Your plans for the year? Egg prices and such

[3KillerBs]

Kalmbach Flock Maker 20% has stayed the same here, maybe gone up $1-2 a bag. I get it for $22.59 for 50 pounds. With an offer to carry it out to my car, no less.

Wow, if I knew I had that option, I'd be hatching eggs all the time! Well, maybe. Two summers ago, I could not give away two 4 month old problem cockerels as "chicken dinner, some disassembly required."

I had my give-away batch gone in a single day.

Sometimes I can sell them for $5 each, sometimes not.

 

[Saveria]

Yeah, people hand out roosters all the time in VT. If the recipient wants them or the breed, and they are a good rooster, I have gotten up to $10 a bird. Problem ones seem to go pretty fast, too, (I am assuming for free) but maybe that is because lots of people still slaughter their own birds up here. For almost an extra century, food was harder to come by in VT than other places in New England, so it is as though the land and the people never forgot how to do it themselves. I'll bet that is true in a lot of remote and/or mountainous areas.

We are buying extra chicks of each breed that we want from McMurray's and we are going to sell them to friends and neighbors, either as chicks (at cost) or feathered out (for profit). A lot of people don't want the headache of brooding, and I think of it as a community service to get as much poultry as possible out into the surrounding area.

 

[SourRoses]

Dumb question, but did he know that roosters don't lay eggs? I want to hatch some of my own eggs to expand the flock, but the one thing holding me back is the stress of rehoming extra roosters. But if there is actually demand for roosters, hmm....

It's not a dumb question at all, we've encountered people who don't know the difference! So that is something we try to bring up if they don't sound like they have experience.

This guy in particular had chickens of his own and was going to process the roosters. He may be back for more from my project pen.

Honestly, it's hit and miss in our area. The fall was a difficult time to move chickens, both roosters, and even POL pullets required more advertising work than they should. But then, *poof* everyone now wants anything remotely chicken'ey.

I think part of it is people wanting to breed to supply chicks to meet the demand. I was able to choose between 4 potential homes for an excess pure Ameraucana rooster.

Your area may be different. Perhaps try monitoring your local craigslist to see what people are offering and how long their adds stay up or get reposted.

 

[TooCheep]

I'm upgrading from 3 backyard hens to 4 for my small property as I want more eggs and will be putting them on a 2-new/year rotation.

Since my local farm store will only sell a minimum of 6, I plan to get 6 consisting of 3 layers and 3 meat birds. This will give me a spare layer in case of surprises and will also give me a meat harvest each year. I only sell a half-dozen/week to a good neighbor, but that money covers my feeds costs (at least for the three), so I consider it very fair.

Unfortunately, I don't have a large enough setup to justify a rooster and broody hens or even an incubator or I would seriously consider them to get away from having to rely on farm stores or hatcheries.

 

[3KillerBs]

It's not a dumb question at all, we've encountered people who don't know the difference! So that is something we try to bring up if they don't sound like they have experience.

Yep.

I have had a number of people asking if the cockerels I had for sale were laying yet.

I have repeatedly explained that these were young males.

A little later this spring I'm going to try selling trios since I'll be cycling out some hens.

 

[LoriFry53]

Having been out of town for a while, then collecting my own eggs, I had not checked prices until I casually glanced at eggs in Aldi. I was shocked to see them go for $4 and up.

I have 5 hens that lay regularly, no production lines, just 'casual' layers. I have plenty of eggs for our needs, I can give a few away to our friends.

However, I am considering adding a few this spring. (chicken math?)
I am sure I won't though, because I would need to do some restructuring in the setup. Not sure if I can get that done. life is rough right now.

has anybody - ordinances and zoning permitting - enlarged their flock to deal with the insanity of the market right now?
or are you going the other way, reducing the size to combat feed bills?

Predators got about 1/2 of our free-range flock last year, so we added 10 leghorn pullets to our flock Sept 1st, and they started laying last week at 4 1/2 weeks, which is why we get leghorns. Eggs are small now but won't be for long. We love to eat them and give away to family but plan on selling at 5.00 a dozen next month when we're all stocked up again. Feed prices are only up a few dollars from last year, 22.30 for a 50# bag of 16% egg ration pellets. No license fees required if we sell from our little hobby farm. We didn't know there would be an egg shortage this year, but happy to fill the needs of our friends and neighbors!

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I am doing "chicken math". Which is to say I'm removing old layers entering their third year, and replacing them with new hatchlings. Half of which will go to freezer camp (lucky boys!), a couple of which will join the boys (wrong coloration), others will punish the feed bill (I feed hatchlings better than adults, go ahead, ask me why!).

I plan to keep "around" 50 birds. and to turn the F'n ducks into sausage - though I will likely hatch another batch of them, cause I'm stupid (and institutional inertia)

 

[Brooks_]

I am doing "chicken math". Which is to say I'm removing old layers entering their third year, and replacing them with new hatchlings. Half of which will go to freezer camp (lucky boys!), a couple of which will join the boys (wrong coloration), others will punish the feed bill (I feed hatchlings better than adults, go ahead, ask me why!).

I plan to keep "around" 50 birds. and to turn the F'n ducks into sausage - though I will likely hatch another batch of them, cause I'm stupid (and institutional inertia)

Sounds like a good plan.

 

[nuthatched]

I am doing "chicken math". Which is to say I'm removing old layers entering their third year, and replacing them with new hatchlings. Half of which will go to freezer camp (lucky boys!), a couple of which will join the boys (wrong coloration), others will punish the feed bill (I feed hatchlings better than adults, go ahead, ask me why!).

I plan to keep "around" 50 birds. and to turn the F'n ducks into sausage - though I will likely hatch another batch of them, cause I'm stupid (and institutional inertia)

Do ducks make good sausage?

 

[Chookwagn]