Poultry Talk Ontario (pto.ca)

I don't know about you guys but I have had a few people that called about buying ready to lay hens. I don't have any but when I ask the people what they want to spend I always get back, "I only want to spend between $5 to $10 not anything more"! Ya well good luck with that! This drives me bananas. Let me see, I spend all fall and winter dealing with frozen water, frozen , buying feed, doing chores in the dark before work, trying to keep the girls happy and healthy and wow, you are going to give me a whole five dollars for all that!!! Makes me glad I am not doing that anymore!

If I may suggest, when they reply with a $5-10 spending limit, tell them you don't have any.

For me it's even more than people not recognizing your work and effort in getting birds to that age. If you're that cheap then there's no way I'm sending a bird home with you. Because my guess would be that you would not provide adequate food, care and safe housing.

The only way anyone gets ready to lay for 5-10$ here is if its their allowance money saved up for monthsfrom cutting moms lawn (or dads lawn) so they can get a chicken for 4H and they are under the age of 13.

Even feed stores are more than that.

I tell them I don't have any but I ask how much they are willing to spend in case I hear of someone trying to sell birds. Five dollars tells me enough about them that I would never recommend a friend to them. You can't hardly get good chicks for five bucks!

I know someone who got some for $4 a piece, they asked me if they looked old, (not making this up) I told them no.... the birds didn't look too old, according to the length of their spurs..... they are under two years!

Back to, you get what you pay for.
There will always be people who sell hens for $4 and I guess if you want soup, they may be just the thing.
"Ready to lay" suggests pullets that are coming in to their first lay and even the worst mutts are worth $ 12-15 at that point.
But there will always be people dumping birds they no longer want, and there will always be people to whom chicken is a chicken is a chicken.
They will be a bit surprised that there aren't too many eggs, but not for long, because the hens will soon disappear, and they will decide that it was the chickens or the people who they bought them from, who are to blame.

Skinny rooster wrote: ↑

Sat Apr 07, 2018 1:37 pm

I tell them I don't have any but I ask how much they are willing to spend in case I hear of someone trying to sell birds. Five dollars tells me enough about them that I would never recommend a friend to them. You can't hardly get good chicks for five bucks!

I know someone who got some for $4 a piece, they asked me if they looked old, (not making this up) I told them no.... the birds didn't look too old, according to the length of their spurs..... they are under two years!

Bahahahaha hahahahaha!

Couvoir Simetin - a Quebec hatchery near Mirabel airport was in business 52 years and shutdown last July (they probably couldn't compete with new gov't rules and regs, not to mention against the big hatcheries)!

and I clearly recall their recent catalog had "ready to lay" birds at $8 each. (i thought about buying a truckfull and reselling)

Freys (last year) was at $14 each minimum order 20 birds, with a $20 delivery fee (to Ottawa)

people (myself included) will pay as little as they can.