Chicks on the way.

[bakerjw]

Our Chicks are finally on the way.
The USPS is handling the delivery which ALWAYS concerns me with their track record this year.
Supposedly, they will call when the chicks get to the local distribution center in case I want to pick them up there. A few years back, they moved our mail sort from here in Johnson City to Knoxville which is a 100 mile trip each way.
We will see how they perform with this precious system.

We're getting
12 White Plymouth rock hens.
6 White Plymouth rock unsexed <- Should be 3 and 3
12 Buff Orpington hens.
6 Buff Orpington unsexed <- Should be 3 and 3
12 Americauna unsexed. <- Should be 6 and 6

Hatcheries will seed unsexed chicks with all roosters sometimes. I just want to have a good shot at 3 roosters of each breed.

[pworley1]

You will buried in eggs before you know it. If you don't already have a market for them, now is the time to start working on customers.

[bakerjw]

I've had chickens for many years. They are a very hot commodity here at work. I have to have an egg day one day a week.

ETA... I was really hatching them a few years back. At one time we had close to 80 white rocks in one run and another 50 silver seabrights in another.

[Dunross]

I bought chicks local this year so as to avoid the whole USPS delivery delays problems. They've been a lot better these last several months compared to what they were in February and March when I usually order chicks.

Ordering straight-run is always a crap shoot. Sometimes it's 50/50 and sometimes it's 70/30 and once even 80/20.

[namsag]

Uhhh.....oh. Never mind.

[dverna]

Eggs are $1.25/doz and sometimes less.

Chicken quarters are $.39-.59/ lb when we catch the sales. This week drumsticks are $.59/lb...we will get 20-30 lbs.

We have people who gives us eggs for free....we do not want them....got sick twice. We throw them out.

I know....store bought isn’t the same. That is what my buddy tells me and why they raise chickens. They stopped raising egg layers as they were swamped with eggs. Now they only raise meat chickens but his wife insists on organic feed.

Now hear this.....

They are poor and their special treat is....here it comes...a bucket of KFC!!

[bakerjw]

Bird eggs are really amazing things. They have what is called "Bloom" on them. It is an antibacterial coating that can protect them for several months. We've found free range hens having laid a lot of eggs in the oddest of places months later. We float them in water. If they float, they've developed bacteria in them and the gasses inside raise the buoyancy. If they sink, then they're good.
I get $3.00 a dozen no questions asked and it offsets the feed.

[memtb]

Congratulations! I can’t seem to finish our fenced chicken are or our coop. Perhaps one day! :wink: memtb

[rkrcpa]

We have six hens, egg production has been spotty at best. We'll get a lot of eggs for a few months and then nothing for a month.

[farmerjim]

We have six hens, egg production has been spotty at best. We'll get a lot of eggs for a few months and then nothing for a month.

Chickens stop laying when the days get short. Put a 100 W bulb in the hen house. They will continue laying. They also stop for a while when they molt. After molting they will not lay as many eggs.

My neighbor will get 2 eggs a day from one of his hens. She lays one egg in the morning. He gives her a cup of beer at lunch. She forgets that she already laid an egg in the morning, and so she lays another one in the afternoon.

[dale2242]

We bought 6 chicks last year.
We knew nothing about raising chickens.
this site was helpful.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/

[farmbif]

"chicks on the way" initial though ---I was 17 again going to the beach.
sounds like you should have productive flock with all those chicks

[gwpercle]

My Uncle raised chickens ...
We had to do all the dirty work ... the roosters are mean , they peck you , chase you and worst of all ...
... They Crow at DAYBREAK ..every freaking day ...!!!

I HATE ROOSTERS in particular and chickens in general , except when properly fried or stewed ....
Have fun with your chickens ... I hope you enjoy getting up at daybreak .
Gary

[bakerjw]

We bought 6 chicks last year.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/
I was a regular there for many years. One of my Silver Seabright roosters was Chicken of the month one time too. The Wisconsin Historical Society was doing a book on early pioneer survival and one section was livestock. someone in the society happened onto BYC and saw the picture of Laru, as he was called, and asked permission to use it in the book. All I asked was a copy of the book and for myself and BYC to get a mention. Great book.


My Uncle raised chickens ...
We had to do all the dirty work ... the roosters are mean , they peck you , chase you and worst of all ...
... They Crow at DAYBREAK ..every freaking day ...!!!

I HATE ROOSTERS in particular and chickens in general , except when properly fried or stewed ....
Have fun with your chickens ... I hope you enjoy getting up at daybreak .
Gary
I am up between 4:00 and 5:00 AM every day so no big deal. All part of county life.
Some roosters are mean and are dealt with accordingly and just like any other animal, one needs to know how to deal with them. Once they learn that there are roosters above them in the pecking order, all is well. There is a fine line between a cowardly rooster and one that is too aggressive. A good rooster will stand down a hawk.

UPDATE....
They shipped last night and arrived in town this morning. I got the call at 11:00 and by noon, they were in the brooder running all over the place. They always throw in extras so we ended up with 54.

286051

[Dunross]

Roosters crow at day break. They crow at 11:00am, noon, one, five, and six. They crow after dark and in the pre-dawn hours. Dogs bark at all of those very same times. Trucks go by, sirens sound, planes and/or helicopters go by. It's all in what you would rather hear. I'd rather hear roosters crowing than a dog that barks all hours of the day and night and much worse sirens and traffic noise all the time.

As for laying as a general rule the older the bird the less they will lay. Whatever a hen lays in her first lay cycle (roughly six months to a year and a half of age) is 100% of what she is capable of laying. Each succeeding lay cycle she will lay 20% less (again, generally). If they are just pets keep them as long as you like. If the feed costs have to pencil out against the value of the eggs then every second year replace all of them.

I've been keeping birds for 30+ years now. Used to be a regular on BYC at one time. Used to sell 40+ dozen eggs a week. Keeping animals of any kind is not for everyone. If they don't do it for you then find something else to do. Can you produce your own eggs cheaper than what you can buy them from the store? It's a near certainty you cannot, but there is more to value than simple dollars and cents otherwise we would all shoot bulk-pack .22lr and cheapo blasting ammo. It all (usually) goes bang.

[gwpercle]

Eggs are $1.25/doz and sometimes less.

Chicken quarters are $.39-.59/ lb when we catch the sales. This week drumsticks are $.59/lb...we will get 20-30 lbs.

We have people who gives us eggs for free....we do not want them....got sick twice. We throw them out.

I know....store bought isn’t the same. That is what my buddy tells me and why they raise chickens. They stopped raising egg layers as they were swamped with eggs. Now they only raise meat chickens but his wife insists on organic feed.

Now hear this.....

They are poor and their special treat is....here it comes...a bucket of KFC!!

Freaking Awesome story ... I am laughing so hard I can hardly type !!!
Thanks for smiles ... I needed a good laugh
Gary

[dverna]

Freaking Awesome story ... I am laughing so hard I can hardly type !!!
Thanks for smiles ... I needed a good laugh
Gary

And TRUE!!

Forgot to mention....they buy organic feed from the Amish. It is an 85 mile round trip. They have a 2001 Chevy pickup that gets maybe 20 mpg. They cannot afford more than 2-3 bags of feed at a time. They pay to have the chickens butchered. Would not surprise me if their chicken meat is $4/lb.

Great people....but poor for a reason.

[farmbif]

I guess chicken at the store is real cheap in northern Michigan but here in East Tennessee whole fryers are at least $1/lb and the last big pkg of thighs I bought at Walmart was like $2.29lb.
one thing for sure home raised chickens that get to roam around some and get bugs and worms and mice and whatever sure do have a whole bunch more flavor than the store bought stuff. I would have a bunch of yardbirds if it weren't for the out of control coyotes, bobcats and feral cats that infest the forests here.

[bakerjw]

Here at Food City in N.E. Tn, whole fryers are typically $.99/lb. Every 3rd or 4th week thighs or wings are also $.99/lb. Prices cycle monthly or so.

There is a definite difference between free range eggs and ones from the store. Our birds are kept in a run but we're fencing a free range area behind the runs to allow them more free range space.

And they will eat all of the bugs that they can find. Last night we were checking on them and a bug or 2 had found it's way into the pine shavings in the brooder. They didn't last long.

[farmerjim]

I am a morning person. I got up at 3:30 this morning. I love to go outside and look at the stars, and the satellites as they come over.
I love the sound of a rooster crowing in the dawn. I had a mean rooster spike me once. I put my boots on and kicked him around the pen for about 10 minutes. After showing him that he was well below me in the pecking order he never bothered me again. I love Guineas too. Best eggs you ever ate. They are also very noisy and will alert you to any intruders.

[bakerjw]

When grown, roosters are not allowed to mount a hen when I am near. My first hens, 8 red sex links from TSC, considered me the big rooster. They'd come up to my feet, stomp their feet and hunch up their wings encouraging me to mount them. Strange as it sounds, it is how hens gain favor with the rooster and in a flock it is all about the pecking order. I'd ruffle their feathers a bit and they'd run off all content. That was a message always sent to the roosters. And I had fantastic roosters.

I'm looking into guineas too. They are annoyingly loud but free range very well. After the hawk problem of last year, I need more watchful eyes.

[dverna]

We bought "farm fresh" eggs for a while. Until we found they were only 50% as advertised ...farm...yes...fresh...not so much.

We like to help out the locals when we can, but we have had a couple of bad experiences so shy away from farm eggs. Farm eggs here go for about 2-3 times the cost of getting them at the store. I know they are not making much money on them as their costs are high.

We spend less than $75 a year on eggs. Tomorrow we are hitting the sale at Freddie's (https://wesellstuffcheaper.com/ads) and getting 30 lbs of thighs for $18. That will last us about 6 months.

Food is still too cheap to make it worthwhile to raise livestock or grow a garden. But I understand it being a hobby that gives someone pleasure and better food. Just doubt the economics of it. At 70, all the additives/preservatives in commercial meat might actually help me...LOL.

Going to look for fresh corn for the weekend. There is a farm 12 miles from us that has a great crop every year. they are on the way to town so not a special trip.

[bakerjw]

You really need to know the people where you buy your eggs. People who stop by our house to buy eggs usually get a tour of the coops and are introduced to the flocks. We don't do it for money, we do it in case the SHTF. Selling eggs offsets the costs of feed.

And now I have 18 fertilized guinea eggs on the way.

[jaysouth]

I am a morning person. I got up at 3:30 this morning. I love to go outside and look at the stars, and the satellites as they come over.
I love the sound of a rooster crowing in the dawn. I had a mean rooster spike me once. I put my boots on and kicked him around the pen for about 10 minutes. After showing him that he was well below me in the pecking order he never bothered me again. I love Guineas too. Best eggs you ever ate. They are also very noisy and will alert you to any intruders.

If you can keep owls and coyotes from killing your guinea fowls, they eat their weight in ticks about once a week. The only more efficient tick "predator" is opossums. The guinea fowl are also very tasty but get tough as they get older.