After settling on a breed, variety and strain, your next decision is whether to purchase newly hatched chicks or grown chickens. Starting with chicks is less expensive than buying the same number of mature birds, and the chicks will grow up knowing their home territory. Some breeds and hybrids are sold sexed, meaning you know when you buy them how many are cockerels and how many are pullets (young hens). Most chicks are sold straight-run, meaning as-hatched; in this case, about half will be cockerels and half pullets. Sexed chicks are more expensive than straight-run chicks. Starting with grown birds carries certain risks, among them the greater likelihood of buying diseased or spent chickens. To make sure you are getting young chickens, look for legs that are smooth and clean and breastbones that are soft and flexible. Advantages to purchasing older chickens are that you can easily tell the roosters from the hens and, if you plan to show, you can determine how typey they are. If you will be raising the chickens for meat or eggs, you won’t have to wait as long if you purchase started birds. Where you buy your chickens depends on what kind you want. If you want a production breed or hybrid, get chicks from a commercial hatchery. If none is nearby, deal with a reputable firm that ships by mail. You may find chicks at a local feed store, although chances are you won’t be able to learn much about what they are or where they came from. Avoid bargain chicks that come free with your first purchase of a sack of feed; they are likely to be excess cockerels of a laying breed. Dual-purpose breeds are sold by hatcheries, as well as by individuals who advertise in local newspapers. Visiting the seller lets you see what the flock looks like and the conditions under which the birds are raised.
The best place to find sellers of an exhibition breed is at a poultry show. Many people enter shows just to advertise their chickens for sale. Even if you can’t buy chickens at the show (most shows prohibit on-site sales), you will meet people who have chickens for sale at home, and you can connect with a local, regional, or national association that promotes the breed that interests you. Chickens sold by a hatchery are not likely to be show quality. Top-quality exhibition birds are quite expensive. In making your final selection, the main thing to look for is good health. Chicks should be bright-eyed and perky. If they come by mail, open the box in front of the mail carrier, in case something has gone wrong and you need to file a claim. In grown chickens, signs of good health include the following: • Feathers that are smooth and shiny, not dull or ruffled • Eyes that are bright, not watery or sunken • Legs that are smooth and clean, not rough and dirty • Combs that are full and bright, not shrunken and dull • Soundless breathing; no coughing, sneezing, or rattling sounds When you visit a seller, whistle as you approach the flock. The chickens will pause to listen, letting you ea hear any unusual breathing sounds. Before taking home your selection, look under each chicken’s wing and around the vent under its tail to make sure it isn’t crawling with body parasites. How many chickens you take home depends, again, on your purpose in keeping them. If you are interested in egg production, determine how many eggs you want per day, divide that number by two, and multiply by three. If you want, for example, six eggs per day, you’ll need at least nine hens. Since hens don’t lay at the same rate all year long, sometimes you’ll have more eggs than you can use, and other times you’ll have too few. It’s the nature of the game. If you want a dual-purpose breeding flock, 50 chickens is a good number to have. If you wish to raise chickens for show or as pets, a trio (one cock and two hens) makes a nice little family. FYI: Head Shaking: A chicken that shakes its head from side to side is telling you that you have frightened it by moving too Fast or being too loud. Next: Handling Chickens |