Musings about Chickens

So, Frugal Baby has pets. More pets than a 2-year-old should have. 11 pets, if you count the dog. 9 fat hens and an obnoxious rooster that is about to be fed to the gators out back.

 We've had the chickens for roughly 6-9 months. They produce roughly 6-9 eggs a day, more than we can keep up with. So I asked around and found a few people willing to buy some.

 Then, of course, my brain went into overdrive. Would it be worth it to sell them? Would we break even? Here are the 'musings' I threw together.

 It takes 4 lbs of feed to produce a dozen eggs.
 1 hen eats 1/4 a lb of feed per day.
 For 9 hens, that's 2.25 lbs of feed per day.
That's 821.25 lbs per year, or 16 50-lb bags per year.
A 50-lb bag cost roughly $15.
That's $246.38 a year.
 If our 9 hens produce 6-9 eggs a day, that's a roughly a dozen eggs every 2 days, or 183 dozen per year.
If I sell them for $2.50 a dozen, that's $457.50 a year.

 The cost of cartons for 183 dozen would be roughly $40.

 Total cost per year - $287.
Total profit per year - $170.5

. If we can cut feed costs, there would be a bit more profit. Either way, Anna's chickens can feed us and our friends without breaking the bank, and she'll have a bit to put in her Coverdell account! Because, you know, every 2-year-old worries about their college savings account.

 Peace out!
 ~Frugal Mama