Official BYC Poll: Where Do You Get Your Chicks From?

[1muttsfan]

I have a question, I have 7 chickens that will be a year old in March, at what point do you start bringing in new babies to replace the old to keep an egg supply coming in?

I add a few birds every year, trying to keep my flock number below 15. Some adult birds I give away locally, and some die. It is a bit of a balancing act, between keeping an age-variable flock but sticking to the number I can handle in the winter coop. You could easily just add a few new birds every 2-3 years as said above.

 

[SnootyHen]

My first flock came from my cousin's feed store. Then I got more from Meyer because I wanted chicks in the fall. I'd love to get more from the feed store this spring but my coop is at max capacity now.

 

[RebeccaRN]

I don't know about everyone else but mine have laid eggs daily til about 3 or 4 yrs old, then some started laying 4 or 5 eggs weekly. At 5 yrs old my Barred Rock hen stopped laying. The all took a break from laying regularly in Nov and Dec as winter days got shorter & I let them rest, no supplemental light. I guess a lot depends on the breed, their health, a good diet, calcium, seasonal weather, regional climate & overall comfort or stress (safe from predators & not overcrowded with harmony in the coop).

I have 4 austrolorps, 2 orpingtons and 1 new Hampshire red. They have a huge pen plus access to my half acre backyard. They all get along wonderfully and seem very happy. I worry about upsetting the harmony with new babies. I wont be getting any new ones for a couple more years from the recommendations im hearing on here.

 

[BDutch]

Only the first year I bought chicks. Picking them up from a local breeder just 5 miles away.

After that I had my chicks from hatching under a broody hen 3 times. 2 times I collected eggs, having a rooster. Once buying fertilised eggs from a breeder for shows. Next spring i want to give one or two broodies some eggs again. Now I have 7 chickens. 4 oldies (5+ and 6+ years old) and 3 chickens are 1+ and 2+ years old.

I prefer not yo buy chicks or chickens to avoid infections like marek. My chickens are not vaccinated and healthy until now and I like to keep it that way.

A disadvantage is that I have to deal with a surplus of roosters.

 

[BDutch]

It just makes the interpretation a little different. The percentages represent the percent of voters who use a certain source for their chicks, not the percent of times a certain source was used. Sorry to butt in, I only have ducks, so I didn't vote. I'm just a huge math nerd, so I like looking at the polls.

We certainly need more polls for duck- and other poultry keepers with such enthusiastic math nerds.

 

[BDutch]

Interesting poll. I got mine from hatchery and local farmer. Hatchery stock better due to NPIP certified and vaccinated. Healthy lines that are hardy. I tried getting from a local farmer on BYC and still to this day have not been able to. Just report none available in stock and do not call when available. Sad. Back to the Hatchery for me. I would hatch my own but no male species allowed here.

You could buy fertile eggs too if you have a broody. Best do some research in advance to make sure you can buy eggs when one of you’re ladies gets broody. Do you have the right breed for it?
And think about what to do with the roosters before/when they start crowing .

 

[Liz Birdlover]

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My first flock came from my cousin's feed store. Then I got more from Meyer because I wanted chicks in the fall. I'd love to get more from the feed store this spring but my coop is at max capacity now.

Your cousin has a feed store? Very cool! That was my dream, to open a feed store, along with seed, landscaping, shrubs, trees, gardening & agricultural, etc. sort of like a cross btwn a Tractor Supply & Southern States, but smaller on the mom & pop side Lol.

 

[SnootyHen]

I
Your cousin has a feed store? Very cool! That was my dream, to open a feed store, along with seed, landscaping, shrubs, trees, gardening & agricultural, etc. sort of like a cross btwn a Tractor Supply & Southern States, but smaller on the mom & pop side Lol.

They actually used to have most of that! When I was young, it was a 180 acre working farm but as the cousins grew up, each went a different way. One continued to run the feed store, one opened a landscaping business, one had a nursery. No one farms there anymore but the feed store is still in business (since 1972).

 

[Marie2020]

I hatch chicks, let my broodies hatch them, buy from my local D&B, hatcheries, friends, family, and breeders. Yeah, I'm a bit addicted.

That's a great idea for what is going on here with my girl. Thanks for sharing.

 

[woodworm]

When I was young my parents used to hatch their own.

My 10 hens are all ex-batt's that came from chicken rescue charity.