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Harleyjo I am raising a breed to raise pure chicks. So here are some tips and info. First off if you want 20 to 30 hens you will need at least 4 roosters. This is in case ( and it will happen) if you loose any. Also 1 rooster can not do the job with that many hens. 2 could barley cover that many and not end up sick. You are better off with 4 since you will be able to make smaller groups. I free range so most of my hens go in flocks of 4 to 5. I had 24 hens and 1 rooster just could not cut it. I am waiting on 3 right now to grow up.
Best way to intergrate a rooster is buy as a chick and let hens raise them up. I am doing that now since I have so many broodies. You can put babies under a broody and they will take them as long as they have been broody long enough about 3 weeks. BTW you can also have a long broody like I have right now. She is going on 5 months just will not stop being broody. I had eggs under her but the got eaten by snake when she was off the nest.
Ok lets address you egg theory. It will NOT work. Eggs change color the longer the hen has been laying. They loose pigmant, so what starts out as a dark brown eggs changes to light brown with time. I have hens that lay almost white for weeks before they take a break then darken again. Most hens lay 4 to 5 days a week in the breeds some will be less than that. So if you wish to bred pure you will have to have breeds separated and confined so they do not mix. Otherwise you can do what I did and stick with one breed that is not all that common to find breeders but in demand.
Here is a thought have you even checked around to see if selling chicks will work in your area? Since you are so close to a hatchery but in such a small town I am thinking your idea might not pan out so well. Now if you got a breed that the hatchery did not have you would have a much better chance of selling. Just remember more than one breed means more than one coop and pen. BTW mixed chicks are a dime a dozen and just do not sell well. We have many here that try to sell mixed and it does not happen. Everyone wants pure. EE are the only exception but even then getting the Ameraucanas the true breed is a much better bet but they are hard to find a breeder. Hatcheries do not sell pure in these at all. Americana and EE is the same thing a mixed breed chicken it is not the true breed.
Do alot of reading and planning before buying. Read up on breeders that are doing it. Backyard Poultry mag is a good source of info for setting up. A good book is How to Raise Chickens by Christine Heinrichs put out by the FFA. It will have all the info to get you started with pure breeding even goes over the breeding set ups and plans. If you have a breed you really want to get into get in touch with the breed club. Most are online and their members can help you out. Check out The Coop classroom boards too as many breeders hang out there to help people. Oh and if you plan on breeding pure please get the Standard of Perfection and breed to it otherwise you are just reproducing chickens and not improving them. You do not have to breed for show when breeding to the SOP. You can do it just to improve your own hatchery stock like many of us do.
Hope this helps you out some. I will be off line for the next couple of days so if you have any question just PM me.
Harleyjo I am raising a breed to raise pure chicks. So here are some tips and info. First off if you want 20 to 30 hens you will need at least 4 roosters. This is in case ( and it will happen) if you loose any. Also 1 rooster can not do the job with that many hens. 2 could barley cover that many and not end up sick. You are better off with 4 since you will be able to make smaller groups. I free range so most of my hens go in flocks of 4 to 5. I had 24 hens and 1 rooster just could not cut it. I am waiting on 3 right now to grow up.
Best way to intergrate a rooster is buy as a chick and let hens raise them up. I am doing that now since I have so many broodies. You can put babies under a broody and they will take them as long as they have been broody long enough about 3 weeks. BTW you can also have a long broody like I have right now. She is going on 5 months just will not stop being broody. I had eggs under her but the got eaten by snake when she was off the nest.
Ok lets address you egg theory. It will NOT work. Eggs change color the longer the hen has been laying. They loose pigmant, so what starts out as a dark brown eggs changes to light brown with time. I have hens that lay almost white for weeks before they take a break then darken again. Most hens lay 4 to 5 days a week in the breeds some will be less than that. So if you wish to bred pure you will have to have breeds separated and confined so they do not mix. Otherwise you can do what I did and stick with one breed that is not all that common to find breeders but in demand.
Here is a thought have you even checked around to see if selling chicks will work in your area? Since you are so close to a hatchery but in such a small town I am thinking your idea might not pan out so well. Now if you got a breed that the hatchery did not have you would have a much better chance of selling. Just remember more than one breed means more than one coop and pen. BTW mixed chicks are a dime a dozen and just do not sell well. We have many here that try to sell mixed and it does not happen. Everyone wants pure. EE are the only exception but even then getting the Ameraucanas the true breed is a much better bet but they are hard to find a breeder. Hatcheries do not sell pure in these at all. Americana and EE is the same thing a mixed breed chicken it is not the true breed.
Do alot of reading and planning before buying. Read up on breeders that are doing it. Backyard Poultry mag is a good source of info for setting up. A good book is How to Raise Chickens by Christine Heinrichs put out by the FFA. It will have all the info to get you started with pure breeding even goes over the breeding set ups and plans. If you have a breed you really want to get into get in touch with the breed club. Most are online and their members can help you out. Check out The Coop classroom boards too as many breeders hang out there to help people. Oh and if you plan on breeding pure please get the Standard of Perfection and breed to it otherwise you are just reproducing chickens and not improving them. You do not have to breed for show when breeding to the SOP. You can do it just to improve your own hatchery stock like many of us do.
Hope this helps you out some. I will be off line for the next couple of days so if you have any question just PM me.
