Posted: Jun 17, 2019 / 07:32 PM CDT Updated: Jun 17, 2019 / 07:32 PM CDT FILE – In this July 1, 2010 file photo, chickens poke their heads out of cages in Turner, Maine.

Not Cackle Hatchery, which was founded in 1936 by Clifford and Lena Smith. They sell 193 varieties of poultry – everything from chicks to chucker or turkey — and specialize in purebred poultry.

"We've never seen anything like this and I've been here since 1964," the owner of one hatchery says. For anyone looking to start their own flock, an expert has advice on breeds.

To “save” those heritage breeds, the farm imports pairs of chickens and then sells the day-old chicks. The hatchery has a large, temperature-controlled incubator shed on-site, with pin ...