10 Best Chicken Hatcheries in Ohio

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Chickens are one of the best and most versatile animals to keep on a homestead. They don’t need much space, they are highly affordable, and can keep you well-stocked with both meat and eggs. Plus, they are easy to raise!

baby chicks on straw bedding in brooder
baby chicks on straw bedding in brooder

You might be tempted to head to your local corporate chain farm and livestock supply store to get your chickens, but in my experience, you’ll always get better results going to a dedicated hatchery.

The birds are healthier, and you can often get your hands on special or rare breeds that you won’t find in the usual places.

If you live in Ohio, you’d be wise to check out these 10 awesome hatcheries for all of your poultry needs.

Meyer Hatchery

One of the biggest and best hatcheries in Ohio is Meyer Hatchery. Founded in 1985 alongside a dairy farm in Polk, Ohio, what started out as a small hobby flock of chickens has grown into a regional poultry empire.

Employing more than 80 employees during the peak season, Meyer is also widely respected for its extraordinarily good biosecurity protocols, guarantees on chicken and chick health, and 100% accuracy promises on sexing.

But most importantly to some of us, they also offer a tremendous variety of chickens, including some boutique and unique breeds that are incredibly productive or show-stoppingly beautiful.

Whether you want meat chickens, layers, or ornamentals, Meyer has you covered. They also sell turkeys, ducks, and geese, by the way.

Mt. Healthy Hatcheries

  • https://mthealthy.com/
  • Phone: 1-800-451-5603
  • Address: 9839 Winton Road, Cincinnati, OH 45231
  • Google Maps Link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/4RxoDmdyTsTJpJ5r9
  • Breeds Offered: Amberlinks, Americanas, American Bresse, Artisan Gold, Assorted Bantams, Ayam Cemani, Barnvelder, Bielefelder, Black Australorp, Black Copper Maran, and many others.

First started all the way back in 1924, Mt. Healthy Hatchery is probably in its fourth generation of business, having sold millions upon countless millions of chickens all around the United States.

As you might expect, they will ship your birds right to you or your local post office, depending on your local post office policy, or you can pick them up if you are in the nearby area.

Offering an excellent assortment of chickens, including rare and fancy breeds like the Ayam Cemani and Marans, they have something for every aspiring or veteran chicken keeper.

Keep in mind that Mt. Healthy only sells one-day-old chicks, not juveniles or adult birds. But they also sell turkeys, game birds, and ducks if you’re in the market for other poultry.

Ridgway Hatchery

In business for 101 years and specializing in breeding and hatching for their entire existence, Ridgway Hatchery guarantees every facet of the birds that they set, and also your satisfaction.

With several of their own specialized lineages of some of the most common and popular utility birds, namely New Hampshires, Barred Rocks, Rhode Island Reds, and White Leghorns, whether it’s meat or eggs you are after, you’ll be well served by this venerable hatchery.

Like so many larger operations, Ridgway sells more than just chickens, too, and they do brisk business in turkeys and ducks. No matter what kind of birds you’re after, they offer some of the best shipping rates around.

Valley Hatchery

Catering especially to homesteaders, backyard keepers, and smaller operations, Valley Hatchery is the perfect one-stop shop for brand-new chicken keepers who want to get started with just a few birds.

Whereas most of your other larger hatcheries, including the prestigious ones that we talked about previously, have minimum orders that might be 15 or even more chicks, you only need to buy three at a time for Valley Hatchery to ship them straight to your door.

You can get fertilized eggs, day-old chicks, or even started pullets sent to you right through the mail.

Valley Hatchery is also famous for the health of their Black Copper Marans, particularly. Note that Valley Hatchery ships only via USPS and does not have a storefront for pick-up at this time.

Country Haven Farm LLC

  • https://countryhavenfarmllc.com/
  • Phone: 740-972-4554
  • Address: 1272 County Rd 149, Cardington, OH 43315
  • Google Maps Link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/46jF8aWuufujN3bY7
  • Breeds Offered: Extremely Rare White Legbar, Ayam Cemani, Barnyard Surprise, Black Split to Lavender English Orpington, Blue, Black and Splash Ameraucanas, Ermine Ameraucana, Ermine Olive Egger, Fibro Easter/Olive Egger Chicks, Cemani Rainbow Hybrid, Silkies

Started in the middle of the 2000s as a small family-run farm in the middle of scenic Cardington, Ohio, Country Haven Farm quickly gained a dedicated following for their expertise, excellent care and breeding, and customer service.

They upgraded to a much larger facility in 2013 and have been going strong ever since.

Among their expansive lineup of breeds, you’ll find reliable favorites like Ameraucanas and Orpingtons, but also rare and exotic breeds like the Death Layer and glorious Olive Egger-Ayam Cemani hybrids.

They have some truly marvelous birds, but they tend to go quickly, so get those orders in fast!

LW Barnhouse

One of the smaller hatcheries on our list, but nonetheless one with a great reputation for raising healthy, happy chicks, LW Barnhouse specializes in chickens, ducks, geese, and quail.

Concerning chickens, some of their most popular products are their Bantams and Phoenix chickens, which are known for their extraordinarily long hackle and tail feathers. They are gorgeous and alluring, but be careful because they’re excellent flyers!

Something else I appreciate about LW Barnhouse is that they don’t ship eggs or day-old chicks in the wintertime or anytime there is harsh weather.

Check out their website to see some examples of their beautiful birds; I know, the site looks like something from the mid-90s but don’t let that worry you! Contact them directly to arrange your order.

Crosshatch Farm

  • https://crosshatchfarm.com/
  • Address: Xenia Township, south of the Village of Yellow Springs, and near Cedarville and Wilberforce.
  • Breeds Offered: Black Copper Marans, Ameraucana, Legbar, Orpington, and the American Bresse

Crosshatch Farms is a proud member of the National Poultry Improvement Program and sells primarily straight runs of heritage breeds along with some choice heritage crosses.

A smaller operation, if you want one of their few but truly beautiful birds, you’ve got to pay attention to their hatching scheduler on the website and get that order in as quickly as possible: as of this article going to print, there are very few hatching eggs left for sale and no day-old chicks!

The 2024 season opened in December of 2023 and was basically sold out in a week! If that isn’t an endorsement of the quality of their birds, I don’t know what is.

One thing to keep in mind, as stated on their website policies, is that they sell straight run only with few exceptions, so you should expect to get about 50% roosters from an order, statistically.

Cluck It All Farms

I know, I did a double-take too on the name! It’s a fun little gag, but Cluck It All Farms isn’t joking around at all with the eggs and chicks that they sell.

Another smaller hatchery that specializes in some of the most beautiful and rare breeds that you’ll find in the US, like the Hedemora, Icelandic, and Swedish, if you’ve got a hankering for some hipster birds to add to your flock, you’ve come to the right place.

Cluck It All also sells everything you need to start or care for your existing flock, from incubators and treats to feeders, waters, egg collection equipment, toys, and a whole lot more.

They also try to include an extra egg or two in every order to help offset egg failures, which is always appreciated!

Yellow Brick Farms

Yellow Brick Farms is a breeder that does two things, but does them really well: they sell fertilized eggs and day-old chicks of your choice of Black Sex-Link or Barred Rocks.

You’ll need to pick them up from their store in Dayton, Ohio, but while you’re there, you might also check out the rabbits, plants, and other cool stuff they have for sale. I hear their tomatoes are absolutely to die for!

If you aren’t picky about what chickens you get for your flock and just want some of the highest quality and best-cared-for birds and eggs around, Yellow Brick Farms is a sure bet if you are in the greater Dayton area.

The Quirky Bird

In business for more than a decade, The Quirky Bird Farm is indeed a peculiar operation…

In an era that is increasingly dominated by profit-focused smaller hatcheries or regional giant poultry-raising operations, these folks care only about producing the best, most eclectic and interesting chickens and eggs around.

Specifically, they only raise birds that produce uniquely beautiful eggs in all colors of the rainbow!

From taupe and ivory to speckled brown, mahogany, and all shades of olive or green, The Quirky Bird Farms have the birds that you need.

Located in Yellow Springs, they take biosecurity very, very seriously, and you’ll have to make arrangements to pick up your eggs from them directly by appointment only, or they can ship them to you directly. This hatchery does not ship any live birds, though.

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