Pastured Poultry Record Keeping: What to Track and Why

Most small flock owners keep records in their head. That works fine for 10 birds. At 100 or more, it starts costing you money. Good records tell you which cohorts are performing, when to rotate, what your real cost per dozen is, and whether your operation is actually profitable. Here's what to track and how to do it without it becoming a second job.

Flock Records

For each flock cohort, record:

• Arrival date and source (farm, breed, age at arrival)
• Starting count and any losses (date, cause if known)
• First egg date — this tells you how quickly your pullets came into production
• Weekly egg count — total eggs collected per week per cohort
• Cull/rotation date and disposition (sold live, processed, etc.)

A simple spreadsheet with one row per week per cohort is all you need. After 12 months you'll have a production curve that tells you exactly when each cohort peaked and when it started declining.

Feed Records

Track feed by cohort:

• Pounds purchased (date, supplier, price per pound)
• Pounds fed per week (weigh your feeder fills)
• Feed conversion: pounds of feed per dozen eggs produced

Industry benchmark for a high-production layer is roughly 4–4.5 lbs of feed per dozen eggs. If you're running 6+ lbs/dozen, something is off — feed waste, low production, or both.

Financial Records

Keep a simple income and expense log:

• Income: eggs sold (by channel — farmers market, direct, restaurant), pullets sold, spent hens sold
• Expenses: feed, bedding, pullet purchases, supplies, market fees, packaging
• Cost per dozen: total expenses ÷ dozens produced
• Revenue per dozen: total revenue ÷ dozens sold

Run this monthly. If your cost per dozen is creeping toward your sale price, you catch it early instead of at year-end.

Health Records

Log any health events:

• Date, symptoms, birds affected, treatment used, outcome
• Vaccination records (Marek's, Newcastle, etc.) with dates and source
• Mortality: date, cause if known, cohort

This matters most if you ever sell to a restaurant or co-op — buyers increasingly ask for flock health documentation. It also helps you spot patterns: if you're seeing respiratory issues every fall, you can address it proactively.

Sales and Customer Records

If you're selling direct:

• Customer name and contact (for standing orders and reorder outreach)
• Weekly order quantity by customer
• Payment method and any outstanding balances

A simple contact list with order history is enough. When you have a surplus, you know exactly who to call. When you're short, you know who to prioritize.

Tools to Use

You don't need specialized software. Most producers do fine with:

• Google Sheets — free, accessible from your phone, shareable with a partner
• Notes app — for quick daily egg counts, transfer to a spreadsheet weekly
• QuickBooks Simple Start or Wave — if you want proper financial records for tax purposes

The key is consistency. Five minutes a day at egg collection time is all it takes to maintain records that will save you hours of guesswork later.

Ready to Grow Your Operation?

Good records make scaling easier — you know your real costs, your best-performing cohorts, and when to order your next flock. When you're ready to add birds, we offer free delivery on orders of 100 or more ready-to-lay pullets. Reserve your next flock here.