About Us

papa's poultry is located in redding, ca. 

we are a family owned and operated business with a primary desire to find, gather, and sustain rare and heritage breed poultry.  we started with an order of 6 hatchery birds in 2010.  full of excitement and enthusiasm, we did just about everything wrong.  we lost many more chickens than we were able to keep alive.  there was the 2 year old loving them to death.  then there were predators: skunk, raccoons, hawks.  then there was poor flock management.  then there were countless roosters in these "sexed chicks".  i think in our first six months we lost or rehomed greater than 25 chickens and ended up with only 3 hens and an asexual silkie that never laid an egg or crowed!

after all the disaster, things started to look up. we bought an incubator. we started hatching eggs.  i was hooked. the kids loved it.  my wife tried her best to "tolerate it".  since our humble beginnings, we have purchased a 5.5 acre property which currently has 50+ breeding pens.  my passion is for rare, heritage, and just plain cool chickens.  i strive to bring in multiple bloodlines whenever possible to keep genetic diversity.  i grow out at least 3-4 times as many chickens as i want to end up in the final breeding group.  i like to play with combinations within the group to see what hatches. i love watching for the best layers, the skilled foragers, the greatest personalities, the over the top looks, and the overall cool factor which makes me want to keep a bird and put it into the breeding pool.  \

in the last few years i have found some more folks excited about the business.  so, i have some wonderful help in managing the birds, shipping, and organization.  i will strive to get back to you within 24-48 hours whenever possible but I try to keep regular business hours, so have grace if you are contacting me over the weekend.