Hello, What is the benefit of getting eggs to hatch and incubate, over just ordering the sex and breed of chick you want? Just curious.
The joy of staring at the incubator 24/7 for 21 days! In all seriousness, I enjoy hatching my own chicks, especially if I only want a few birds. I'm trying to get more Silver Spangled Hamburgs for our flock and I don't want to have to buy a minimum order of 25 straight run chicks. Dawn
I enjoy hatching my own too. The excitement when they start hatching never gets old. Plus some breeds/colors are hard or impossible to get from hatcheries and those you get from breeders are better quality usually.
Like Katy says, quality is one BIG reason. What you get from a good breeder can never be equaled from a hatchery. And I also agree about the fun of hatching! Even though there can be a lot of frustration involved, seeing that tiny little beak poking out from a hole and eventually breaking free always makes it worth while. There is something magical about staring at a smooth, hard object for 3 weeks and then seeing something soft, squishy and fluffy pop out at the end! Richard
Will good breeders sell baby chicks? I want to go that route, but not finding any breeders close. Any ideas? I am in Northern Calif. and would love to buy direct from a breeder not a hatchery. Since I only want at the most six hens, I cannot justify the expense of equipment and time to hatch. Thanks. Dilly
I have found that sometimes the only way to get a specific breed is to hatch your own. Most small farms with great breed qualities won't ship live birds, but will send you eggs. Some breeds you can only find as eggs because hatcheries have sold out of them. That's why I have Toulouse eggs in my incubator. The hatcheries sold out, or the ones that have them insist I order 8 when I only want about 2-4 of them. And the thrill of hatching your own. I find myself wandering to my incubator and waiting for a pip or hoping a little chick is out and about. It's stressful, but it can be fun and addictive. Take it from me whose first hatch was horrible, yet I find myself looking for eggs on eBay or eggbid!
So what do you guys do with all those babies? I read where people are always getting eggs and more eggs. So where are the babies going? No one keeps that many??? Or do they?
When they get older you can sell them on places like Craigslist or you can add them to your flock. I plan to keep all of mine, but I am not hatching so many either.
We breed, hatch and sell chicks and grown chickens to people like you who only want a few, and to others who want a larger flock for lots of eggs. We always have RIR, EE, and a few other breeds, but we change out breeds every few years. This year I sold all my Delaware breeders, and adding Dominiques and Silver Lakenvelders. I have to plan way ahead, so I will have grown stock to hatch from every Spring. I usually buy my new breed eggs or chicks from breeders, so it takes awhile to get them to laying age. DH just came in from checking the incubators and he said I have Lakenvelders hatching!!! e Jean
I am hatching eggs because I want quality chicks that are true to their breed. I mean, you should see the silver sebrights that I got my daughter at the feed store!
