I hate to be a Debbie Downer, but you might have four roosters. If the customers are allowed to pick out their own chicks, then they may already be culled.triviawayne wrote: ↑Wed Jul 01, 2020 3:28 pm I really want to thank everyone for jumping in with the math.
My initial thought was either 41% or 59% by doing the 80*80*80*80 thing...but couldn't figure out which was the number I was looking for (we want to see zero roosters).
So far, it's looking like all hens...but time will tell.
Our farm stores sell pullets (females) at about $3.50 each, and "straight run" (supposedly half and half) at $1.79 each. The pullets are sexed by the breeder and tagged and therefore the higher price. They are very accurate, and when we buy 25 from the hatchery, it's great except they give us an extra exotic bird as a "bonus", and it's always a damn rooster.
So, one day we watch a customer picking out chicks from the straight run tank at the farm and she studied how they acted, and snatched out the ones she wanted. I didn't notice her looking at anatomy, but maybe their faces. We've bought straight run birds before and got 80% roos, and now we know why.
When my sister had chickens, the farm store gave them a dozen or so unsold chicks - every one was a roo.
I don't know about the 80% pullet situation, they don't do that here. But you can be sure if you aren't there when they arrive, the pros have already picked the pullets clean.
We only keep about 10 hens now, and we will never have another rooster. As a matter of fact, with our 500,000 honeybee females (vs. 1000 or so boys, until Fall when they are all exiled), I am pretty outnumbered here. You will love having the chickens if you haven't had them before. It's even better if you can spend time with the chicks so they imprint as human. Otherwise, they will just think of you as an awkward chicken.