Where should I get my chickens

[feelyweely]

I have never ordered chicks online before and i don't know where the best place is to order them from. I can only get 4-5 chicks. I have looked at mypetchicken.com and murray mcmurray hatchery but i don't know where the best place is to get them at. where would you recommend?

 

[ejcrist]

I have never ordered chicks online before and i don't know where the best place is to order them from. I can only get 4-5 chicks. I have looked at mypetchicken.com and murray mcmurray hatchery but i don't know where the best place is to get them at. where would you recommend?

What are your goals in owning chickens? If it's eggs then hatchery birds will be a good source and just about any of the hatcheries online will work fine. I've ordered from Murray McMurry a couple of times and they were really great to work with. You can also get hatchery birds from any local feed stores that carry them, or the bigger stores like Tractor Supply. The bigger stores will get them in at certain times during the spring.

If your goals are to raise and possibly breed heritage birds at some point then I'd recommend skipping the hatcheries altogether and purchasing from a reputable breeder. It'll take longer to acquire your birds and they'll be more expensive but their quality will be very good-excellent and they'll be true representatives of the breed(s) you're interested in. I didn't know all this when I got started and was disappointed to find out my hatchery birds weren't even close to the breed descriptions so that's why I'm telling you all this. A lot of people find out the hard way like I did.

In summary it depends on your goals. Hatcheries are fine for layers, and breeders for true to breed chickens.

 

[jazzyb]

I got my chicks from My pet Chicken. All arrived in the mail alive and healthy. They came in a nested box that had a heat pad. All were girls, yeah. Lost one to a visiting dog but the rest areally 6 months happy and starting to lay. I ordered 6 but you can get as few as 3. Each bird a good example of its breed.
Rosie the Turk Silver laced Wyandotta

What's up chicken Butt! Foggy White Legern, Lucy Hampshire Red, Dixie cutest Black Silkie ever, Cleaopatra EasterEgger.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I always use My Pet Chicken. All my birds are healthy and correctly sexed. Their customer service is wonderful and very helpful.

 

[chelsiemom]

What are your goals in owning chickens? If it's eggs then hatchery birds will be a good source and just about any of the hatcheries online will work fine. I've ordered from Murray McMurry a couple of times and they were really great to work with. You can also get hatchery birds from any local feed stores that carry them, or the bigger stores like Tractor Supply. The bigger stores will get them in at certain times during the spring.

If your goals are to raise and possibly breed heritage birds at some point then I'd recommend skipping the hatcheries altogether and purchasing from a reputable breeder. It'll take longer to acquire your birds and they'll be more expensive but their quality will be very good-excellent and they'll be true representatives of the breed(s) you're interested in. I didn't know all this when I got started and was disappointed to find out my hatchery birds weren't even close to the breed descriptions so that's why I'm telling you all this. A lot of people find out the hard way like I did.

In summary it depends on your goals. Hatcheries are fine for layers, and breeders for true to breed chickens.

I wish I'd read this before I started, also. I began this past summer and I thought my goal was layers. And it was. But after reading about the breeds I thought I had (from a feed store, obviously from a hatchery), I decided I wanted blue laced red wyandottes. Those I also got from feed store. Also was dissapointed to learn I had a production red, not a RIR. And, it turned into a cockeral!! The buff orpington I had turned out to be an easter egger, and it also turned into a roo! So then I HAD to get a true BO, which I did. She's about 4 mths. So, still waiting on my first egg (oldest are 24 wks), I decided I wanted a fancy orp and went to a breeder. 10 times as much as a feed store chicken, but now I have weeks old gold laced brahma, silver laced and reversed silver laced orps and a true ameraucana. So my goals changed drastically and I've yet to get the first egg. And, I grew out of the expensive coop I bought and run, and DH built me a thrice as big coop from online plans, and we're still working on the run. 4 chicks turned into 12 chicks/pullets and I'm obsessed!!! My, goals can change!

 

[ejcrist]

I wish I'd read this before I started, also. I began this past summer and I thought my goal was layers. And it was. But after reading about the breeds I thought I had (from a feed store, obviously from a hatchery), I decided I wanted blue laced red wyandottes. Those I also got from feed store. Also was dissapointed to learn I had a production red, not a RIR. And, it turned into a cockeral!! The buff orpington I had turned out to be an easter egger, and it also turned into a roo! So then I HAD to get a true BO, which I did. She's about 4 mths. So, still waiting on my first egg (oldest are 24 wks), I decided I wanted a fancy orp and went to a breeder. 10 times as much as a feed store chicken, but now I have weeks old gold laced brahma, silver laced and reversed silver laced orps and a true ameraucana. So my goals changed drastically and I've yet to get the first egg. And, I grew out of the expensive coop I bought and run, and DH built me a thrice as big coop from online plans, and we're still working on the run. 4 chicks turned into 12 chicks/pullets and I'm obsessed!!! My, goals can change!

Very nice coop! Yeah, my story is a lot like yours too. I started out just wanting eggs and fertilizer for my garden. After going to a few shows and seeing what the SOP birds looked like I figured out I wanted those instead. I was a little angry at first because I felt like the hatcheries were pulling the wool over our eyes with false advertising. After calming down and searching for the birds I wanted I quickly found out how difficult it was to locate and acquire SOP birds. As a result I naturally wanted to breed them since it's not practical to purchase SOP birds every time you might want to add a few. Also after realizing how rare and hard to come by SOP birds were I figured I'd be doing them a service by breeding and showing them. I still maintain my layers because I like them for laying - they're very hard to beat for that, and the hatcheries do an excellent job of providing good laying birds on demand which is what most people want. Most aren't at all concerned about whether their RIR has the correct type, tail angle, colors, etc., and so the hatchery birds meet their needs just fine. Personally though I'd prefer to do the legwork and be patient/wait to locate the correct breeds. I also don't mind paying more for birds that are true to the breed.

 

[chelsiemom]

what kind of birds do you raise and breed? SOP means standards of perfection?

 

[ejcrist]

what kind of birds do you raise and breed? SOP means standards of perfection?

Yes ma'am. That's the standards put out by the APA (American Poultry Association). For Bantams they're put out by the ABA (American Bantam Association).

I'll be breeding Barred Rocks, Rhode Island Reds, and Buff Orpingtons (American variety). I'm brand new at it but I obtained the RIR's and BR's from a local breeder who's also an APA judge and has been helping me get started. I got the BO's from a different local breeder about 4 hrs drive from my house. The BO breeder is new like me but he has some experience under his belt so we exchange notes. I've been trying to acquire Single Comb Light Brown Leghorn breeding stock but I haven't had any luck yet. I'm confident I'll be able to get some in the coming year; there just aren't that many Leghorn breeders around. I did a lot of research and found a couple that will have birds available so I've been keeping in touch with them so I make sure I get at least a trio. I don't know if you've ever seen an SOP Brown Leghorn but they are a true sight to behold. I never saw such a beautiful bird.

If you're interested in any particular breed you might want to find the club that breeds them. For RIR's it's the Rhode Island Red Club of America (http://rirca.poultrysites.com/). The dues are cheap and the people are great at helping you get on your feet. Also consider joining the APA and getting a copy of the latest Standard of Perfection - it's a wealth of information on all the recognized breeds and you'll definitely need it if you decide to get into breeding.

 

[chelsiemom]

Yes ma'am. That's the standards put out by the APA (American Poultry Association). For Bantams they're put out by the ABA (American Bantam Association).

I'll be breeding Barred Rocks, Rhode Island Reds, and Buff Orpingtons (American variety). I'm brand new at it but I obtained the RIR's and BR's from a local breeder who's also an APA judge and has been helping me get started. I got the BO's from a different local breeder about 4 hrs drive from my house. The BO breeder is new like me but he has some experience under his belt so we exchange notes. I've been trying to acquire Single Comb Light Brown Leghorn breeding stock but I haven't had any luck yet. I'm confident I'll be able to get some in the coming year; there just aren't that many Leghorn breeders around. I did a lot of research and found a couple that will have birds available so I've been keeping in touch with them so I make sure I get at least a trio. I don't know if you've ever seen an SOP Brown Leghorn but they are a true sight to behold. I never saw such a beautiful bird.

If you're interested in any particular breed you might want to find the club that breeds them. For RIR's it's the Rhode Island Red Club of America (http://rirca.poultrysites.com/). The dues are cheap and the people are great at helping you get on your feet. Also consider joining the APA and getting a copy of the latest Standard of Perfection - it's a wealth of information on all the recognized breeds and you'll definitely need it if you decide to get into breeding.

WOW. Don't know that I'd ever be interested in showing, but I mapquested you and you're about 4 hours from me. I'm def going to get a quality RIR at some point. Just learning about the english orpington... Who knows which direction the hobby will go for anyone?

 

[CoopintheWoods]

I got my flock of 14 as day-olds from My Pet Chicken. They ship the birds well, and their customer service is great.