Are you looking to track the egg production of your chickens, quail, or ducks for free? We’ve got you covered with our 4th annual updated chicken and poultry tracker. If you are new to the tracker you can review detailed instructions on how to log your poultry and their eggs below. This tracker keeps all the details of your chickens, quail, and ducks, the eggs they lay, and expenses/profit. This year we have a quick FAQ and what’s new for 2021. If you are already familiar with our previous egg and poultry trackers simply skip to the bottom to get the newest version! As always this egg tracking utility is free. Please just follow us on the social media of your choice Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or Pinterest and share this tracker with other folks who need a utility to keep up with their backyard egg production.
What All Can I Keep Track Of?
There are four main areas you can keep track of for your flock:
The Poultry (Chicken, Quail, and Ducks)
The Eggs
The Expenses (There are many)
The Income (Not nearly enough)
The Poultry
As with previous years you can log as much or as little information about your flock as you want. Highlights include birth, deaths, lay dates and notes for ducks, chicken, and quail. The only required field is a date for laying if you want the hens of all species to average correctly. Don’t worry about perfection, I sometimes can only get a lay date within a couple of weeks depending on how many pullets I have going that year.
The Eggs
Shooooo, folks really have opinions on this area. Track by size, color, species OR skip it all and just put your total eggs by day. We aim to please everyone in this area
The Income and Expenses
We offer some items in the dropdowns but you can easily add your own line items. We also have a handy place to put in some customer notes
Wow This Is Overwhelming, Where do I start?
First scroll down and make a copy of the sheet into your own Google Drive. Then follow the instructions on sheet one. Summaries and charts are automatically created from entering your chickens and eggs in the various tabs. Don’t worry if you still need help, we have a handy guide from 2018 that still gets you going:
We also will assist folks (when time allows) via comments or Facebook/Instagram chat. Please remember we don’t make money doing this and we work full time outside of this website.
Can I get an Excel/Paper/Other Version of this Egg Tracker?
Please keep asking in the comments below, but for right now the free version is only available via Google Sheets. If we ever have enough interest we will make other options for a small fee.
Can I Use This Egg Tracker For My Small Business?
ABSO-FREAKING-Lutely. While we cater to small backyard flocks, we firmly support small farm businesses! Please let us know if you use this poultry tracker for your small business. We would love to support you on social media and make changes to assist you. Farmers are the backbone of our food supply! We just ask that no one packages this sheet up and sells it for a profit or posts it as their own work. We make this for free so everyone can enjoy.
What’s New for 2021?
You asked for it and we came through: First the summary page now contains a WEEKLY view of your total egg counts. The egg counts by size, color, and species are automatically calculated just like the monthly counts.
We also created a new chart that shows the total eggs by week. A great way to get a visual on your egg production throughout the year.
How Do We Get Our Copy?!
Click the link below and you will be prompted to make a copy to your Google Drive. Make the copy and then run with it. Please note, I only give copy access to the Poultry Egg Tracking Spreadsheet. This avoids someone accidentally messing the entire sheet up.
How Can I Make You A Millionaire for Your Awesomeness?
If you like/use the tracker we simply ask that you spread the word about the free poultry egg tracker to others and send in suggestions via comments. Each year we try to incorporate what readers want to see. You are free to use it for personal or business use. Just don’t try to sell it as your product because that makes you a meanie, not nice person.
If you really NEEEEED to give us compensation check out our Support Us page!
Urban homesteaders who want to add livestock into their rotation are generally limited to small fowl. Backyard chickens and more recently quail (and ducks) are a go to for the small urban homestead. Why? Urban Homesteads usually have one premium: SPACE, and lets face it a goat needs some room to roam. But which is the best choice of livestock? Bring in the great battle royale Quail Versus Chickens for the Urban Homestead.
Couple of things before we get down to Quail v. Chicken!
I’m not adding ducks to the mix. They are an option, but I consider anything that needs to account for water and potentially plumbing to be for a more advanced livestock keeper. (Argue away in the comments)
We are discussing coturnix quail. They are the most ‘domestic’ of quail. There are a ton of other varieties that have more specialized needs than listed here.
Now Down to the battle: Quail Versus Chickens
We are going to look at the following factors:
Space
Noise/Ordinances
Feed/Water
Eggs
Meat
Pet Factor
Quail Versus Chickens: Space Requirements
Goes to QUAIL.
For urban homesteads space is always limited. And if your space isn’t limited then I don’t want to hear about your Shangri-la in the city (#jealous). But for the rest of us working with usually less than half an acre, space matters! I’m just going to call it here: QUAIL WIN
Let us have a visual illustration of the size needed for 13 quail versus 15 chickens…
Internet wisdom says 1 square foot per quail. I personally would go more in the 1.5-2 square feet per quail. I like space for all of my animals and provide over the minimums for all my animals. I wouldn’t be doing this if I felt like factory farming was a great thing.
In addition to the general space requirements chickens just need more complex accommodations. They need roosting bars, nesting boxes, and run space to move around. Quail need…. A floor and roof? In fact roofs that are much higher than 2 feet (but shorter than 6 feet) can end up potentially hurting a bird that ‘flushes’ and can get up enough velocity. Quail floors can be open mesh or cages can be stacked. I will be honest, my quail have an old small chicken coop with access to wood chips, dirt, a small ramp and coop space (which they use). I also throw in fresh grasses etc, because I like my animals to have a more natural life, when I can. I’m not into the stacking wire cages, but if that works for you, then you do you boo.
One final piece on space: Free Ranging Quail v Chicken
Free ranging quail is just not a thing as far as I can research. They aren’t terribly domestic (even when I handled the little boogers since hatching them). I mean every, single. time. I change their food or water they act likes it is the first time they have seen these objects and they are most certainly harbingers of their impending death. Quail free ranging would equal quail gone.
My chickens have a lot of access to the backyard and woods. I had to put up a small section of bird netting so the would leave the neighbors south facing foundation the hell alone. There was no where else they wanted to sun themselves… but this outdoor time has been great. We get lovely orange yolks, haven’t seen ticks on humans since we let them out, and cut our feed costs considerably during the summer. Also, there is just a real soothing aesthetic to watching the chickens happily scratch and root around the yard. Its like watching a feathered fish bowl. So if you want that free-ranging aspect then consider chickens may be more for you even if they take up a bit more space.
Quail Versus Chickens: Noise and Ordinances
Goes to QUAIL
Oh boy, Quail win on the noise and ordinances (most of the time) for an urban homestead. First noise: Quail ladies are basically silent. Unlike the clucking, chattering, bantering, constant racket of a group of hens quail are soooo quiet. Your neighbors will likely be unaware quail even exist. (Although, I don’t condone clandestine homesteading, the hideability of quail may be a huge factor in strict neighborhoods)
Now for the menfolk! Roosters are loud. Even teeny, tiny bantam roosters are loud (click for proof). I cannot even begin to discuss how much crowing, one rooster can do during the day. In our city, roosters aren’t even allowed (Though I can hear across the street. One of the neighbors does not subscribe to this law). Even if roosters are allowed your neighbors may hate you. Just saying.
Male quail aka cocks (Not making that up folks snickers while typing) call during mating season. Its a metallic sound… I find it pleasant, albeit a little odd to hear in Western North Carolina. The neighbors just thought some odd songbird had moved into the neighborhood. Everyone was a-okay with the quail and basically didn’t know they existed.
I love the pleasant homesteading sound of the chickens, but for urban environments the quail are certainly more user friendly.
Quail v Chickens: Feed/Water
I swear this is not a post touting quail but this one
Goes to QUAIL
I’ve had 13 quail for almost 9 months. I have more concerns I might get mold in a bag of feed than use it all. I buy 50 pounds of specialty high protein chicken food or game bird when I find it. I use a bag every three months? Something around that… They are tiny and they just eat hardly anything.
Same thing with water. A gallon waterer last for days. I’m more often dumping their water because it is gross and poopy than they have run out.
Chickens on the otherhand will gobble food. With 15 chickens we go through almost a 50 lb bag of food every 2 weeks when it is cold and they can’t find a lot free ranging. Don’t get me started on water. I have two five gallon waterers, but only one heater in the winter, so I’m getting water all the time for either thaw or thirst!
Chicken versus Quail: Eggs
Goes to CHICKENS!
Its a harder choice to make than one would believe. I looked at 5 important factors:
Time to Eggs: Quail
Eggs size: Chickens
Egg nutrition: Tie
Egg sales: Chickens
Eggs per lifetime: Chickens
Time to Eggs
Nothing beats a quail. From the moment they hatch to laying an egg is a ridiculous 6 weeks. I literally could not believe how quickly they feathered and started laying eggs. Chickens start laying eggs more along the 6 month range instead of 6 weeks. Yeah you can find some precocious hybrids that lay sooner, but if you are into anything fancy or heritage it may be longer than that.
Egg Size
Do you want to crack open 3-4 teeny tiny fragile eggs? Well that’s what you have to do when you want to have a full egg and you are using quail eggs. On the flip side tiny eggs do make lovely hors d’oeuvres.
Egg Nutrition
Another one of those surprisingly hotly contested subjects. Some people believe that quail eggs have more vitamins or protein than chicken eggs. From my research that isn’t really the case. They do have different nutrition more B vitamin in Quail more D in chicken eggs, etc. But the truth is they are fairly similar in nutrition.
Egg Sales
Many times you can sell quail eggs for a dollar to two more than a dozen chicken eggs BUT finding buyers is not nearly easy as chicken eggs. I don’t ever have to try hard to sell out of eggs. A quick post in our facebook group and they are all gone. Lots of times quail buyers are a bit harder. If you can find a steady buyer then quail might be a good way to go, but chicken eggs are reliable sales.
Eggs per Lifetime
Quail can lay 200-300 eggs per year which rival any chicken BUT they only lay around two years. Chickens will drop off on the amount of eggs they lay after 3 years but if you don’t light them in winter they can lay a generous amount of eggs for 4-5 years. You just can’t be the longevity over time per bird.
One more thing on eggs. I have started tracking both types of eggs and sales this year so I can compare my results in the future. You can use the tracker I use for free!
Chickens V. Quail: Meat
Calling this one a tie.
Quail are small so you are going to need a number of birds to equal one meat bird or dual purpose breed of chicken. But the time it takes to get a quail to full size (6 weeks) and how many you can fit in a small space it is easy to make up the difference. Cleaning both birds are about the same if you want to maintain the skin. This one is going to be up to personal taste.
Quail Versus Chickens: Pets
This goes to chickens hands down if you want pets. Quail if you don’t.
This is Adam’s pet chicken “Turken”. Only a face a chicken dad could love.
Quail just don’t make pets. I mean if you like a cage of nice exotic birds then they would fit the bill, but chickens can be pets. You may not choose to raise them that way (see the above meat comment) but if you want a friendly animal that can come when called and even wants to be held and hang out with you then chickens fit the bill. Honestly, we have some chickens that are such characters they’ll be allowed to retire, but we have a section of flock that just aren’t pets. It works for us, but each homesteader needs to figure out what relationship you want with your livestock and pick accordingly!
The Final Verdict
You’ll need to pick the bird or birds that work for you. We are lucky enough to be able to fit two types into our urban homestead but I can tell you I kind of wish I had started with quail. I adore my chickens and have had them for years, but having quail would have been so much easier in the beginning. They just do not require the upkeep and care chickens do. That being said you really can’t go wrong either way. Hopefully, you can pick from the above factors and choose a small livestock that works for your urban homestead.
If you are a home enthusiast or small farm you will want to check out this year’s annual free egg tracker. That’s right, it is time for our annual update to the egg tracking spreadsheet and this year is a dooooozy of updates. If you downloaded our free chicken egg tracker before then you know we strive to allow for flexibility in how many details you track with your chickens. So you may be excited to hear we gave the egg tracker a brand new update that expanded the same egg size and color, breed, and income/expenses to other types of poultry. Now you can track egg production for your chicken, ducks, and quail!
Updates to the free 2020 Chicken Egg Tracker aka Poultry Egg Tracker
Renamed to the 2020 Poultry Tracker
Handles leap year
Fixed some bugs helpful readers corrected throughout the year
Added ducks
Added quail
Added new summary statistics for better understanding of your best species and egg layers
Added new graphs to assist in at-a-glance understanding of your laying flock
Added capacity to track new egg colors
Fixed atrocious spelling errors that have been there waaaaayyyyy too long
Highlights of the Poultry Egg Tracker
My favorite change is the new color breakdown donut chart. The colors aren’t glamorous, but you can actually tell which color eggs are your breakouts without reading tiny print.
I also love having a sheet where I can add my coturnix quail eggs along with my chicken egg tracking. We aren’t into ducks yet, but I had Arrowhead Point Farms reach out and show me some of the changes they had made to accommodate their ducks, which got me excited to add both types of poultry. Speaking of… If you are one of the lucky few with Cayuga ducks I added a grey color type into the sheet to track your awesome eggs!
Finally, I spent some time breaking down egg production AND grouping egg production so you can see all your flocks combined or broken out by species and egg color.
What Functionality Hasn’t Changed
You can still put minimal data into the sheet and simply track your eggs. Columns that have to be filled out in order for it to work have been marked with an astrik. Not into tracking colors or sizes? Then just fill out total eggs by color or just total eggs. Only have one species? No problem, just fill out chickens OR ducks OR quail. It will all still work.
One thing I didn’t do this year was make a pared down version of the 2019 chicken egg tracking spreadsheet. I didn’t get any feedback on it or requests for assistance. So either it was really awesome! Or people weren’t using it. If you need a 2020 version of the simple chicken egg tracker let me know and I’ll whip one up.
How Do I Get My Tracker?
Click the link below and you will be prompted to make a copy to your Google Drive. Make the copy and then run with it. Please note, I only give copy access to the Poultry Egg Tracking Spreadsheet. This avoids someone accidentally messing the entire sheet up.
If you like/use the tracker we simply ask that you spread the word about the free poultry egg tracker to others and send in suggestions via comments. Each year we try to incorporate what readers want to see. You are free to use it for personal or business use. Just don’t try to sell it as your product because that makes you a meanie, not nice person.
Craft Thyme is excited to announce that our fresh eggs are for sale (for local pickup) straight from our small urban homestead! If you live in the Asheville, North Carolina area and are looking for tasty eggs from happy chickens you have come to the right place. Our eggs are never washed, never refrigerated, and lovingly laid by our happy hens. You get a fresh egg, truly free ranged on our local property.
How do you buy our fresh, ungraded eggs? Message us on Facebook or email us at brianna@craftthyme.com. We plan to sell at local markets this summer but until then we provide a pickup location in West Asheville, NC for our colorful, local eggs. Current cost $5 a dozen. Will sell in larger and smaller quantities.
Egg FAQs
Why aren’t the eggs washed?
When chickens lay eggs they create a protective coating called a bloom around the egg. This bloom keeps the bacteria out of the egg making for the freshest experience! We keep a clean coop and nesting boxes but occasionally you may see some mud spots on the eggs.
Shouldn’t those eggs be refrigerated?
No! One of the best things about fresh eggs is you do not have to refrigerate them (up to 45 days) but you can refrigerate them if you want (up to 3 months).
What do your chickens eat and why should I care?
Everything! Our chickens get lots of time on our pesticide free lawn, they roam our wooded areas, and the dig in any garden bed I happen to not be watching. What they are doing that entire time? Eating whatever they fancy! Dandelions, worms, bugs, wild cherries, lettuce, you name it, they eat it. We also provide fresh feed, on demand, anytime the girls want. This means the chickens get plenty of exercise while their eggs taste of the seasons and have bright flavorful yolks.
So why are your hens so happy?
Our hens get the pampered life, from living in a Taj Ma-coop when they can’t free range to lots of pets, scratches and neck rubs. We make sure they get lots of dust baths, a clean secure coop to live in, and a basically stress free chicken life.
If these eggs are so great why are you selling them?
Right now we get anywhere from 8-12 eggs a day. Domestic hens lay almost every day during the warmer months. Regardless, of what we do they will still produce eggs unless they were sick or starving (not happening in this house). That means that even as a family of 6 we can only eat so many delicious eggs each week. The money made from our eggs goes right back to the care of the ladies.
Can I hatch these eggs?
No, right now we do not have a rooster and our eggs are not fertilized. These means no chicks will hatch. If that changes we will make sure to update this section.
Is it legal to sell eggs without a farm license?
By North Carolina egg law we are allowed to sell 30 dozen ungraded eggs without a license. Let me repeat that, 30 dozen! That is a lot of eggs, and while our girls produce, we are no where close to that many eggs.
We may already be a week into 2019, but it is not to late to start tracking your home chicken egg production with this easy spreadsheet. In 2018 I released a version that allows you to track your chickens, egg production, sizes, colors, income, and expenses. Everything the home chicken hobbiest might need to keep their flock’s statistics. I’ve made some tweaks and am now happy to offer another free egg and chicken tracker for 2019. This way everyone can keep up with how deeply in the hole their chickens are taking them :).
2019 Egg Laying and Chicken Flock Tracker
As with last year’s model I am releasing this utility for tracking eggs and other chicken statistics via Google Sheets. I like Google Sheets because I can access it on my phone and easily enter in eggs while I collect them. I used the sheet myself for all of 2018 and got the following charts at the end of the year. We started with a new flock that did not start laying until July which is why there are no eggs for the first few months.:
Let’s not discuss the profit portion… Hobby right? Might also help if we didn’t eat so many eggs.
So what’s New for 2019?
Added XL eggs. Apparently some of you are all fancy and actually measure and grade these eggs out. For you I added the calculations for XL eggs in all colors!
Created a separate sheet for the lazy in us. It is a pared down version of the larger tracker for those that just want to track some basics.
Tell us more about the Easy Tracker!
So you want to know more about the simple egg tracker? Well I took out the sizing, as I heard many people did not weigh their eggs nor did they want to guess the size. I left in color, but you can skip that entirely and just put in a total. It also removes a chart and shortens the summary. You still get all the totals, averages, and goodies.
I sure hope you are sold on this egg and chicken tracking spreadsheet because, well, it is free! No catch, I just like making utilities for myself and if others find it useful then great. Click on the links below and you will be prompted to make a copy for yourself. As usual if there is enough demand I will consider making this in Excel or a printable pdf version.
All I ask for payment is that you share this post if you think others can use it and let me know your questions, comments, and ideas for improvement in the comments below!
