeable! His spangled Russian Orloffs are beautiful and very sweet-natured.

We weren't able to follow through on restarting our flock back then. But I'm getting ready now! Trying to decide on breed and breeder/supplier. We used to order from Harder's Hatchery, but they appear to be gone.

You should go over and visit the Washington Peeps page. I think there are a lot of people in WA that breed a few varieties of birds, a few people that breed a larger numbers, and the feed stores that sell huge numbers of hatchery birds in the spring and fall.

You'll have to figure out what breeds you are looking for and contact people who have those breeds. Most people will sell birds, chicks, or eggs, but are not usually willing to do farm tours due to both security and biosecurity risks.

 

[LuvsBlueberries]

You should go over and visit the Washington Peeps page. I think there are a lot of people in WA that breed a few varieties of birds, a few people that breed a larger numbers, and the feed stores that sell huge numbers of hatchery birds in the spring and fall.

You'll have to figure out what breeds you are looking for and contact people who have those breeds. Most people will sell birds, chicks, or eggs, but are not usually willing to do farm tours due to both security and biosecurity risks.

Pardon my ignorance.. I've only bought cats and dogs directly from a breeder, so when you mention farm tours & security risks it makes me wonder... assuming that you do not know of the breeder's reputation, how do you determine that their birds are worth purchasing without visiting their farm?

Erhard did happen to (very graciously) give us a tour of his facility, but we were there on his invitation. Of course that could have been an exception, as we knew him many many years ago when he used to buy duck eggs from our children.

Thanks, I appreciate your experience & advice. I do not want to say or do something that isn't appropriate.

 

[ochochicas]

I would ask to see photos of the birds and/or eggs, depending on what you are looking for. Also ask other people for recommendations. Usually if someone is a breeder and has been around for a few years they probably have a fairly good reputation. The bad ones tend to go down the drain pretty quickly. People who only have a few birds or who just got into breeding or have birds on Craigslist are probably not selling show quality chickens. That is how I ended up with my legbars that are not 100% legbar. Lady had picked them up "from another breeder" and then dumped them when her hatch rates were bad.

You can find decent birds on Craigslist, but it isn't as easy as finding backyard layers.

 

[firesprink]

I have two hens that I got from Baxter barn. No complaints other than they are extremely skittish from lack of handling. We purchased them at almost 20wks old each. We wanted pullets close to the same age as our existing flock, so we went with some of the oldest chickens they had. We needed to replace some chicks we had purchased at the Monroe co-op strait run and they both turned out to be roo's. Totally my mistake to buy a breed that can't be easily sexed. I knew it was 50/50 chance to get a roo or two. Baxter barn does not sell strait run chicks. Their chickens are all sold sexed. This is a good thing if you're like me and can't have a roo in city limits. They require an appointment to buy chickens and they ask that you not wear your poop shoes (farm shoes) to their business. Makes sense to me.
You can go to their Facebook page for a list of chickens they have in the barn with prices. Chicks are priced comparably to other places and hens are priced based on breed and age. Pretty comparable to other places.They also sell chickens year round. I asked about either houdans or polish and the owner was strait up with me, they don't sell them because they can't be easily sexed. I liked his honesty. He recommended a spitzhauben if I was dead set on a crested chicken. We got a spitzhauben and a barnevelder. We paid about $30 each, not bad for hens just about old enough to lay. Happy with both girls, the Barney laid her first chocolate egg today both meet or exceed breed standards, not that I care but it's cool. The two chickens I got at Monroe co-op were chicks so it wasn't until they were full grown before we realized the "mottled houdan" was actually a white crested black polish or polish mix, it was missing the 5th toe. It can happen from anywhere you buy chickens.
Baxter barn was pretty strait forward about not integrating your new chickens with your existing flock. I don't feel like they were trying to scare us into buying stuff we didn't need. He basically told us the same information we hear anywhere. Don't throw new chickens in with your existing flock and try to feed them the same food they already are eating to avoid stressing them out. Think about how many people are showing up to buy chickens that don't do the research first, then get upset because they get sick or die.
I'm ready for some colored egg layers, so I may make the trip back to Baxter soon for a couple easter-eggers.

 

[sphinxface]

I just wanted to add to the Baxter Barn discussion, mostly because I'll be getting some chicks from them next week. But I did notice this thread is a bit dead.

Anyway, I recently did the tour of their farm, it's kinda fun to see how other people have their setup, but I did note that the tour did not include the area they sell their birds from.

They do sell a variety of birds including rare birds, but they obviously don't breed that many on their rather small farm. It will be interesting for sure. Our girls now are from a random feed store so I like to hope that the new ones from Baxter will at least be better quality.

They also do sell straight run chicks, maybe it's a new thing?

 

[ochochicas]

The birds you by at Baxter Barn are hatchery stock. You will not get any better quality than chicks from other random feed stores or Tractor Supply.

If you are looking for show quality chickens or some with special traits, you would be better served buying from a private breeder. Your birds will be healthier and of higher quality. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with hatchery birds. I love all my girls, even those who came from a feed store. They might not live as long or have longevity as layers, but they are still sweethearts.