Portable basket colony for growing and transport and method of use

A method for processing poultry using a colony basket comprising the steps of:

• a. gathering at a hatchery together a grouping of birds into a first colony basket when the grouping of birds are day-old-chicks, where said first colony basket has at least one vertically upright latitudinal side wall having a vertical slot extending downward into the at least one vertically upright latitudinal side wall for receiving a channel, where the vertical slot is narrow and vertically elongated having substantially vertical and substantially parallel sides for retaining the channel and said at least one vertically upright latitudinal side wall having at least one standoff member protruding vertically upward;
• b. stacking at least a second colony basket on top of and immediately above the first colony basket and engaging the at least one standoff member with the bottom of the at least second colony basket to resist latitudinal movement of the first colony basket and the second colony basket one with respect to the other;
• c. transporting said same grouping of birds in said first and second colony baskets to a growing house having a colony system including a plurality of colony racks and inserting said first and second colony baskets containing said same grouping of birds in one of said plurality of colony racks;
• d. feeding and watering the same grouping of birds while the second colony basket is stacked above the first colony basket using the vertical slots through which to channel water;
• e. transferring said substantially same grouping of birds in said first and second colony baskets to a transport and transporting said first and second colony baskets containing said same grouping of birds to a processing facility;
• f. transferring said same grouping of birds in said first and second colony baskets out of the first and second colony baskets for processing;
• g. cleaning and emptying said first and second colony baskets;
• and
• h. transporting the emptied first and second colony baskets to the hatchery.