In starting up a poultry business, or small family-owned poultry, you should merely consider the breed and hatchery where you will purchase the chicks. There are lots of hatcheries in Iowa, and I will guide you through by checking the information below.
1. Hoover’s Hatchery
Hoover’s Hatchery offers high standard and quality poultry chicks. They have been in the business for over 75 years already. They sell varieties of breeds, including chicken, bantams, ducks, geese, commercial turkeys, heritage turkeys, pheasants, guineas, quails, and chukars. They offer free shipping with a minimum number of orders. The prices range from 2 dollars up to 5 dollars depending on the chicks that you want.
Most customers will share how happy and satisfied they are because their chicks were delivered in good condition, and their prices were very fair. The estimated time of arrival when you purchase from them is around 2- 3 days. In every order, there is an individual packing slip with NPIP (National Poultry Improvement Plan) number in the upper right-hand corner right below their logo; their NPIP number is 42-61.
Location: 205 Chickasaw St, Rudd, IA 50471
Phone: 641-323-6100
2. Murray McMurray Hatchery
Murray McMurray Hatchery provided superior quality poultry to various customers for over 100 years. The prices of their chicks start from 2 dollars up to 7 dollars depending on the variety. Biosecurity is important for Murray McMurray Hatchery, and they participated in the USDA National Poultry Health Improvement Plan (NPIP) to ensure a safe and high-quality hatchery.
You can choose a variety of chick options like Chicks, Duckling, Goslings, Turkey Poults, Guinea Keats, Partridge Chicks, Peafowl Chicks, Pheasant Chicks, and Quail Chicks. They offer free shipping with a minimum number of orders. They ship through UPS, and there is a guaranteed delivery time within 2- 3 days.
Location: 191 Closz Dr, Webster City, IA 50595
Phone: 800-456-3280
3. Welp Hatchery
Welp Hatchery was established in 1929 by Joseph H. Welp. This hatchery will cater to you with good quality of services in looking for quality chicks. You may call them at 1-800-458-4473, or you may see their catalog for detailed information about their contact and flock details.
Their prices depend on the variety of chicks, but the price starts from 1 dollar to 13 dollars. They offer free shipping if you purchase with a minimum number of 25 Chicks, 15 Turkeys, 8 Goslings, 30 Guineas, 30 Bantams, 15 Ducklings, 30 Pheasants, 50 Chukar Partridge, 25 Crested Polish, and 30 Quail. There are many good reviews and testimonials about this hatchery.
Location: PO Box 77, Bancroft, Iowa 50517 USA
Phone: 800-458-4473
4. Duncan’s Poultry
Duncan’s Poultry will offer you the best variety of baby chicks and backyard needs. They offer selected types of layers, meat bird broilers, turkeys, geese, and ducks. They also provide poultry accessories.
Duncan’s Poultry is a one-stop-shop to cater to your poultry needs. They are also offering discounts like Chick ‘N Feed Deal; this deal is applicable when you purchase 12 lbs. or more of feed per broiler, there will be a discount for the chick.
Their prices start from 1 dollar up, depending on the variety. They sell Cornish and Broiler, Egg layers, and Broad Breasted White Turkey Poults. You may give them a call at 712 644 2322, or you may visit their shop. There are many positive reviews posted about this hatchery, and customers are pleased with their orders.
Location: 2947 Ogden Ave, Missouri Valley, IA 51555
Phone: 712-644-2322
5. Guinea Farm
The owners and operators of Guinea Farm are Matt and Maria (Winter) Mensen. This farm offers Guinea Fowl, Guinea Hatching Eggs, and Peafowl. Their prices start at 4 dollars up; they also provide packages that cost 70 dollars, and they offer free shipping.
They have lots of credentials and licenses, and one of them is National Poultry Improvement Plan | NPIP. Aside from guinea fowl and peafowl, they also have various animals on the farm, including alpacas, llamas, Mandarin ducks, miniature horses, pygmy goats, black neck swans, golden pheasant, and shetland sheep that reside in Guinea Farm. There are lots of positive reviews on this farm since they offer good quality flocks and services.
Location: 21363 White Pine Ln, New Vienna, IA 52065
Phone: 563-853-4195
6. Schlecht Hatchery
Schlecht Hatchery is a family-owned hatchery that started as a hobby. They have been in the business for about 50 years. This hatchery offers an excellent selection of high-quality chicks and ducks at reasonable prices. You may contact them at [email protected] or call 563-682-7865.
There are lots of good reviews and testimonials about this hatchery. They offer chicken, ducks, and turkeys. The price of their chicken starts from 1 dollar to nearly 3 dollars. Their ducks cost 5 to 6 dollars, and their turkey costs 6 to 6.50 dollars. They are offering flat rate charges of 18 dollars per box to reduce the prices of chicks.
Location: 9749 500th Ave, Miles, IA 52064
Phone: 563-682-7865
7. Sand Hill Preservation Center
Sand Hill Preservation Center is not a large operation poultry farm, but its primary mission is to preserve genetic resources. The poultry products’ ordering process is old-fashioned; you need to send them an email and wait for your turn for them to contact you. Note that they don’t accept payment by credit card, PayPal, etc.
They sell various flocks, including chicken, bantams, geese, ducks, guineas, turkeys, and quails. They sell packages of 25 chicks for 75 dollars. Usually, if you purchase per piece, the price starts at 1 dollar, but the price may vary depending on the variety of chicks. Over the years, they have been operating with good services, and there are lots of positive reviews for this center.
Location: 1878 230th St, Calamus, IA 52729
Phone: 563-246-2299
8. Little Marie’s Chicken Ranch & Chicken Hatchery
Little Marie’s Chicken Ranch & Chicken Hatchery sells day-old chicks, Baby Chicks, Started pullets, Juvenile Pullets, laying hens and eggs in Iowa and Nationwide. Not only are they selling chicks, but they also sell poultry needs and accessories, indeed a one-stop-shop.
You can purchase at Little Marie’s Chicken Ranch & Chicken Hatchery online or pick-up and local deliveries. If you prefer pick-up, you will get a 50% discount. They also offer pre-orders of 4, 8, and 12 weeks old starter pullets.
They sell various breeds, including Silkie, Laying Breeds, Meat breeds dual-purpose, rare, exotic, and ultra exotic Breeds and Backyard chickens. Prices start at 35 dollars up; they also offer free shipping.
Location: 10208 160th St, Douds, IA 52551
Phone: 641-919-3622
9. Kruse Hatchery
Kruse Hatchery is a poultry hatchery and processing farm, and you can find quality chicken and duck or geese in this hatchery. You may contact them at (563) 534-7396. Their store hours are Monday to Saturday; they open from 8 AM – 5 PM on weekdays and 8 AM- 12 PM on Saturdays.
This hatchery will offer you quality breed since there are many good reviews for this hatchery. Most customers stated that their chicks arrived in good condition with friendly associates who helped them purchase.
Location: 1011 Co Rd W14, Fort Atkinson, IA 52144
Phone: 563-534-7396
What to Look for When Buying Chickens in Iowa?
If you want to buy chicken, you must be assured that you have purchased a good quality, and the poultry where you purchased your chick offers high quality of service. You may be a pro or new in raising poultry, but I will share some information below on what to look for when buying chickens.
The first thing you need to do is to check whether the poultry is properly documented for sanitation and if they have the document to operate. It is essential to know that, so you will have the guarantee that they are offering good services and are responsible for ensuring the safety and quality of the chicken.
You must check if there are local regulated laws about owning a backyard chicken so you can be aware of the dos and don’ts.
Before you purchase the chicken, you need to have a thorough knowledge of the chicken breed. It is essential because the chicken must adapt to the temperature of the place and the average annual temperature in Iowa is 20.4 °C or 68.8 °F.
It would help if you considered heavy breeds that can withstand the temperature in Iowa. Heavy breeds include Americanas, Brahmas, Orpingtons, Silkies, or Wyandottes which lay brown eggs.
When you purchase chicken, you need to do that in a well-light environment or in broad daylight to ensure that you are buying the correct one and see if there are abnormalities in the chicken. To check if the chickens are healthy, they must be alert, active, and bright-eyed during the day.
Do an overall observation for the chicks, do not choose the smallest ones unless they are bantams. Do not choose a chick that is lying down or one side standing alone. Though it is normal for chicks to sleep, they tend to sleep together. If there is only one sleeping and lying on the corner, that is not a good sign.
If you are purchasing chicken, you need to check them closely if they are in good condition. You need to look at the different parts of their body to see if there are abnormalities. When you hold them, they must be solid, and their weight must be appropriate to their size.
It would help if you discussed the vaccination of your chicks with the breeder. You can ask them to be enlightened on the best thing you need to do in taking care of the chicks. You may also ask them if what is the best vaccine or if they need vaccination.
Summary
There are lots of hatcheries in Iowa that sell good quality chicken. Most of them are National Poultry Improvement Plan | NPIP certified. It is essential to find the best hatcheries to ensure that you are purchasing good-quality chicks. It would help if you also considered what to look for in buying chickens.
Joseph Hudson has been raising chickens for over 15 years. In 2018, he completed the Agriculture & Natural Resources program at Mt. San Antonio College. He currently raises over 1400 chickens on his 7.5-hectare farm. He keeps sharing his experience on raising healthy and happy chickens on Chicken Scratch The Foundry.
