Just ordered Gold Wyandottes from Meyers

I just ordered Gold Wyandottes from Meyers for an April 5th delivery. I've never ordered from an Hatchery before so I'm nervous about mail order birds dying. I usually get chicks from the farm store 5 miles away but they couldn't get Wyandottes so I bit the bullet. I settled for a month later than I usually buy chicks, in the hope that the weather will be warm enough and we won't lose any.

I did an extensive amount of research on Meyers and MacMurray and went with Meyers only because they had pullets available in April. I saw good and bad reviews for both hatcheries. I will post a review when I receive the chicks and 7 days afterwards.

Where are you located? I put my chick order off until I know it's warm enough to ship to my area, I get mine in late May to June. I'm getting a few gold laced Wyandotte too this time. I ordered from My Pet Chicken. It very exciting waiting for those babies to arrive, as well as sometimes stressful. I will look forward to you chick pics.

Hello Lelilamom,
I received an order of Black Jersey Giants from Murray McMurray ten days ago ((February 2 2016)) and although USPS did a poor job updating the tracking info the birds arrived on schedule and out of 25 birds I ordered, I ended up with 27 thriving chicks. No one was DOA and there was an extra bird for free on top of the 'free exotic chick' which turned out to be a Black Cochin! So lucky! You should check, hatcheries usual have a strong policy on reimbursement. One of the birds we got had gotten a leg tangled up in her umbilical cord and it dried that way trapping her leg at an odd angle and when she arrived it was with a broken toe. She has since had the toe set right and her bum leg is strong again and you can no longer even tell she came to us injured but MMM credited our account for that bird anyway even though I she is now thriving. I received great customer service from them and believe that you aught to receive the same care on the big day your birds arrive, just get on the phone with the hatchery right away with any issues. Good luck and post pictures!

EDIT: I live in the Pacific Northwest and it was 42 degrees the morning we went to pick them up at the post office being so early in february. As long as you can pick them up and get them into your brooder right away there should be few to no casualties from cold.

Hi I also placed my first Meyers order. I got 7 Barred Rock females and my free female suprise layer called Meyer Meal Maker because we are to donate her eggs to needy families.They have had amazing customer service and I was told because my other chicks are vaccinated that they WILL be vaccinating my free meal maker chick at no charge! I'm very impressed that they give these free female chicks and all you have to do is add or call and ask for the "meal maker". it's there way of helping others help the needy. the breed will be "similar" to what you ordered. Very nice! Also they reply very quickly to email questions. The customer service can't be beat! I realize when chicks leave their area it's out of there hands on how they are handled but I honestly believe they do their best to ensure survival on their end. The can't possibly control the other factors such as the postal service, weather or delay. And yet they DO still offer replacement within 48 hours of delivery. I AM praying all 8 survive the trip. How many did you order? Did you get the free meal maker chick? I'm sure it will go well. so far I'm impressed with Meyer.Keep us posted when they arrive ok. I wish you the best.

I am in upstate NY and right now it's below 0 degrees with the wind chill. I also have to think about 6 - 8 weeks from now when the birds go out to our "meet and greet" coop to get acquainted with our other girls without actually mixing in. If I get chicks now, they'll be out in the coop by mid-April and we can still have below freezing temps. I usually get chicks the 2nd or 3rd week in March putting them out in the coop the 2nd or 3rd week in May. Last year our coldest night was about 35 degrees and they were 8 weeks and fully feathered.

Getting new chicks isn't as exciting as it is nerve-wracking. I have alot of time and money invested in our homestead. We work full time as well as running our small establishment here. Plus we have very small children and other animals. We're exhausted all the time. If these chicks arrive sick or dead, we're out much needed birds and have to find another source - and will probably end up with hybrid birds with genetic issues that have cost us so much time and emotional stress not to mention money trying to "fix" birds that could not be fixed. I'm hoping to end up with an all heritage breed flock after a few years.

I hope all your birds arrive healthy fellow chicken wranglers! Let me know how your Meyers and Macmurray birds are doing. If I have good luck with mail-order birds, I will do it again next spring.

Hello Leliamom,
As a person with aspirations of homesteading it myself I am a bit concerned by some of your comments. Particularly "We're exhausted all the time. If these chicks arrive sick or dead, we're out much needed birds and have to find another source - and will probably end up with hybrid birds with genetic issues that have cost us so much time and emotional stress not to mention money trying to "fix" birds that could not be fixed."
Any reputable hatchery will refund you for injuries or deaths sustained in transit. In my experience getting the exact breed you need is not too difficult although some breeds are more challenging to get early in the spring. Before settling for a Franken-chicken hybrid I would like to point you to any number of professional chicken hatcheries like Murray McMurray or Cackle. So far I've lost no chicks from my 27 little ones going on 2 weeks old and was compensated for a peep who came to us with a broken toe although now she is fine. I understand and empathize with your concerns, try not to let the cycle of life get you down I know it sometimes appears cruel. I would be happy to let you know how my own flock is doing and include some new pictures soon they are getting so big already!

I've used McMurray 3 times, and not a loss yet. They come highly recommended by me but I've never used Meyer, so its a biased opinion


Watch for inclement weather. If you have a storm coming in, you may be able to contact Meyers and they will put a heatbpack in, or postpone your order for you.

That's actually why I have such high regards for McMurray; they have excellent customer service and will work with you to help you out.

Maybe they both have the same protocol; I would email them and ask for sure, so you can rest easy when they ship and not worry that they'll be weak and sick from the cold.

You should be OK with any of the major hatcheries. I have ordered from Meyers and McMurray with no problems yet. I used McMurray this year because prices were comparable, buy Meyers wanted $23 more dollars than McMurray to ship. Go figure.

ChickenChaser9 said:

Hello Lelilamom,
I received an order of Black Jersey Giants from Murray McMurray ten days ago ((February 2 2016)) and although USPS did a poor job updating the tracking info the birds arrived on schedule and out of 25 birds I ordered, I ended up with 27 thriving chicks. No one was DOA and there was an extra bird for free on top of the 'free exotic chick' which turned out to be a Black Cochin! So lucky! You should check, hatcheries usual have a strong policy on reimbursement. One of the birds we got had gotten a leg tangled up in her umbilical cord and it dried that way trapping her leg at an odd angle and when she arrived it was with a broken toe. She has since had the toe set right and her bum leg is strong again and you can no longer even tell she came to us injured but MMM credited our account for that bird anyway even though I she is now thriving. I received great customer service from them and believe that you aught to receive the same care on the big day your birds arrive, just get on the phone with the hatchery right away with any issues. Good luck and post pictures!

EDIT: I live in the Pacific Northwest and it was 42 degrees the morning we went to pick them up at the post office being so early in february. As long as you can pick them up and get them into your brooder right away there should be few to no casualties from cold.

Click to expand...

Ya all my Mcmurray chicks have always came healthy and alive. I just got a order of 30 chicks and was sent 32 live healthy chicks. There customer service is impeccable in my opinion. I would recommend them to anyone. But your free exotic will usually be a male. I think mine is a golden laced wyndote lol.

Eps32 said:

Ya all my Mcmurray chicks have always came healthy and alive. I just got a order of 30 chicks and was sent 32 live healthy chicks. There customer service is impeccable in my opinion. I would recommend them to anyone. But your free exotic will usually be a male. I think mine is a golden laced wyndote lol.

Click to expand...

I could see how they would send a male. I could also see them not bothering to have the chick sexed before putting it in the crate. In either case, Cochin has won a place in our flock already by being a charming little aristocrat and we couldn't be happier with our MMM purchase and the service we received.