questions about buying hatching eggs...

[eggdd]

1) why do people sell +s? example: 3 + 1, or 10 + 2. why not just sell 4 or 12 hatching eggs?

2) why do people just sell 4 eggs? once they've gone through shipping and you account for roosters and all that - - is paying twenty or thirty bucks for four eggs worth it?

 

[cubalaya]

i like to get a dozen and find a couple extras in the box.

 

[CrestedGirl]

Quote:
Usually they will include extras just in case some of the eggs break while traveling.

 

[gamelife]

Sometimes during the auction the hens will lay more then expected and besides that buying shipped eggs is a risk so the seller wants you to have the best hatch rate possible. Say you buy 10+ and get 12
8 hatch, you could think of it as 80% hatch rate because you paid for 10.

 

[crazypetlady]

I wonder that as well. I sell hatching eggs but by the number then I put in extras if I have them. Sometimes I don't have any extras I have sent as many as 0 to x2 the number of eggs ordered depending on the hens.

 

[Melissa Rose]

Quote:
Some people have the smaller incubators or chicken laws restrict the number of birds they can have

 

[OldChurchEggery1]

To answer your second question- I don't think 4 eggs are worth 30 bucks. I wouldn't buy less than a dozen eggs for the reasons you stated- hatch rate and roosters!

 

[Wynette]

Quote:
You get what you pay for. Just sayin'.

 

[billiejo21]

I agree with PP's...the extra eggs are to cover damage that can occur with shipping. I think people sell the auction based on the number of eggs they estimate their hens will lay, and then hope for one or two more to cover breakage, etc. I think people include that information in their auction because it shows they are willing to bear some of the risk for shipping...I appreciate knowing that!!!! As far as selling a small number of eggs...some people have a fewer hens, but that doesn't mean there aren't people out there interested in the birds they are breeding...and I agree with a PP...some people are limited to the number of chickens they can have. If they got 12 eggs, and all 12 hatched

, they may need to find homes for 8 of them...not so easy in an urban environment.

Personally...I prefer to purchase larger amounts of eggs, because I like to account for shipping damage, roosters, etc...if I'm gonna spend 3 weeks hovering over my bator

...I want to see at least a couple chicks in the end!!

BTW...some people pay ALOT more than $30 for 4 eggs...I've seen them go for hundreds per egg...just depends on the breed!!!

 

[eggdd]

Quote:
Some people have the smaller incubators or chicken laws restrict the number of birds they can have

well, when i read through these forums, in my opinion, the general consensus is hatching 2-4 eggs from dozen would be considered a good hatch for shipped eggs. anything above that is surprising/unexpected. that said....ok, fair enough. thanks for the info - - i hadn't thought about restrictions and the such.