Tractor supply pullets

[Julia62]

We also have a Golden Comet that is our best layer and friendliest girl! Fun personality too! We got her at 10-12 weeks old off of CL.

 

[havery]

I mean this as no disrespect to anyone, but I have always wondered why so many people buy their chicks from TSC. I have no experience with their chicks, and I have read many people's sucess with them, there are just so many more options. Maybe it's just the area I'm in, though. This time of year there are at least 5 feed stores in a 30 mile radius that sell many hybrid breeds of pullets, and tons of people on CL with day old straight run and 6-8 week old pullets for a decent price. There are some really good people selling on CL. There are also some bad ones, but you can usually tell by how the ad is written.
I'm not complaining about TSC, and I have nothing bad to say about their chicks. I'm just curious as to how they sell so many. Is it because it is an impulse buy, or is that the best place to get them in other parts of the country?

I'm in a pretty rural area, and TSC is the only store in a good 50 mile radius that sells chicks without you having to preorder. The local farmers that raise chicks all want $5+ for day-old chicks, and while they're beautiful, I don't care for breeder quality, I just want laying hens (not to mention they're all a good drive from me). I bought 8 chicks from TSC last year as my first run, all 8 were in excellent health and it was a good experience for me. My local TSC also has knowledgeable staff who really helped me a lot getting started, and gave me excellent information. I still go back there to talk to one lady. Not all stores are so horrible with employee training and lots of them, mine included, actually care about the chicks they get and sell and are careful to keep them separated and make sure the breeds are labeled correctly. I think you hear more horror stories than good ones because that's just the nature of complaints! I ordered from a hatchery this year because I had a much better idea of what I wanted to get, but still ended up going to my TSC to replace the stress losses among my meat birds with their Cornish X (which are thriving) as well as to snatch up a beautiful little Welsummer pullet.

 

[SunkenRoadFarms]

This year was my last mail order year, from here on out I'm having a closed flock for biosecurity reasons. I have bought from TSC in the past, mostly because they were one of the few in the area that still had chicks at that particular time, plus I needed only pullets. Most breeders/farmers around here sell only straight run, and want over $5.00 a chick. I also don't particularly care for visiting farms/other's people's property for the biosecurity risk. I also avoid my local feed store since I know they order from Mt. Healthy, then jack up the price (they also mis-advertise their breeds).

Where I live, there is a 6 chick minimum (state law), to avoid the impulse buy or people buying for Easter baskets. I think there is a huge rise in backyard keeping. We also have a large Amish population that buys a lot of the leftovers that don't sell. This year I've actually been surprised at just how little choice and chicks my local store has.

 

[newmarch2014]

We just got our TSC's in our area recently. I didnt buy from them this year when I visited the store for the first time because they had only 2 types of chicks "assorted reds" and sexlinks.Neither of those were what I wanted and I thought it strange that in a bin of 100 chicks every last chick was tucked up asleep, not one peep not one movement. My local IFA is where I bought my first chicks last year because I searched and could not find a breeder in Utah at that time. The IFA had a reasonalble selection of healthy looking birds and I was not too picky at that point I was just starting out and picked a few Production Reds and a few B.O. for easing into the process. This year I was a bit more informed and was wishing I could order them since I still didn't know about the local breeder but the same thing goes, I am a little tiny backyard keeper that does not have the stomach to cull so ordering 12 chicks is not feasible. I walked into IFA not expecting to find what I wanted but they had some Brahmas miraculously (as well as 6 other segregated varieties mostly pullet bins). They only require a minimum purchase of 3 chicks which for a backyard keeper is a reasonable amount since I dont want 6 chickens every year or soon I will have 20 chickens that are all past laying age. I got 2 Brahmas and 2 Easter Eggers (sold as Ameracuanas of course). Except for a suspected bout of cocci both years they have been healthy birds. I can get all my supplies there, the people always have a good basic knowledge of the chick raising and eventual adult hen keeping. I am planning on not getting any chicks next year and then maybe 3-4 ,more the year after so that I always have a few laying hens and the rest can live out their life eating bugs and pooping for the benefit of my garden. In 2 years I will try the local breeder I found since they have Maran and Olive eggers and are right here in my county but they are $5-15 a bird. Not too bad if you are just getting a few birds and are going more for variety than egg production but that would be expensive for a new keeper that lets face it may not keep the litte buggars alive past the first month.

 

[scflock]

I have nothing against buying from TSC or a feed store. That's how I got into raising chickens. I was buying garden seeds 6 years ago at our local feed and seed, and decided to try 4 Buff Orpington pullets. I had no idea how much I would enjoy it, and how many breeds were out there. For the next 2 years I added chicks from the feed store, then I mail ordered from Murray McMurray to get Polish and Cuckoo Marans. I was very pleased with the mail order. Flash forward to now, and I have 65 full timers, 7 breeds, and hatch and sell my own chicks. I agree with what you guys are pretty much saying, that it is nice to buy those first fluffies from a place that has it all. I never realized how many people kept chickens, and how much variety was out there, until I had my own

 

[hbhoffman]

This year was my last mail order year, from here on out I'm having a closed flock for biosecurity reasons. I have bought from TSC in the past, mostly because they were one of the few in the area that still had chicks at that particular time, plus I needed only pullets. Most breeders/farmers around here sell only straight run, and want over $5.00 a chick. I also don't particularly care for visiting farms/other's people's property for the biosecurity risk. I also avoid my local feed store since I know they order from Mt. Healthy, then jack up the price (they also mis-advertise their breeds).

Where I live, there is a 6 chick minimum (state law), to avoid the impulse buy or people buying for Easter baskets. I think there is a huge rise in backyard keeping. We also have a large Amish population that buys a lot of the leftovers that don't sell. This year I've actually been surprised at just how little choice and chicks my local store has.

I agree having been to 3 stores and all have been lacking variety. They are now saying if you want a certain kind you need to order them ahead. What is left is leghorns, isas, and unknown. Wish it were not true. Sigh. I have bought EEs from them but have also bought form breeders. Of the two, I think I like breeders even though the cost is more. I like knowing where they came from, the health and lineage, and finally the biosecurity from the breeder. But I still go look at the chicks at TSC for a chick fix! Then make sure I don't wear the same shoes when I go see my girls!

 

[Lynn S]

thanks for posting a photo of your chicks....I have tried to post my chicks but with no luck, But I do think that I have the Golden Comets. Mine look just like the photo.

 

[JaceAgain]

Lynn, link to what they sell and pics of each breed as chicks - http://www.tractorsupply.com/know-how_Chicken-Care_poultry-breed-research-guide.html


If they have grown a lot already, I would be cautious, you may have bought meat bread chickens.

 

[yellowswirl]

Be careful. I got 6 pullets from tsc and 2 turned out to be meat birds not layers. And at least one is a rooster.

 

[SJchickens]

Nowadays it seems to be a common mishap for meat birds to get mixed in with layers in tsc. It's really sad