Official BYC Poll: How Do You Expand Your Egg Laying Flock?

[The Sheperds Wife]

I keep chickens for their eggs, we eat alot of them. I sell the extras for $3.00 a dozen. Plus when a hen goes broody and hatches chicks, I keep what pullets I want for my flock, then sell the rest for $10.00 each. The roosters I sell for $5.00 each. I save money on feed by selling eggs, pullers, and roosters. Years ago, a wise old farmer told me that saving money is making money. I feel that's true.

 

[Denise Z]

I recently (early March) purchased three baby chicks to add to my flock of 8 Comet hens. The chicks are going into the coop on their own at dusk but since getting the chicks, the hens now want to roost on top of their run. We have to pluck them off each evening and put them into the coop. The coop has an automatic door and the hens used to go in on their own but no longer do. Any suggestions?

 

[canne50]

I bought an incubator for about 2 dozen eggs and used it once before the computer electronics went bad and of course off warranty.
I allow a few hens to brood and have a few cute little ones from my working moms.
I also buy baby chicks at our farm supply store and online, too.
When I have an excess of Roos, I give them away with a couple of pullets.
I like to encourage others to begin their own flocks, so I give them a dozen fertile eggs for hatching or eating as well.
I have more eggs under hens almost ready to hatch and a small online order coming in soon. In a month or so, I‘ll contact my new flock owners and share a few more to help build up their flocks.

 

[canne50]

I recently (early March) purchased three baby chicks to add to my flock of 8 Comet hens. The chicks are going into the coop on their own at dusk but since getting the chicks, the hens now want to roost on top of their run. We have to pluck them off each evening and put them into the coop. The coop has an automatic door and the hens used to go in on their own but no longer do. Any suggestions?

Maybe you could tie bird netting over their run at an angle so they cannot perch there?

 

[BDutch]

I recently (early March) purchased three baby chicks to add to my flock of 8 Comet hens. The chicks are going into the coop on their own at dusk but since getting the chicks, the hens now want to roost on top of their run. We have to pluck them off each evening and put them into the coop. The coop has an automatic door and the hens used to go in on their own but no longer do. Any suggestions?

Maybe you could ask this in a new thread with the age of the chicks and a few pictures of you’re setup?
What comes into my mind is that the chicks are a bit older already and perch where the older hens did before. The older hens are higher in the pecking order and want to roost higher. If you add another roost in the coop 4” - 1’ higher as the old roost, this might solve you’re problem if my presumption is right.

 

[Bill752]

I got into the hatchery business around 30 years because I wanted to have a dog kennel to raise hunters & a show breed, but it crossed my mind that too many puppies could lead to problems so I chose having a hatchery because most people love eggs & we eat meat, My first customer had just moved from a big city up to the mountains & "I want our place to look like a farm when our friends from the city come to visit. We don't want the meat or eggs." And now I'm very small scale going from 2 cabinet incubators to one cabinet & 2 smaller incubators to sell what I can & to eat what I don't. Right now between 2 customers they'd buy every egg that is laid so I have to limit them while I hatch more chicks for future egg layers because we like eggs also. We had 3 hens go broody so I put duck eggs under them. I could go to a gym for my health or I could keep having chicks & chickens without leaving our home except to buy feed to supplement their free range so that they won't cackle how cheap I am.

 

[SnowKnitty]

I have hatched purchased eggs to get specific breeds. It's a LOT of fun and a great learning experience - even for adults. Of course, you then have to figure out what to do with the cockerels! I'm too squeamish to "convert" them to meat for the table so I find others who want them. I keep a roo and wanted one of my hens to go broody. No such luck! So I set the eggs myself. But it turned out my aggressive roo wasn't covering the ladies very well and I hatched 2 of 9 eggs - both cockerels! Needless to say, THAT roo is no longer with us. Incredibly, it's his son that is our new roo. He's not aggressive and is very caring with the hens.
For all the above reasons, I now order day old, female chicks. While there's still a small chance of getting a cockerel, I've been lucky and received only pullets. I have nine more girls ordered for late summer.

 

[GC-Raptor]

I just got more Chicks today.

It'll be the first time I've raised different breeds together. GC

 

[Chickn Keaper]

I'm buying some more chicks. I want Blue Australorps, specifically, and the hatchery that my local TSC uses doesn't have them. So I'm buying from The Chick Depot.

I would love to breed some one day...

The chick depot, are you from Michigan?

 

[Sally PB]

The chick depot, are you from Michigan?

Yes! Grand Rapids general area, if you don't know where Belding is.