'm aspiring to go into poultry production,pullet to be precised.I just want to know which one would be more economical and less risky in starting with point of lay or day old chick....i've seen a reputable farm that agreed to sell 16wks pols weighting 1.1kg at average at 1450... which of them can one easily break even and make more profit?



16weeks pol at 1450 with up-to-date vaccination and

day old chick at 160naira

farmers pls advise me

Go for day old chicks and learn as you grow your business.

adisabarber:
Go for day old chicks and learn as you grow your business.

thank u.what about cost of raising them to 16wks and risk of mortality esp during brooding

I would advise you to start with POL...and expand with day old chick...

Kingsley10000:
thank u.what about cost of raising them to 16wks and risk of mortality esp during brooding

Its not as difficult as it sounds. Get birds from reputable hatchery or agent. Follow a good vaccination and medication programme. Observe good sanitation around your farm. Believe me, you will have no problem. As for cost, just believe it will cost less than the amount someone offered you POL to raise them.

adisabarber:


Its not as difficult as it sounds. Get birds from reputable hatchery or agent. Follow a good vaccination and medication programme. Observe good sanitation around your farm. Believe me, you will have no problem. As for cost, just believe it will cost less than the amount someone offered you POL to raise them.

OK,maybe i'll do it 50 50(to evaluate the best for me)

For a first timer like you I think it would be better to start with point of lay because of the risks involved.after test running with Pol you can now raise doc yourself

oluwasemipe:
For a first timer like you I think it would be better to start with point of lay because of the risks involved.after test running with Pol you can now raise doc yourself

Thank u sir

My brother, there is nothing in brooding, get ur DOC at a reputable hatchery and just get someone who knws about raising DOC to just direct u or give u hint to follow. At end u will see dat u raised successfully and it will expand ur knowledge about raising and different vaccines and medications using in raising birds, and the the end u will b an expert to guide. Apart from that it will reduced the cost to the amount of POL. But if u a busy type that will not have time during brooding or u need fast flowing of production, you can go for a reputable farm to get ur POL.

With all sincerity, I will advise you to go for day Old Chicks from reputable farms like AMOO, ZARTECH, OBASANJO. Start with a few number and learn the act with it and you will be able to build your confidence along the rearing period.
As a starter, you shouldn't shy away from learning from the successful practising farmers and NOT from the INTERNET farmers.
And you wouldn't regret your action.

Thank you all that contributed

for a start I will suggest you get point of lay birds,they may be more "expensive" but if u consider the mortality u may incur raising them as doc,early chicks mortality,gumboro etc plus inexperience may make u spend double raising them if you r not careful as everyone may want a piece of u and you not wanting to make mistake will lead to u following every advice increasing ur cost of production instead of reducing it as u ll want d " best" which is costly, also your birds are not guaranteed to lay within twenty weeks so u may have issues while raising them that could force u to start looking for buyers to reduce ur birds so as to raise more capital to complete d few u have, but I'm sure u are aware egg is a seasonal product too so you have to time your birds as well so they don't start during glut otherwise it's another recipe for losing ur money as d eggs ll be small and u may not be able to compete at that time,so seek plenty information before u commit plus most importantly, try even if u start for ur birds to be in cages when they start laying that's when u ll really enjoy being a farmer,welcome to d club,cheers

<<what do you mean that eggs are seasonal product,do you mean there are seasons of the year one encounters low productivity or reduced hen day production?...there is no egg glut in my area,eggs go as high as 60naira and 1300-1400per crate...i have booked 70pol and will book 100doc by febuary

Kingsley10000:
<<what do you mean that eggs are seasonal product,do you mean there are seasons of the year one encounters low productivity or reduced hen day production?...there is no egg glut in my area,eggs go as high as 60naira and 1300-1400per crate...i have booked 70pol and will book 100doc by febuary

egg is a seasonal product is there are times when there will be plenty of eggs in the market especially during heat periods between March to may,d prices of egg will be low due to low demand and u may practically beg to sell your eggs, if ur farm is big,its very common if you are in d north don't know about south,also during cold season,ur birds lay more and you tend to have very high demand like that's what u r experiencing now that made d price as high as u just quoted,its not always d case and u as a farmer may not be able to sell for that price,thats d shop price,from august to February,currently we sell in d farm for 900 and when schools r on holidays u may have a little lull in sales too, with all due respect,70 birds in layers is quite small as that's less than two crates daily, d least u should aim for is 100 birds for a start so they can eat half bag otherwise broilers will suit u more except u r doing it for friends and family consumption and learning d ropes cos u may not get value compared to d stress, also ur cost of vaccinations ll be high alongside so many factors,layers is a very long term biz so be prepared from d begining to go all d way and I'm sure u have a vet that ll guide u through d process cos online forums may help but may not always be very practical when u r in d biz cos too many cooks spoil d broth

Isa thanks for this insight..

Isa4Abu I wouldn't have said any better, OP I'll recommend Isa4Abu advice.

isah4abu:

egg is a seasonal product is there are times when there will be plenty of eggs in the market especially during heat periods between March to may,d prices of egg will be low due to low demand and u may practically beg to sell your eggs, if ur farm is big,its very common if you are in d north don't know about south,also during cold season,ur birds lay more and you tend to have very high demand like that's what u r experiencing now that made d price as high as u just quoted,its not always d case and u as a farmer may not be able to sell for that price,thats d shop price,from august to February,currently we sell in d farm for 900 and when schools r on holidays u may have a little lull in sales too, with all due respect,70 birds in layers is quite small as that's less than two crates daily, d least u should aim for is 100 birds for a start so they can eat half bag otherwise broilers will suit u more except u r doing it for friends and family consumption and learning d ropes cos u may not get value compared to d stress, also ur cost of vaccinations ll be high alongside so many factors,layers is a very long term biz so be prepared from d begining to go all d way and I'm sure u have a vet that ll guide u through d process cos online forums may help but may not always be very practical when u r in d biz cos too many cooks spoil d broth

Half bag is 1550 , two crates 1800, though u will likely get more than 2 crates. Mehn the gain is poor..well am equally learning

jfkenny:

Half bag is 1550 , two crates 1800, though u will likely get more than 2 crates. Mehn the gain is poor..well am equally learning

truth is poultry farming is one of the most lucrative agricultural ventures one can go into but it take patience and skill plus capital to make it in d biz,personally I prefer layer to broiler simply because one is always never broke ,if u r someone like me that like money a lot and want to make it legitimately then u r good to go,it has its own risks as its not a bed of roses, for broilers except u have an established market,its most profitable during seasons like Xmas,easter etc and having to wait and be doing plenty maths is not my thing, layer all u need to do is time when to put them,when they r expected to start laying,make a budget and if u r lucky they start within that period,ur primary duty is to ensure u get d maximum output from your birds by guarding against whatever ll make them sick or die, definitely people ll buy your egg if u r willing to take d pain to make yourself known it will only be a challenge if u go into it with very high expectations as there may be times d egg ll drop despite u doing everything right and it ll only take prayers,patience and persistence to bring them back to laying,d money isn't from eggs alone as people also buy d litter and depending on d season can range from 500 to 2500 per bag of litter so its a win win for u,but u start making good money if I have d space and capacity to start from 500 birds reason being that,u will experience mortality,not all your birds will get to lay and economy of scale,u don't need to buy fully processed feed as u can make concentrate which ll drive down ur cost of feeding,why I advocated cages initially was cos u get to save space and since they don't move around u get better and cleaner eggs plus less feed wastage which ll increase ur profit,starting I recommend pol cos doc is stressful if u don't have d right brooding facilities plus having to wait six month in a biz isn't easy,if u already have laying birds,they can comfortably raise your doc for u minimising ur stress but u have d final choice but I ll encourage u to go for it,best biz in d world as far as I'm concerned as given d opportunity despite d challenges I ll gladly do it in my second life.

Thanks dear, when is the right time to stock. I currently have 50 black boom layers that started laying at 19 weeks 2 days not up to 3 weeks now I picked 45 eggs yesterday. I am considering buying tetra long life from Niger birds or I should stick with boom.