How to Make $10K With 3 BEGINNER Livestock

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

Before you comment that my numbers are off 😉I took a trip to my farmer's market 2 days ago, to remind myself that I'm not crazy. - I saw 3 separate vendors for eggs. $8, $9, and $11/dozen. (And the $9/dozen folks were sold out by 10 AM) - I also saw broilers for $30+ - Cuts of lamb for $20/pound - Pork chops for $16/pound We all live in different economies. These numbers reflect the reality of where I live. This video is meant to be a helpful starting point for people to workshop their own numbers and planning. If you can find cheaper in your area, your numbers will be different. Thanks to everyone can share their local prices while still being kind. 😃

[@alexskinner8579]

I don't live where you do, but I have seen similar prices out here in Utah as you mention.

[@TechAuditTV]

Well put!

[@Freewarden]

I don’t want you to reveal too much, but what general area do you live in if you don’t mind saying? Just curious.

[@Freewarden]

We live in North Central Iowa, fairly rural. And we’re getting on average $4/dozen. Local farmers market people get $3-6/dozen.

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

North Carolina, Orange County@@Freewarden

[@PaulJWong-yk8uw]

enjoyed it till the end man. your numbers are about where i show too when i tell the accountant. this is what i made, this is what it cost, this is what i kept. out of around 7-8 thousand we kept a whopping 2000. i think this coming year however, we'll hopefully do better. 6 usable acres, 21 lambs born this month, will do about 200 meat chickens, 30 laying hens and 4-5 big pigs. oh, plus a small herd of kune kune pigs. YOU GOTTA TRY EM! You'll love them. costs stay affordable if you buy bulk (one tonne at a time goes in IBC totes), help a neighbour with hay for a good price on small bales and live near a big city that has a large amount of folks who love eating lamb! :D dont listen to the naysayers about prices either PJ. you found the people who will pay good prices, keep it up. if they want to lowball you, they can go to the market themselves or go to walmart.

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

I am always amazing to hear how productive you are on your slice of earth! 21 lambs on 6 acres!?! Plus the layers and broilers! PLUS the production pigs! PLUS the kune kunes!!!! One day you will convince me to do kune kune pigs! I'm still in shell shock from moving my red wattles onto a trailer last year. HOWEVER, I bet kune kunes are easier movers, so maybe they are the right pig for me next time. Also, I still have bacon in my fridge. Yes, buying in bulk is something I struggle with. I know if I want to actually make a profit on pigs and meat chickens, I gotta be buying bulk. Thanks for the kind words Paul (AKA, Canadian PJ). I always look forward to your comments 😄

[@PaulJWong-yk8uw]

@@homesteadingwithPJ kunes are very easy to load. our new boar ludo just waited patiently whenever we opened doors and walked right in. they take forever to grow tho. so thats a definate con. its kind of why i raise feeder pigs for the freezer and kunes as breeders. kunes are almost cost neutral to raise and dont give me an ounce of trouble here. more like pets that you sell and eat occasionally. dont listen to the naysayers on here about prices either. you know what youre doing and its working :D

[@davlynhowland3345]

Great video. You can’t put a price your health. Feeding those you love nutritious food. Working with your own hands outdoors or breaking a sweat outside the gym. Providing for you and your families mental health and happiness. People pay big $ for quality food, physical and mental health. All that is way more value than any delusional or non delusional figures anyone can come up with. Keep up your positive, motivating videos. Somethings are worth more than $.

[@logan_black]

The last minute in your video will help me a lot with my friends who keep saying that I need to go full throttle on my acreage. I keep saying that I'm just starting with chickens for 2 reasons, one startup money and second, time to take care of them. Thanks for the animals that you suggest by the way! 🙂

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

Smart move. Nail it, then scale it!

[@ShepherdsCreek]

We just took 2 lambs to butcher yesterday for the first time ever. We don't have the meat back yet but the estimate based on the hanging weight was about 50 lbs of meat from each lamb. I'm also getting organ meat, bones (including skulls), and hides back. We will eat the organ meat ourselves, the bones will be for broth, dog treats and I'll be selling the skulls as decorations, and I'll be tanning the hides myself as sheepskin rugs. I'm hoping to sell some of the products, but mostly I'm just learning this year because we are expecting roughly 20 lambs this year. Last year we had 9 and 7 went on to be breeding stock. Sheep are so fabulous! I'd love to get chickens, bees and possibly some cows at some point too and diversify even more!

[@joshua511]

What's your #1 resource for learning about raising sheep? We just do laying hens and meat birds so far. I'd like to get sheep and eventually pigs.

[@ShepherdsCreek]

@joshua511 mine is the internet. KZbin and Google specifically. If I have a question, that's the first place I go. I also watch a ton of KZbin about this stuff because sometimes the channels I watch bring up things I never even thought of or had no idea about. I also love books and have a few great resources on sheep. Storey's Guide to Raising Sheep 5th Edition is a must have if you're planning to have sheep. I also have one on sheep medicine. It's a bit above me as I think it is meant for veterinarians but still very useful for giving me some idea of how to treat an animal or call a vet if it's beyond my scope.

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

Storey's Guide to Raising Sheep is a must, great suggestion @SherherdsCreek!

[@briantrout7051]

Wow, glad you have a market for $7/doz eggs. I can buy them all day long for $3/doz here in my part of rural TN, $2/doz if I wait for someone to have a glut of them and wanna move them. Hard to compete with that. And they're good eggs, from other homesteads a lot like ours. The chicken scare a couple of years ago where they were destroying many thousands (millions?) of chickens in commercial operations brought about a lot of individuals who decided to get chickens and make a little side money selling extra but have plenty for themselves. Thus... $2/doz for eggs. I do think that will change over time but it hasn't here yet.

[@FulbrightFarmstead]

I like the "find your unfair advantage" tip.

[@3boysbees]

If u wanna make 10000 u just have to start out with 20000.... I new the disclaimer was coming... You do good work... We are in Tennessee with not much property. Our honeybees forage the national forest here and make a great product. Raising my boys.... Keep it up sir

[@joshua511]

There's someone nearby that has property near a major road and they sell honey by what appears to be the honor system. A camera is pointed at a cabinet that has honey. I've never used it but it seems like a decent way to get some passive income. Bottle up the honey, leave it near the road and let people come to you and buy whenever they want.

[@Freewarden]

Good job! Prices were a little above what I can get in my neck of the woods, but I can apply the information making some adjustments to price. I appreciate that you addressed costs at the end.

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

Yup, you gotta go by what your market is asking for. In my farmer's markets there are people selling eggs for $11/dozen!

[@Freewarden]

@@homesteadingwithPJ Wow! Good for you guys! Do wages and cost of living in your area generally track higher than the national average as well?

[@wolfe5047]

I wish I could get 7 dollars a dozen. Here in Pennsylvania we get about 3 dollars a dozen. And selling the roosters we get about 7 to 10 dollars, and they help process them. We can buy Roosters at a local auction for about 3 dollars up to 5 depending on size and condition.

[@gwendolyn9308]

Can't even sell a rooster where I live. People are giving them away. (of course, that IS a free chicken dinner for me). Can maybe sell a hen for 10 bucks, but usually don't see any higher than that. 5-7 is more the norm.

[@squaresofpaper]

Roosters are free where I live, so that’s pretty great that you get anything. $7/doz is totally bonkers. I’ve heard of those numbers in Alaska where they have to buy feed and the feed is so expensive that $7-10/doz is basically breaking even.

[@donaldjones4120]

Must be a different economy here in Kentucky because home grown eggs are $3 dozen

[@jaredkugel2947]

Yep, $3 to 4$ per dozen here in Nebraska.

[@IcicleFerret]

Prices are getting lower in Chicagolandia too. I've seen them at $4 a dozen this year so far. I view the eggs more as an offset to the entertainment cost from having a gaggle of pet chickens.

[@Sigmand0]

$4 in Iowa. Most revenue in this video seems a bit high compared to average prices around the US. But if he’s getting those kinds of prices for his livestock and produce, more power to him! Rock ‘n’ roll my friend!

[@jaredkugel2947]

I was thinking the same thing about the overall prices.

[@joshua511]

Eggs/meat is cheaper in rural areas. You can sell to suburbanites and urbanites for more.

[@Sourwood-n1f]

Great video! 🙏

[@ShibaMcDripNu]

Hi, what about composting animal waste?

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

It's a good idea, but you need A LOT of animals to make enough waste to sell.

[@406regen]

Great video what most people dont understand is that you are not competing with the store down the road when u start doing regenerative practices your animals are beyond organic so your food is healthier, than the gmo fed and inhumanly raised animals,unfortunately most people just buy the store bought feed making it not worth more than the stores, our markets are the health driven and want to know how the animals are raised.

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

100% true. You said it better than I did. Sometimes I get into the habit of thinking that everyone homesteading is doing it for the same reasons as me (sounds like you too). I'll remember to take a minute and explain this mindset better next time.

[@406regen]

@homesteadingwithPJ I think you do a great job there is always someone that will say you are wrong because in there mind they firmly believe that farmers and ranchers have to compete with the big stores, I have only had my Katahdins for 2 years but keep trying to learn something new every day, I see you almost have 20k subs congratulations youtbe is harder than what most people think I have got to 425 subs on my channel 406regen so it's building.

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

The first 1,000 are the hardest! Keep it up! We need more small-time shepherds on KZbin!@@406regen

[@hurricanevolf7165]

You can also sell chicks. I'd say a good $5 if you have a mixed flock $10 and up if it a good breed or bantams. That's what I'm gonna do when my chickens go broody this year.

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

Whoa! That wasn't even on my radar, but you're totally right! As someone who buys chicks from an online hatchery almost every year, I would much rather support a local hatchery!

[@SunfireWoods]

Scale up with the layer chickens. I currently have about 60 hens. Some are still a little too young to lay, but they should start soon. I'm currently getting 18-24 eggs a day. I am selling to our local community. A dozen at 5.00 and flats of thirty at 12.50. At this current rate, they're covering the cost of their feed and pine shavings for the hen house. I anticipate that as more start to lay, I can divert some of the egg money to cover hay costs for our herd of goats. We raise both meat and milk breeds, with the gosl of again providing to our local community.

[@jayroser9876]

Even with inflated prices today I still don't see $7.00 a dozen for eggs.

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

I saw $11/dozen at my farmer's market 2 days ago.

[@steveruby2120]

Where are you selling your products, Martha's Vineyard? Maybe you should get some geese, you know the kind that lay golden eggs.

[@oscarcaballero9014]

What about the feed for the chickens

[@joshua511]

A 50# bag around here is about $14. That's more than enough for our 9 hens. You could ferment the feed and make it last longer.

[@squaresofpaper]

Yeah, he talks about that at the end, the numbers at the beginning are gross, not net. I think once you net a lot of these you realize it’s maybe breaking even. That’s my goal with my chickens, just breaking even. Maybe I should try that with my garden this year too 😂

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

Great suggestion on fermenting. It absolutely makes the feed go further.

[@domading2759]

Marketing is everything.. If you can't market your goods then it don't matter how much your asking price is.. But feed costs and processing with eat up your profit. You can't grow any animal as cheap as you can buy them.. You can't keep animals at this small scale and cover costs. It takes 9-10 lambs sold to cover the costs of a small flock before you put anything in the freezer or money in your pocket..

[@rickross199]

The hard part is never discussed in any youtube channel. Most people are terrible salesmen. Any idiot can do manual labor and raise animals. How do you find and sell to people willing to pay 5 times what something costs in the grocery store? Anyone? How?

[@IcicleFerret]

Marketing is always rough, and there's no shortcut to fame. You could go and find the subdivisions with expensive homes and advertise there with flyers or posters. Social media helps, as people who are looking for local food can come find you. Even if you don't believe in something like Islam or Judaism, you can look into offering halal or kosher livestock and connect with local religious groups through Facebook or their websites, charging a premium for that. Same thing for "carbon negative," organic, or all natural husbandry practices and related chatrooms and message boards. If you are able, you could also leverage things like your veteran, disabled, or immigrant status to "incentivise" people into buying from you. It's always rough getting started, but word of mouth is going to really help you in the beginning. Find one or two early adopters and keep in touch with them. Maybe offer them little freebies if they refer a friend. It'll be slow going but if you're persistant, you'll find a good market.

[@rickross199]

@@IcicleFerret thank you!

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

Amazing advice, thanks for chiming in @IcicleFerret

[@domading2759]

For starters.. Not any idiot can raise animals.. Don't diminish our skills of growing animals

[@rickross199]

@@domading2759 give me a break 🙄

[@leonardsupchak545]

Wow...At these prices Im willing to move...in KY your lucky to get 40-50% less for a premium product...also I would never feed fish waste to pigs as their meat will really reflect this flavor...location & income economics makes for what you can charge $$$....& get it

[@pharmerdebbie]

Very helpful!

[@nickschaps4022]

The only reasonable price on this video was for lambs. We sell katahdin/texel crosses that average 75lbs hanging at 12 weeks when they get sold. We gross about 725 a lamb for butcher lambs. And that’s why we are primarily lamb farmers. We do have pigs, chickens, and a couple cows for personal consumption. And the cattle graze behind the sheep to destroy parasites.

[@TheFruitfulFIG]

Around us, a dozen eggs go for $3. 18 eggs goes $4.

[@PrimalHealthGuy]

$9 for fully pastured, organic, soy free eggs

[@mitchellaoliver]

Prime #1 lambs are selling for $2.96 per lb this week 🤔

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

Whoa! Not at my farmer's market! That's a steal. Makes me feel bad for the farmer... All that work for >$3/pound.

[@domading2759]

That's on the hoof? Processed should bring $20/$30 lb.

[@crystalcolvin5949]

I'm confused. Your prices are extremely high for where we live. Also, this hasn't included any expenses. Buying the animals, building chicken tractors or making them, animal feed, fencing, cost of labor etc....

[@big-d7756]

Ohio. 3 to 4 dollars a dozen and meat chickens 8 to 10, maybe 15 if you get the right clients

[@chrispaulus4491]

What part of Ohio? I’m paying over five dollars a dozen for farm fresh eggs in Northeast Ohio this time of year.

[@big-d7756]

@chrispaulus4491 muskingum County most farms I know of have $4 a dozen.

[@chrispaulus4491]

@@big-d7756 good to know. Probably a little too far for me to drive for Eggs. 🫤 I was paying $3 per dozen when visiting Tennessee last year. More recently, the prices have gone up due to an egg shortage.

[@domading2759]

@@big-d7756 I'm in Washington county.. You would get laughed at for more than $3/doz.. Produce auction brings $1-$1.85/doz

[@peterv3216]

don't know how you survive over the great water when your broilers sell for 25 bucks. Where I come from on the old continent, one welfare, grass fed 1,6kg chicken sells for about 6 - 8 of your dollars.

[@RoseyDannyKach]

Just started this video and never listen to you before. You said charge $7 a dozen, there is no way where I live that people are going to pay $7. Around here the going price is 3 or $4.

[@gtromble]

my chickens ain't flightless LOL.

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

Flighty chickens are one of the tender joys of homesteading aren't they? 😅

[@fergieferguson2457]

You need to read your laws in your state!by law if your not NPIP certified on every chicken that steps on your yard not the first chickens you got certified on!you can be in litigation for making someone sick even if it’s traced back to the egg or chicken!not saying it happens everyday or in forced but are cases.

[@MichaelW-tf1ug]

The pigs harvest in 6 months. Eggs are everyday. Lambs are 5 months. $10,000 over 6 months is not much money. But I guess you need to think big.

[@zackgallik3164]

People are paying $25/ chicken?

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

More even, at my farmer's market.

[@wildkingdom2012]

I don't consider pigs or cattle to be 'beginner' livestock.

[@southafricanprepper1452]

You don't have honey or vegetables why not

[@ButtercupAndFernHomestead]

Where on earth do you live that you can get $7/dozen for eggs? We get $5. And who pays $25/chicken meat? We might get $15. Your math is way off the mark.

[@smithhomestead1589]

Yea your forgetting feed and maintenance.

[@wesleykincade]

Feed, shelter and other costs of care ( especially for sheep) greatly off set these profits

[@TIMBERxTrees]

Delusional video. No mention of processing fees or feed costs, housing, time, etc. Just magical money

[@Sigmand0]

Completely untrue. He actually addresses all this at the end of the video. Couldn’t be bothered to watch the whole thing, huh?

[@chilosonofbattle]

You might want to rewatch the video and pay attention this time. I’m sure you’re a much better farmer than everybody else in the world, however until you start making videos yourself, you should probably work on your listening skills.

[@MrKurt2233]

Who’s paying $7 a dozen for eggs?

[@squaresofpaper]

14 chickens laying a pretty good average of 250 eggs per year (let’s ignore that you’ll probably have some die, and it’s unlikely that they’re all prime laying age) is still averaging less than 6 dozen eggs per week over a year… so saying you’ll sell 7 dozen/wk on average for the year and have 2 doz/wk for the family is just bonkers math. If you had all ISA browns and leghorns or something like that then you could average 7-8 doz per week, so long as you also have constant additional young ones in the wings to take over after about 18-24 months of the older gals laying.

[@Ephesians6twelve]

@@MrKurt2233lots of people actually.

[@laylalazzaro3253]

P r o m o S M

[@jamesgalbreath6331]

No talk of feed costs

[@Sigmand0]

He addresses costs near the end.

[@homesteadingwithPJ]

Did you watch the whole video 😉

[@SeagullAmIOne]

7$ a dozen? I'm sorry but aren't we trying to destroy super market industry?? $2 a Dozen, consistent customers, scratch a back so yours can get scratched

[@theotherway0]

$7 a dozen is very reasonable, the farmer has costs to cover, it should be worth the work. For $2/ dozen just give them away.

[@IcicleFerret]

@theotherway0 Prices vary by location. For $7 a dozen, people in my area would be expecting golden eggs, but then again, I don't live in California. $4 a dozen is more what the market here will bear. Which is sad, because for me, my break-even point was calculated to be $6 a dozen.

[@theotherway0]

@@IcicleFerret maybe you could look into Duck or quail, some people that are allergic to chicken eggs can eat duck or quail eggs. Duck eggs are also superior for baking and supposed to be good for cancer patients. Also there is big difference in taste if your chickens can excess grass, bugs and seeds. If your customers can taste the difference they'd hopefully be willing to pay.

[@IcicleFerret]

@@theotherway0 I've looked into it, but I don't have the facilities for either right now. And technically, duck and quail are illegal to keep where I am, though I doubt anyone would notice quail quietly chilling in the backyard. Chickens only got an exception to the "no livestock" ban in 2021.

[@SeagullAmIOne]

I would love to give them away no questions asked don't let that shit rot in your fridge!! :) @@theotherway0

[@domading2759]

This guy has clearly never ran a farm.. He must get what he knows from Wikipedia.. Eggs are $3 per dozen just to start.. His assertions go down from there..

[@PrimalHealthGuy]

Not at the tailgate markets in my area. $9 for organic, soy free, fully pastured eggs

[@domading2759]

@@PrimalHealthGuy you must be farming in Beverly hills.. 99% of this country does not see those prices.. It delusional to think you can consistently get $9/doz eegs

[@PrimalHealthGuy]

@@domading2759 Asheville NC, things have gotten quite gentrified indeed

[@evelynrogers7145]

Absolutely no sense