Gunner Quinn
The Current Situation
The White House suggested, via the Press Secretary, that over 100 million chickens have died, or been destroyed, over bird flu. I noticed that the price of eggs has gone up exponentially, so I polled my group of friends in an online homesteading forum, asking what they are seeing. I also asked family members who live across the country. The highest price I heard of from a family member in California was $10 per dozen for grocery store eggs. Locally where I live, free-range chicken eggs are about $5-to-$6 per dozen.
Eggs have been a standard for an inexpensive protein source “forever”. When people couldn’t afford to buy meat, they could buy eggs and count on that to meet protein needs. That is no longer true. The situation is fairly devastating for the population, not just chicken farmers.
The price of eggs and chicken meat will continue to rise, at least in the next several months, in my opinion. Primarily because it takes at least two months to grow out meat birds and 5-6 months to raise layer chickens before they start laying eggs. Not to mention the cost and time of reconstruction after having to burn down the chicken housing, as is required in large chicken operations after a bird flu infection.
The other price that has soared is the cost of chicks. I went in search of chicks to “refresh” my flock, something I like to do every year or every other year. I found prices anywhere from almost $3/chick to $7/chick depending upon breed. If you buy large quantities, say a minimum of 50 chicks, you can get that price under $3 per chick in some places. The Cornish Cross chicks, commonly used for meat birds, used to be cheap. I’ve purchased them for $1/chick in the past. You’d have to purchase over 500 female chicks to get that price under $3/chick (from one hatchery I’ve used many times). These are incredibly high prices for chicks.
If you are raising meat birds “organically”, the cost of the chick + the grower feed makes that table-ready chicken very expensive. Expect to spend a lot of money on chicken this year if you are used to “organic” chicken. Or learn to make one expensive whole chicken go a long way via casseroles or soups, using pastas, grains, and beans as fillers.
I’m not here to debate bird flu testing (faulty PCR tests) or government policy, or even conspiracy theories, but I know this: If your homestead or farm chickens are healthy, you are good to go. Bird flu can wipe out entire flocks within 48 hours. If you wake up to dead birds, then you have a problem. You can take the slow route and quarantine sick birds, or you can take the fast route and cull all of them. There is a lot of “noise” in the dairy communities over bird flu. It is suggested that it can infect the cows. However, the cows can recover with treatment. Their milk can be discarded during that time. I don’t think there is a “dairy cow emergency”, although the idea is being hyped up in the media, and especially in regards to “the dangers of raw milk”. My milk cows are regularly tested for disease and have shown no signs of illness.
Conversely, the cost of chicken feed has not gone up recently, and I suspect there may be an abundance of feed on the market, so it would be a good time to stock up, in my opinion. At least this is true in my area. If you are able to free-range chickens without predator pressure, feed costs go down dramatically. In any case, make your local chicken farmer your best friend.
What I’m doing in response
I did a “market study” of my area regarding the cost of eggs, chicks, and chicken meat. Prices are high here too even though I live in a rural area where a lot of people have backyard chickens. I’ve had horrible luck raising meat birds due to the predator issues, so I’ve been buying chicken meat from Costco. And I’m very picky about what I buy and usually go the organic route. I recently paid $7/lb for organic chicken. Ouch. I can get chicken fairly cheaply from the Amish, but they do not follow organic practices here. Locals who grow out organically raised chicken meat are charging at least $7.50/lb. Locally grown, non-organic chickens usually go for about $4/lb. “Non-organic” is to say they are not fed organic grains. Most people in the homesteading groups are raising meat birds in a cooperative fashion, exchanging butchering help for meat as payment. Great idea! I am considering participating in this approach.
A few years ago I invested in chicken butchering equipment (plucker, scalder, knives, cones, etc.), none of which you actually need to butcher chickens but it speeds up the process. After several of my meat bird flocks were wiped out by the coyotes, I almost sold the equipment. But, instead, I solved the coyote problem with Livestock Guardian Dogs, and kept the equipment. Turns out that was a good decision.
I bought a good incubator. I will be raising my own chicks to “refresh” my flock and I can sell the extras I’m sure. Now that I have my predator problem under control, I can hope to keep a good sized flock of chickens going for a long time. You don’t have to invest in an incubator if you’ve already got some good, broody, hens who will raise chicks for you. I have only had one broody hen in all these years and she only raised two chicks who were picked off by predators, so that doesn’t work well for me. Coyotes and Bobcats are not the only problem. Hawks and turkey vultures are also prevalent here.
I do not “take advantage” of my farm customers when prices are high. I keep my prices stable because my farm customers appreciate it. If my feed costs went through the roof, I probably wouldn’t keep a large flock nor sell into my community because it would be financially draining. If I can continue to feed the chickens off the farm, my costs are low after the initial investments. My goal is to not need to buy grain from an outside source. I’m not sure that is fully possible, but we’ll see. The chickens are fed from the large gardens and with excess milk from the cows Spring, Summer, and Fall. They are fed non-GMO grains during winter, but grain is always available to them. They prefer to forage.
I also am in process of enclosing the large chicken run that surrounds the large hen house. This will keep wild birds and smaller animals out of the chicken area. By enclosing, I mean framing, roofing, and hardware cloth walls, so that there is plentiful ventilation, vegetation, and sunlight. My chickens used to roam far and wide, but with predator issues that became problematic so they are all contained now. I’m hoping to create the healthiest environment possible for them without letting them free-range across the farm. The barn cats keep the mouse population down in and around the hen house, so if I enclose it that will keep the barn cats out. I haven’t quite figured out that dynamic yet. The barn cats are extremely helpful. The hen house is built up off the ground and the cats like to hide under the hen house. It may be that I need to keep a couple of barn cats in the chicken run fulltime, but not sure that works in the winter unless I create their own shelter inside the run for them. That is a possibility. I used to have a cat that preferred to live in the hen house. She never bothered the hens or eggs. She was just hunting for mice fulltime and napping the rest of the time.
Moving forward
I do not know how long the “chicken emergency” will last. But, I think my plan that includes better tools for self-sufficiency will hold me in good stead. I guess you could call me an anti-vaxxer because I do not like to vaccinate my animals against disease. Instead, I prefer for them to be born and live in the most natural way possible without intervention. I prefer to provide them with what God intended them to have to the best of my ability in order to grow strong immune systems without the aid of man-made chemicals. However, that idealism comes with heavy responsibilities. We live in a fallen world full of death and disease, predators, and disasters.
In the same way, you can’t just throw dairy cows out into a field, fending for themselves, and expect them to thrive without first determining whether or not their needs can be met by the natural environment. They need good grazing grass, fresh water sources, sunshine, shade, and the ability to stay out of the muck and severe weather. They need a good source of hay, minerals, and salt. For instance, Blackleg is an organism in the soil, endemic in some areas, that will kill a calf within 24 hours. Would I vaccinate against Blackleg if I needed to? You bet I would. Fortunately, I do not have that in my soil here. Achieving the balance of providing what is good for them, and protecting them is a balancing act.
In the same way, the livestock guardian dogs receive veterinary care specifically for spay/neuter, tick prevention, and heartworm meds. The barn cats are looked over every day and are given the care they need as well. Even in my desire to care for all of my animals in the most natural way possible, I recognize that disease can kill my animals.
This is the core of animal husbandry. Sometimes unnatural intervention is necessary to save their lives. (My animal vet is on speed dial). I choose to intervene when necessary rather than to over-medicate as a matter of course. That philosophy is also true for my human life.
Moving forward, this is my plan to survive the “chicken emergency” that is currently in front of us. I may go to Costco and stock up on chicken for the freezer before prices go higher, or use the cooperative approach of raising meat birds with help from the community on butchering day. I hope this helps you plan ahead.
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