The Legbar Thread!

[klf73]

This seller is also selling Rhodebar eggs. If you look at both auctions, wording is identical - presale, lots of large orders placed already, 20-22 week wait, etc. I contacted them a couple of times and they outright refuse to provide photos of their breeder stock. I highly doubt their birds are at POL. Also, I don't like the wording in their auctions implying that purchasing birds from GFF is risky and expensive. I think waiting 5 1/2 months after making payment is risky.

PM me if you want a copy of my exact email exchanges with this ebayer (not sure if I can post to BYC?). Of course, these were regarding the Rhodebar eggs, but I suspect you'd get the same response if you inquired about the Legbar eggs.

If you have looked at that eBay sellers feedback, they haven't been selling hatching eggs, so the feedback rating is (IMO) irrelevant. I suspect the ID change was to make it look like they are in the business of selling hatching eggs.

I would never pay early for eggs from ebay. What happens if they lost their birds? You'd have to hope the gave you your money back? I thought I read somewhere on ebay that you shouldn't pre-pay(think it was in buyer protection?). if so, you really won't get their help getting your money back will you...

 

[Flaming Chicken]

It seems pretty gutsy to me to offer something for sale that you won't actually have for 5 months! And to be honest, I am not that patient. If I have decided that I want some Cream Legbar eggs. I want them today or next week but not in 5 months. By then I might be on to something else!

This is probably a mistake to bring this up but it is bugging me. Is someone here the person who is selling cream Legbars as pre-sales on eBay? If so, I invite polite discussion. There are no current auctions just recently completed ones if you don't know what I am referring to.

I just find the concept strange. I personally wouldn't pay for something today in hopes that I would actually get it several months from now. I also think the wording of the listing is nasty, implying us that those of us with the funds to buy the birds and wait to sell eggs until we actually have some, are "just out for the money." We have a right to make our money back. I think these pre-sales are the reason for the going price of CL eggs being as low as it is now. Heck, at this rate, the people who are paying this person $44.00 a dozen now could wait a few weeks and probably get them for less. To quote the seller, "I personally do not believe in the necessity to charge "an arm and a leg" or to "nickel and dime" people just so that they can enjoy these rare types of birds." It also seems strange that this seller just changed his ID last month.

Just sayin'

Mary

 

[Flaming Chicken]

Congrats on your hatch! Enjoy them.

I had three precious little legbar chicklets hatch this morning from MadamWlfCumbos beauteous egglings

It would have been 5 if one of my stupid incubators had not died the night before

One of the roos is lighter than the other

. The Pullet looks like she has a spot on her head but it is only the moisture from her hatch that has not fluffed up yet

 

[ronott1]

I checked for the buy in advance for legbars yesterday and did not find it there. ebay must have found it and shut it down.

I candled the six I won on ebay this morning--day 7-- and five have veins and good aircells. One is questionable.

The auction was for 4+ and I was sent 6. Cost was $40.00 plus shipping.

 

[redchicken9]

Sheriff et al., I didn't find the cream legbar hatching eggs just now, but I saw them a few days ago. The seller had a very long list about policies. At one point they talked about feeding their chickens a special formula that makes them grow like cornish hens. (This is from memory). I thought who wants their birds to grow like meat birds, potentially on hormones. Anyone else see that part? Also all their photos had a certain look to them. In one photo, a male and female were squished into a single hand. Another photo a female hen was held single handedly with the thumb pressing down the back. I think the photographer was struggling to hold the birds and take their photos. The wording and photos reminded me of young males that work out at gyms and use formulas to bulk themselves up. Just my impression. Anyone else see this?

 

[The Sheriff]

You have to do an advanced search for completed items and you will find them. Yes, I saw the wording about the feed. The listings I saw only had one pic of the baby chicks. Hmmm.

 

[redchicken9]

Running comments: Go to ebay to completed listings to see marketing of recent legbar hatching eggs. The person who put 4 auctions at once in Selma, AL didn't do well. Looks like yours went fine, Sheriff. I doubt we can be like OPEC, but I think it's worth realizing the more multiples out there the price is just going to go down. I think you're competing with own product if you list on ebay multiples expiring on the same day. I once knew someone that bought hundreds of out of sale (like a storage sale) TV show and movie items like t-shirts and magnets. He sold them 1 at a time. It was crazy how well he did. It just a fact, these birds are rare, but if they get saturated fast, prices will drop fast. I think it's worth considering. Folks could put out multiple auctions a week and watch the price fall, like in this little example (go to ebay completed listings to see the cause and effect here) or pace themselves. I think there is some sense on how you put your commodity out to others. I believe what I paid for these birds denotes their uniqueness and fine traits. The birds had values I desired. I actually found them in a UK poultry book at a library, liked them, started researching them, and then paused, before purchasing. I bought them with a commitment. Not everyone may be like that, but still I think there is some sense on how you put your commodity out to others. I wish all well, as they shape the future of this breed, but I hope everyone values them!

 

[anniesmom]

You have to do an advanced search for completed items and you will find them. Yes, I saw the wording about the feed. The listings I saw only had one pic of the baby chicks. Hmmm.

When you have gone to the item in completed items with the picture of two chicks in a hand, up at the top under the title (above the picture) it says "See original listing". When you click that it takes you to the original listing with 7 pictures.

 

[Flaming Chicken]

It's been about 6 weeks since I was considering my options regarding the Legbar breed. It all started for me when a local craigslist add referred to Green Fire Farm. I was actually looking to find more Orpington chicks, when I found an add for Jubillee Orpingtons for $150.00 for a chick. Just a bit more than my usual budget of $10.00 for fun and hard to find breeds. So, being curious i studied the Green Fire Farm website. When I read the description of the Cream Legbar, I just knew that was my next chicken project! I had a vision of a flock of about 20 Cream Legbar chickens free ranging on my property laying their blue eggs and solving my delemma of predicting roosters.

But You can't really get too much farther Florida and Green Fire than NW washington, unless you go to Hawaii or Alaska and stay in the US.

So,options were

1. Hatching eggs from EBay at $20.00 an egg plus shipping that might hatch. Since my incubator is untried and in the box still, I didn't think that my first attempt to hatch eggs should be with these.

2. Buy chicks and have them shipped. Green Fire Farm was still out of my comfort level of cost. So I looked at other sources.

I was so worried about my chicks once the order was placed and they were on the way. They arrived with extras which brought down the cost money wise even more. Friends said-you'll probably lose a few and a Vet said the same. But, to me that was not acceptable. They are now in my house and my daughter has held them and named them. Not easily replacable as a second order of chicks is probably not feasable. Thankfully the predictions are wrong and my little flock is thriving.

So with the current Ebay listings, the eggs are now under $10.00 an egg. I might even order some to build my flock up a little faster. After all if they are bred to thrive well in the free range environment,at least for me they have to be affordable enough so that I can let them enjoy their destiny and me enjoy seeing them running around on my property knowing that the predators are thinking of them as lunch.

I wonder if the Ebay seller is trying to drive down the cost or just doesn't realize how much she is lowering the cost of the eggs by listing 4 competing auctions at once. If I had known what would happen to the market and Spring progressed I might have waited a bit but then I wouldn't have my little chick family in the back room.

Well enough ramblings, I'd better go let the horses and big chickens out.




Quote:

Running comments: Go to ebay to completed listings to see marketing of recent legbar hatching eggs. The person who put 4 auctions at once in Selma, AL didn't do well. Looks like yours went fine, Sheriff. I doubt we can be like OPEC, but I think it's worth realizing the more multiples out there the price is just going to go down. I think you're competing with own product if you list on ebay multiples expiring on the same day. I once knew someone that bought hundreds of out of sale (like a storage sale) TV show and movie items like t-shirts and magnets. He sold them 1 at a time. It was crazy how well he did. It just a fact, these birds are rare, but if they get saturated fast, prices will drop fast. I think it's worth considering. Folks could put out multiple auctions a week and watch the price fall, like in this little example (go to ebay completed listings to see the cause and effect here) or pace themselves. I think there is some sense on how you put your commodity out to others. I believe what I paid for these birds denotes their uniqueness and fine traits. The birds had values I desired. I actually found them in a UK poultry book at a library, liked them, started researching them, and then paused, before purchasing. I bought them with a commitment. Not everyone may be like that, but still I think there is some sense on how you put your commodity out to others. I wish all well, as they shape the future of this breed, but I hope everyone values them!

 

[flyingmonkeypoop]

I had the same vision before, a flock of them free ranging with the other birds, chasing grasshoppers, scratching through the piles in the barns, the hens dusting in the sun. They combine the crele coloring, the blue eggs, and a slightly larger leghorn body that I liked. I was able to get them by winning the "Guess the breed" contest on their site. Everyone said similar things like "They'll be fragile and weak" and "They are so inbred that nothing will happen when you breed them" so I decided to get a pair which was then upgraded to a trio. Now they are thriving and seem more healthy than home hatched chicks. Plus, they will help me on some other projects I have planned and actually take a couple years off of breeding.
The one thing I don't like so far is Frederick's comb, it is HUGE! Plus it looks like it might be developing some side sprigs near the front. If his comb gets too large by fall, I might just have him dubbed since I won't be showing and even though they'll be in the shed all winter, I don't want to risk frost bite or him fighting with another rooster through a pen and getting a bad infection or wound.