Raising point of lay pullets to sell!!

[Nupine]

I have been doing fancy poultry in 4-H now for 5 years, and I want to try something new. They have a raising pullets project where you buy female chicks, raise them till like 17 weeks, then sell them, and try to make a profit. It sounds great. I am hoping to get around 25 white leghorns and 25 golden comets pullet chicks, because I feel they would sell better then like 2 of every laying breed, and it would cost less then wyandottes, minorcas, etc. People around here like theleghorns and comets. I would like to sell the pullets for $8, is that too high or too low? I have been searching, and meyer hatchery seems the very best for what I want. This will be for next year, so I would have to buy the chicks during the winter, so I could sell them like late June. Any ideas or suggestions for making this profitable, easy, fun, enjoyable, and successful??
Ashlyn

 

[Ace_king_brahma]

You have to figure out how much a pound of feed costs and then figure out how many pounds they eat a week and divide by the number of birds and add in the initial cost of the chick each. After that you get a rough base price and from there figure how much profit you want per bird. After that if they don't sell right away you have to add the upkeep costs until you sell them off. It depends on your base price if $8 is too low or high.

 

[Nupine]

Thanks!!

 

[MRNpoultry]

You need to add in the cost for litter to.

Good luck selling started pullets. I am going to start selling some next year to.

 

[Stephen in SoKY]

$8 is considerably under market price here, but may be the norm where you are. The variable that will be hard to plan for is rising feed cost, both to produce the pullets, and the effect it may have on the market at point of sale.

 

[AussieSharon]

Try Privett hatchery. They seem to be the best price I've found.

I think the price depends very much on your area. Where I am in Va my local feed store sells point of lay hens for $6.50 each. Hard to comepete with them. I personally think $8 to $10 is very reasonable for a purebred hen.

Best of luck!

 

[greyfields]

$15 is standard for PoL pullets where I live.

 

[MandyH]

$15 here is normal lately, for even a piece of junk chicken.

 

[gumpsgirl]

I know that feed and litter costs have been mentioned here, but you also need to consider the time it will take you. Your time is a valuable thing! The golden's and other sex-link breeds might be your best bet to raise, because they start laying around 15 weeks old. You could raise them for 13 wks. and that would cut down on your out of pocket costs of feed and such. Just a thought! I also think that $8 to $10 each would be just fine to charge for them. It is always better to start your price higher and then go down if you need to rather than to under price and not make as much as you could have. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

 

[Nupine]

Thanks!! I thought I was charging too much. Chickens around here, like everything else, don't go for very much. [Espeiccaly due to hay prices. At a recent large horse auction not far from us, a beautiful blanketed registered, very nice, appaloosa stud went for $150 for meat. Another just like it for $50. There were probably a hundred excellent horses there, top one went for $600. We have been trying to sell our black/white paint mare for months now. We paid I think $2500 for her, she is 16 yrs, two blue eyes, registered, nice trail horse or gamer, excellent with the reins, can't get $600 for her. But that is besides the point.] I can't sell 3 month old turken roos, good for eating of breeding, for $2 each. I will try $12 at first, and advertise well.