Ideal poultry?

[chickiechook]

Hi i just ordered some silkies from ideal poultry. I was wanting to add them to my breeder flock but i have seen a lot of bad reviews about them and its a little too late to cancel the order, i got 4 white silkies and 4 assorted silkies. I am really worried and i want them to be healthy and fluffy like regular silkies but i have seen a lot of reviews about bad quality chicks, i am really worried

, but the reviews i did see were from 4 to 5 years ago, maybe they changed their flock? Does anyone have pictures of some recent chicks you have ordered from there? How many males do you guys think they will give me , like for warmth purposes? And do they send extras in my case, silkies? Sorry about all the questions, but as you can see i am a little nervous.

 

[dutchbunny83]

They're not show quality.
Though there are often people selling show quality eggs that aren't really show quality either.
I have some lavender silkies right now from Ideal that are very healthy and feathered properly. No red in the them.
I had a black silkie rooster from them who was the best little rooster I've ever had.

When I'm not hatching my own, Ideal has always been my go-to hatchery.
All of my chicks have always been very healthy.
I like that they have a large variety of breeds. I also like that they don't have a bird minimum. They also have the best prices.

But there are downsides to buying from any major hatchery if you're into the animal rights aspect of it, because thousands of male chicks that aren't needed or don't go as packing peanuts are thrown away alive.

 

[dutchbunny83]

The extra males you get will not be silkies.
They will most likely be sex links, Rhode Island Reds, or Barred Rocks.
I have grown them out in a meat pen before and found that they aren't always all male, some turn out to be girls.
It's usually 10 placed in the order.
But it's pretty hot this time of year so maybe less?
If any silkies die in transit you will be refunded.

Your silkies are straight run, so rule of thumb would be 4 males and 4 females, but you never know. The more you get the closer to 50/50 it is. Within a couple weeks you should be able to tell what you have.

My lavenders are 1 male & 2 females they're like 2 or 3 months old now maybe? They came from Ideal this Spring.

Also if you want to breed, I recommend ordering much more than you need. Pick the ones with best qualities out-- more feathering, fuller beards, etc. Then sell off the other ones at a discount, it's not like Ideal is that expensive.
But if you're trying to improve your blood line or want show quality it doesn't matter what hatchery you go through, you won't be able to find anything but pet quality. You will have to go to a well known breeder and be expected to pay $$$.

 

[lightchick]

I got my Silkie from Ideal and they sent us 10 extra male chicks when we ordered 9 chicks.
6 assorted Silkies
1 Black sex link
1 Australorp
1 Brown sex link
Me and a friend ordered together and they got 5 Silkies and I got 1 Silkie and the sex links and Australorp. 1 Silkie chick died shortly after arriveing, but the rest were fine.
This is my Silkie.




My friend got one bad quality one.

 

[chickiechook]

The extra males you get will not be silkies.
They will most likely be sex links, Rhode Island Reds, or Barred Rocks.
I have grown them out in a meat pen before and found that they aren't always all male, some turn out to be girls.
It's usually 10 placed in the order.
But it's pretty hot this time of year so maybe less?
If any silkies die in transit you will be refunded.

Your silkies are straight run, so rule of thumb would be 4 males and 4 females, but you never know. The more you get the closer to 50/50 it is. Within a couple weeks you should be able to tell what you have.

My lavenders are 1 male & 2 females they're like 2 or 3 months old now maybe? They came from Ideal this Spring.

Also if you want to breed, I recommend ordering much more than you need. Pick the ones with best qualities out-- more feathering, fuller beards, etc. Then sell off the other ones at a discount, it's not like Ideal is that expensive.
But if you're trying to improve your blood line or want show quality it doesn't matter what hatchery you go through, you won't be able to find anything but pet quality. You will have to go to a well known breeder and be expected to pay $$$.

Thankyou very much!!!

I am not necessarily breeding for a show quality stock, a lot of people i know want chicks for pet purposes and they went crazy for my flock, so i decided to order some more for selling and breeding pet quality birds to neighbors and friends. I dont have to buy any insurance for the chicks right? Will i be refunded anyway?

 

[dutchbunny83]

Yes you will be refunded. I got 8, I kept my 3 favorites 1 boy and 2 girls.
My favorite is the roo.
Here he is.
Lavender silkie 2 months old or so from Ideal.

 

[chickiechook]

Yes you will be refunded. I got 8, I kept my 3 favorites 1 boy and 2 girls.
My favorite is the roo.
Here he is.
Lavender silkie 2 months old or so from Ideal.

Oh my gosh!! SOO cute!

Thank you, what i meant by extras like when my friend ordered from ideal she ordered 25 pullets and got 29 and 5 packing peanuts. IS there a possibility i could get some extra silkies?

 

[lightchick]

Oh my gosh!! SOO cute!

Thank you, what i meant by extras like when my friend ordered from ideal she ordered 25 pullets and got 29 and 5 packing peanuts. IS there a possibility i could get some extra silkies?

No, I got Rhode Island red roos that I'm STILL trying to get rid of! Their 7 weeks. I'm pretty sure they only give you roosters from breeds that they can sex.

 

[GOLDENSEABRIGHT]

the chicks I ordered were in great health and nice looking condition

 

[dutchbunny83]

Oh my gosh!! SOO cute!

Thank you, what i meant by extras like when my friend ordered from ideal she ordered 25 pullets and got 29 and 5 packing peanuts. IS there a possibility i could get some extra silkies?

No you won't get silkies.
It will probably be sex links, RIR, or Barred Rocks