[Mays]

I have sold off spare eggs that I know were fertile and I have bought eggs of Ebay, with mixed results.

But ideally, we need a website where we can register and swap eggs, preferably with locations so we can locate local eggs to buy.

Currently I am looking for exhibition female breeding black Wynadotte bantam hatching eggs.. yes I know I am not askin for much LOL!

[nutterly_uts]

I had good success with silkies from ebay but not much else.. crap orpingtons and one that even the seller wasn't sure WTF it was.. was supposed to be an orp, had Dorking feet but no other traits of either one and a right attitude problem!

[lord flynn]

But they weren't hatching eggs - they were breakfast eggs! 

Edit: And he got five hens and one cockerel! 

loo-well thats what I get for posting sneakily at work :p I'd have been miffed too but still, hopefully its a nice home for them!

[[email protected]]

Hi there. I've bought several lots of eggs from eBay with disappointing results. There's no telling how they are handled by the postal system. The worst lot were my Jersey Giants. I put 12 eggs in, 2 hatched, of which 1died, all the rest were infertile!! So I have a single hen from that hatch. I now use locally sourced eggs from a breeder I trust or hatch from my own. I would like to find someone in Norfolk with Vorwerk eggs, however, I quite fancy these for my next hatch!!

[Kimbo]

Sod's Law strikes again!

[devonlady]

You're always buying a pig in a poke with hatching eggs, no-one can guarantee fertility, even the most careful of breeders, and some wouldn't care less as long as they got their dosh!
I bought hatching eggs from our local smallholder's market last Saturday ( me who was never going to keep hens again ) Copper Blacks, White Leghorns and Cream Crested Legbars. The CB's and The CCL's had a 'phone number on the boxes which I took as a good sign. This may be an idea for folk selling at market as they made considerably more money than those without.

[Stereo]

What do eggs fetch at market usually? Are there a lot on offer?

[Castle Farm]

Stereo
I'd breed from the male and the best female and hatch as many as you can. If you let him flock mate the lot you will not be able to tell which hen produced the best chicks. This can only be judged by progeny testing the resulting birds at maturity.
You can pen mate him to the second best and start running 2 lines. All the chicks will carry the genes from the male (50%).


Once you start a project like this you will or should see year on year improvements, but it takes serious commitment and time.
Egg numbers and fertility must be noted and again only breed from the best birds.


Eggs from 'pedigree birds' are worth a lot more than eggs from a flock bred set-up.
 

[devonlady]

What do eggs fetch at market usually? Are there a lot on offer?

I can only report from Newton Abbot Smallholder's Market. I paid £6 for 6 Copper Blacks, £4 for 6 Cream Crested Legbars and £2 for 6 White Leghorns.  This was a buyer's market this week, prices go from the sublime to the very ridiculous depending on who wants what and how badly!!

[Bramham Wiltshire Horns]

This is a good post I've been researching prices for the last 5 months

Some of the adverts I look at pics and think I'm not buying them!

I have a flock of Ayam cemani's that I will be rearing this year but I think I will be hatching day old chicks and selective breeding so I can get the best out of my birds

I will be entering poultry shows to hopefully achieve this, only when I have surplus eggs will I then put on eBay but I will be advertising the best I can to get the best prices

[Hevxxx99]

I have both bought and sold on ebay.  My birds were selectively pen bred, fed breeders pellets (can you even get them still?) and carefully wrapped or hand delivered if local enough.  I never used poly boxes as in my experience, they suffocate the eggs and the hatch is never as good.

Most of my purchases have been dissapointing, with poor shell quality (thin or patchy), hatch rates and dubious looking birds at the end. Posting always effects fertility (esp. in those blooming poly boxes). Some have been great, especially when collected.  My most recent purchase is typical: 2x6 La Bresse eggs from two sellers of good repute but at the end of the season.  The eggs were small and mediocre and I ended up with just 5 hatching.  There was a spate a while ago of people buying eggs at auction and then selling them on, so they were old and very dubious.

Oh! I also had my listings for Old English Pheasant Fowl pulled twice!! Apparently for contraveneing Ebay rules somehow.  I suspect it was actually other sellers of OEPF reporting them so they had less competition as there was nothing wrong with the listing at all. 

I haven't bothered using it for selling recently, preferring Preloved.

[Stereo]

Stereo
I'd breed from the male and the best female and hatch as many as you can. If you let him flock mate the lot you will not be able to tell which hen produced the best chicks. This can only be judged by progeny testing the resulting birds at maturity.
You can pen mate him to the second best and start running 2 lines. All the chicks will carry the genes from the male (50%).


Once you start a project like this you will or should see year on year improvements, but it takes serious commitment and time.
Egg numbers and fertility must be noted and again only breed from the best birds.


Eggs from 'pedigree birds' are worth a lot more than eggs from a flock bred set-up.

Thanks. My idea was to run a flock for a month or so and sell maybe to the less 'discerning' buyer all the eggs. In terms of improving my own line I could separate the best hen(s) in a broody coup style machine which is kept in the main run so she is still with her flock but I only take her eggs for 6-10 days and hatch from them. I've done this in the past to improve RIR feather colour and it does pay dividends. You just need to keep really good records and have a good marking or leg ring method. I use coloured leg rings and various combinations of both legs can be used to pick out individual hens. I'm going to do this with my Marans this year to pick out the darkest layers and then choose the best breeding hen from them.

[vfr400boy]

I sell some sper eggs on eBay ( Minorca ) all are kepped in breeding trios I only keep quality birds , they made £22.60 for 6 !! The lady emaild to say that 2 was not firtile so I posted her 6 more , she was very happy but I was very happy for 22quid as I was only eating the eggs