Can anyone tell me the approximate monthly cost to maintain a small flock - 6 hens?

I have wanted to raise hens for years and was hoping to do so this spring. The wife announces plans to quit work to be home and raise our baby. Says we can not afford the extra expense right now. Funny how I can afford to hand over my bonus, raise and tax refund to fund that scheme but thats an issue best left to another forum: angry man needs second job (haha)

Thank you

Hi, yeh you guys better talk to someone that can hear you both as it sounds like more than a chicken problem. BUT, i figure it cost me about a dollar a bird per month for my six layers. They also roam for bugs, And I do get 4 to 5 eggs a day. These are cross links. They like the cracked corn and show little interest in layer pellets as they are eating a lot of bugs. Also watching your chickens can be very comming and insightful. good luck to you ALL.

Scratch - thanks for the info. I am sure things will work out. By nature I am sarcastic, especially when disappointed.

Hmm.... $1 a bird sounds about right. I have 24 birds and it costs me about $24 a month to feed them. That's a bag of feed, a bag of scratch, and a bag of wood shavings.

I get about 14 eggs a day (should be more in the summer). That's WAY more eggs than I need. I want to sell the eggs but so far I can't find many customers.

For your small family, you could just get 3 hens.

My 12 birds eat 50lbs of pellets in about 9 days, more when it is warm, less when cooler or when I can let them out more. That cost $7.15 for 50 lbs. I put hay in their coop, about $4.00 every 3 months. I use cracked corn to move them where I want them, $2.00 a month. Occasionally, I buy a large bundle of collard greens and give them a treet, about $1.50. I get about 7 to 9 eggs a day except for this past week where my 11 hens gave me 50 eggs in 5 days.

For my 18 layers and three roosters, it runs around $25.00 a month for laying ration 16%, scratch, litter, and all, a bit more when it is really cold, a bit less when it is warmer. The 25 12-week-old chicks eat about $30.00 worth of grower ration a month with only enough scratch grains to get them where I want them to go (this includes their litter too). As much as I would like for them to, mine cannot forage for bugs since we live in town and neighbors would either complain or keep!
50 lbs 16%layer is $6.55 here and the 20%grower is $6.65 for 50lb. Scratch grains, corn chops both run $5.50 for 50lbs.
We get 12 eggs a day on average in return and my freezer is full of plump, delicious chicken as well.
Hope this helps. As for the stay-at-home mom issue, well, there is good and bad there that only you two can work out, but the chickens would help defray grocery costs with eggs and meat eventually. They are well worth the "cost" involved in getting set up, or at least they were to us. To get a better idea, try getting on one of the homesteading e-mail lists and just ask. Folks will share their experiences.
Grace

Some points to consider:

1. Chickens as a learning aid: Kids really enjoy watching the hens and taking care of them (when they're a bit older). Adults learn a lot too!

2. Egg quality: The eggs are going to be much nicer than the ones in the grocery store; none of those extra chemicals or antibiotics, etc. Even the store's organic eggs will be much older than your homegrown ones.

3. Having a parent stay home with your child is something you will never regret! You will be very, very happy you did so. Congratulations and best of luck!

Congratulations on your decision to have a stay-at-home parent! Chickens and other livestock can be very rewarding. Try offering to cut out another luxury in your life (a small one, like one night a month you don't eat out, or go to the movies, or buying hamburger instead of steak one week, be creative!) and show your wife that this will cover the expense of starting your flock. Compromises can always be found! : ) Also there is a website that has a great message board on living below your means, www.Fool.com

How much are you throwing away in table scraps? My hens are little feathered pigs! Along with their pellets they get the left over cereal and bread crusts that are all part and parcel of having kids. So chickens would be a valuable asset to your household! You would be pre-composting all your household garbage, instead of sending it down the disposal into oblivion. Do you have a garden? then you have bug and weed control, plus fertilizer!

Not to mention the tasty eggs! Figure out how many eggs you will need in a week. If it is a dozen, then figure that two/three of the hens are working to put food on the table, and the rest can pay their food bill. You can sell the eggs to friends and neighbors for at least a $1. You will not need a rooster unless you will be ranging them out where things are a little dicey as far as predetors are concerned, or you want chicks. Speaking as a wife I advise against chicks just yet, as you are trying to sell the idea of hens to your wife and bigger is not always better. Start small. No more than six, I would say.

Also, think of all the money you are saving not having to pay for child care, gas for to and from work, work clothes etc. I know when I did the math I had to be making $8/hour to just break even. That is in Colorado, I don't know what cost of living is where you are. Unless your wife is a high-powered attourney, you may find things won't be as tight as you think. I am sure you could find a small amount of money to start a SMALL flock.

You might try finding someone who already has hens in your area, getting their take on the subject. You might also be able to aquire some mature hens from them and start with layers right off, instead of having to raise them from youngsters. That way they would be producing right off. That would be cheaper.

BTW, speaking as a wife again, could your wife be envisioning her having to do all the care of the flock after your enthusiasm wears off? That might be her REAL complaint. With a baby to care for I can see her trepidation. Why should she ask for more work? Could she be afraid of chickens? Don't laugh, they can be intimidating, especially if you had a run in with one as a child.

I hope my thoughts have been helpful. I know my husband and I enjoy our chickens and their eggs. We also do not have a grasshopper problem anymore:}