Bad Experience w/IDEAL Poultry Hatchery: Normal Occurrence?

Gresh said:

Hi, all! I wanted to know your opinions of IDEAL Poultry Hatchery and Breeding Farms in Cameron, Texas. I recently placed an order with them, and have had a most disagreeable experience so far. I ordered seven chicks, only three of which have turned out healthy. One (a Russian Orloff male) was dead on arrival. Three others (a female Buckeye and two female Orloffs) were infected with a disease that I can only best describe as stiffness in the legs and wobbliness. One female Orloff died of this disease the night of arrival, and the other Orloff and the Buckeye pretty much went downhill from there. I took very good care of these chicks (I have raised several chicks in the past successfully) and cannot think of anything I erred in. They had clean pine-shaving bedding and water, medicated chick starter feed, proper light and heat, and no drafts in the brooder. I also gave them water-soluble vitamins for the first few days after shipping. I called IDEAL about it, and they said that it was merely shipping stress (bad explanation for the stiff legs and wobbliness). They refused to admit any possible error on their part.

So, as you can see, I haven't had a good experience with IDEAL. However, I want to know if stuff like this has happened to anyone else. I really like IDEAL's low prices and the relatively quick shipping, but I'd rather pay high price and wait awhile to get good stock than pay IDEAL's price and wait IDEAL's time for bad stock.

If IDEAL is normally as bad as it was for me, I'd be indebted to anyone who could give me some better hatchery suggestions. Ones I have considered are: Meyer, Cackle, Purely Poultry, and My Pet Chicken.

Thanks!

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idealpoultry said:

Hi Everyone -

We wanted to take the time to address some of the concerns stated in this thread. We are sorry to see that you have had a bad experience with our poultry. We pride ourselves on breeding and selling quality poultry. We also strive to create a most pleasant experience with our staff while you order.

We are an NPIP Certified and Monitored Hatchery. We go even further with very stringent Biosecurity and Animal Husbandry practices to ensure the health of our poultry. Poultry diseases, ones that are transferred hen to chick, are very virulent and can be deadly. Many of these also affect hatchability and fertility. We do not have a disease on our farm nor do the chicks that leave our facility. Our chickens are our business and livelihood, and would not compromise their health or comfortability intentionally. Once a disease is present, there has to be time for the body and immune system to be compromised which then visible symptoms can be seen. Most loss that can be seen within the first few days of receipt is due to stress from shipment and not from disease. It is very hot outside and we do all we can at our facility to ensure the comfort and livability of the poultry that leaves here. However, once they have left our facility, we do not have control over how each shipment is handled until it reaches the customer. Contrary to belief, we do not receive any recourse from the postal service when a shipment arrives dead or stressed. We offer to reship or refund at our cost. Our customers order and expect live poultry and we want our customers to receive live poultry. We would not be in business for 74 years by providing inferior poultry.

To Gresh - I am sorry that you feel the answer provided was not what you were looking for. If we did not provide you compensation for your loss in credit back to means of purchase, please let me know. We cannot always determine why chicks die as it is very hard to diagnose over the phone. We are always willing to help and provide solutions when we can.

When I am in the office, I am always willing to help with any poultry health or husbandry questions. I have Poultry Science Degree from Texas A&M University and years of poultry experience. We hope this information helps and also answers the concerns.

Ross Windham
Ideal Poultry Breeding Farms

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Gresh said:

Hi, all! I wanted to know your opinions of IDEAL Poultry Hatchery and Breeding Farms in Cameron, Texas. I recently placed an order with them, and have had a most disagreeable experience so far. I ordered seven chicks, only three of which have turned out healthy. One (a Russian Orloff male) was dead on arrival. Three others (a female Buckeye and two female Orloffs) were infected with a disease that I can only best describe as stiffness in the legs and wobbliness. One female Orloff died of this disease the night of arrival, and the other Orloff and the Buckeye pretty much went downhill from there. I took very good care of these chicks (I have raised several chicks in the past successfully) and cannot think of anything I erred in. They had clean pine-shaving bedding and water, medicated chick starter feed, proper light and heat, and no drafts in the brooder. I also gave them water-soluble vitamins for the first few days after shipping. I called IDEAL about it, and they said that it was merely shipping stress (bad explanation for the stiff legs and wobbliness). They refused to admit any possible error on their part.

So, as you can see, I haven't had a good experience with IDEAL. However, I want to know if stuff like this has happened to anyone else. I really like IDEAL's low prices and the relatively quick shipping, but I'd rather pay high price and wait awhile to get good stock than pay IDEAL's price and wait IDEAL's time for bad stock.

If IDEAL is normally as bad as it was for me, I'd be indebted to anyone who could give me some better hatchery suggestions. Ones I have considered are: Meyer, Cackle, Purely Poultry, and My Pet Chicken.

Thanks!

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Debbie09011970 said:

This is an old post but I order from Ideal Poultry and I have had a really good experience with them through the years. Try again because they are doing well with us.

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