Hatcheries, Day Old Chicks

I always used Ideal Poultry because I live in Texas, they are located in Texas, shipping is less, and I get my chicks within a day. If there is a specific breed that I want, I order them, but sometimes when I want a variety, I order the Heavy Assorted Breeds. Ideal always list the breeds that I get and the number. Ideal was out when i ordered my last batch so I used Cackle and ordered the mixed assorted heavy breed. They did not list the breeds so I do not know what I have until they are almost grown and the shipping was high.

I ordered the Brown Egg Layers Special from Murray McMurray last summer and all I can say is wow. The order comes with 25 of various breeds and they throw in a free exotic chick. They gave me 26 girls plus a Buff Laced Polish roo as my bonus. They all grew up strong and healthy and the mix was wonderful. I got some red colored breeds, some white, some barred rocks, 1 black one. I did lose some but it was to dogs and had nothing to do with the health of these birds. I just ordered from a different hatchery this year because when you start order different breeds from Murray they charge a significant amount more plus shipping is a little expensive with Murray. But I got all strong healthy chicks and I have nothing bad to say about my experience with Murray. I will post again whenever I get my new chicks from this other hatchery.

I posted 2 pictures of my chicks when I got them from Murray. The one picture of them in the box is literally when they arrived to my house. I opened the box and there they all were alive and hungry!

I called the advice line before making my purchase. The lady I spoke with took her time and answered all of my questions. She gave me great advice. I felt so much better about becoming a backyard chicken farmer. I was confident in my breed choices and in my ability to take care of the day old chicks. I purchased 14 hens and a rooster. They are all thriving and I couldn't imagine life without them.
Day 1
5 1/2 months later

I ordered from cackle hatchery and got 20 chicks. They sent extras and all of them have grown up to be beautiful birds! I had two die when they arrived from failure to thrive. I also got plenty of pullets out of straight run chicks. They also were able to ship them very soon and that was unexpected.

My first chicks by mail - what a great experience. I did have to call the order in because it wouldn't go thru on their website. The chicks I wanted (frizzle cochins) were to be shipped out within a week. I received an email on the day they shipped (Monday) and the post office was calling me at 6:30 Wednesday morning! I only ordered 8 chicks but paid the insurance and they packed extra material in to keep them warm. All chicks were doing great! I dipped their beaks and they started drinking immediately. I put them under a light and put out some food - they starting pecking the food right away. They all seem to be doing fine despite their trip. I am very happy and will definitely order again!

Every single chick shipped survived. Helpful on the phone. They have a huge variety of birds, plus mixes that may appeal to some.

Of all the chickens I've ordered online, this is the best place I've ever gotten them. My chicks always arrive perfectly healthy and on time. Meyer Hatchery always makes sure that every customer satisfied and updated on their packages. They're extremely reliable, amazing service, and perfect birds. I recommend them to everyone

I ordered 4 pullet chicks about 8 weeks ago and since I live close enough to drive I drove instead of dealing with shipping (since I can't have more than 6 birds the shipping would've been three times the price of the chicks alone) So I arrived and instead of the 4 chicks I had 6. I had ordered a white wyandotte, a columbian wyandotte, and two speckled sussex. Since they couldn't for sure tell if the columbian was a pullet they sent three of them.
It has been 8 weeks since I picked up my chicks and all 6 are still healthy energetic chickies- we didn't lose 1! Although one of the speckled sussex is a roo, all the others are pullets. Over all I was impressed with my experience. The customer service was great. Before I had ordered I had emailed back and forth discussing how we would do chick pick up and getting recommendations on breeds for what I was wanting. I would use them again.

I LOVE Little Birdie Chicken Farm and Hatchery! We got our little cuties from them last week and had such a great experience. They are friendly, knowledgeable and professional, not to mention very reasonably priced. They are located in Wake Forest, North Carolina, and are a small family run operation. They sell locally sourced feed and bedding, and have recently implemented a program called Charity Chicks. The hatchery has partnered with Interfaith Food Shuttle to give chickens to at risk teens and families who live at or below the poverty level. If you donate a chick, LBH will match your gift with another chick.

To donate a chick (two with the LBH match) send $5 to Little Birdie Hatchery at 9805 Adlie Drive, Wake forest, NC 27587. Make your check payable to Interfaith Food Shuttle. They will make sure it gets to them.

I highly recommend Little Birdie Chicken Farm and Hatchery to anyone in the Triangle area.
Their website is www.littlebirdiehatchery.com

I had placed an order with another hatchery but then I learned that that hatchery shipped on Fridays and chicks sat in postal distributions all weekend and many here on BYC were experiencing high death rates amongst their chicks I cancelled it and looked elsewhere. I found that Privett had the breeds I wanted including a new desire, California Greys, which are only available in two hatcheries. I changed my order twice during the time between placing it and receiving it. The customer service people were polite and friendly and promptly took care of the changes I requested.

The chicks hatched on the 24th and arrived as scheduled on the 26th. I was thrilled with the size and apparent health of each one. They seemed twice the size of the chicks I had received from another more well known hatchery last year. I had my own hatch going and when my babies hatched they looked tiny by comparison too.

Privett is located in New Mexico so for those of us on the west coast it may make more sense to use them in terms of less potential stress on the chicks.

Because I have learned that sexing chicks is so hard on them I will not order sexed chicks again unless they are auto-sexing. But I am really pleased with the pullets I have received from Privett.

Purchase price for sexed pullets: 10 Easter Eggers, 5 Speckled Sussex, 5 California Grey, 5 Partridge Rocks. I don't remember what shipping was but it was reasonable...under 20.00

I used to order all my chicks through McMurray but I've switched to My Pet Chicken for a number of reasons. I had good experience with McMurray I just like My Pet Chicken better.

- Firstly I think the breed quality is better with My Pet Chicken. The chicks I’ve ordered from My Pet Chicken have far out surpassed the chicks I’ve gotten through McMurray in both temperament and looks. I realize they aren’t to be compared to what you would get through a breeder but I’m not trying to compare apples to oranges.

- You can order a very small number of chicks through My Pet Chicken and the shipping only increases if you have an order less than 15. The min order with McMurray is 25.

- My Pet Chicken has a no kill policy. They do not use male chicks as packing peanuts and they do not throw them live in garbage bags or meat grinders. They sell excess male chicks to the Amish where they are likely raised as meat birds but I believe this is a fine practice in comparison to being ground up or thrown away. I can order only pullets with a guilt free conscience. I’ve heard bad things about what McMurray does with their chicks but I can’t claim to know for sure. I did look at their website and could find no information about this matter but I assure you they have to do something with all those excess baby roosters. IMPORTANT NOTE: Unfortunately this policy has changed and no longer says "no kill" see MPC's website :http://www.mypetchicken.com/backyar...ur-hatchery-do-with-extra-males-and-H103.aspx I appreciate that they are still trying to address this issue in a humane way but it's still a sad update...

- My Pet Chicken has great customer service: I had a $10 chick die a day after it had arrived and My Pet Chicken refunded me the money, no questions asked. They were also very friendly and sympathetic about the loss.

I got my Chicks last easter break, we ordered 15 from eFowl (thats why my username is Chick15) and they threw in an extra. We ordered 5 SLW, 5 Speckled Sussex and 5 RIR (the extra was a RIR) All the chicks lived and were healthy, nad have been healthy. This was my first time having chickens and we were very pleased. I would definatly reccommend them, they did a terrific job, and none of my chickens died from disease, so they are all perfectly healthy.

I ordered 15 hens and 1 rooster. All are beautiful and healthy, and they all lived (they sent me an extra, and she lived too). Best of all, they are located very close to me (in southern Missouri) so I can visit the hatchery if I want more chicks later. They sent my chicks out very quickly, and sent clear, detailed instructions on how to care for my new arrivals! Their website is easy to use and order from, and they also have a nice color catalogue that I enjoyed looking through to see all the beautiful breeds they have to choose from, as well as other types of birds. I'm thinking about ordering some ducklings or keets from them!

I ordered 6 chicks from Meyer Hatchery with a 7/21 hatch date. They had so many different breeds to choose from and it took me a couple of weeks before I could finally settle on the breeds I did. The only breed I had to switch with another for the date I wanted was Speckled Sussex. Anyway, the chicks hatched on Monday and I had them on Tuesday, my post office called me three minutes before closing saying that they had arrived (I was very thankful that the gentleman took the time to do that seeing as he was probably a little late leaving). The only downside to Meyer and probably any hatchery (unless you do a large order or pickup) is the cost of shipping. For the 6 chicks I paid just about 60 dollars. I would definitely order from them again but would probably try to wait until I could order one large flock to help drop the shipping costs. I would certainly recommend this hatchery to anyone who asked. I know there have been some people who have had unpleasant experiences with them, but mine was not.

Was so pleased with my experience with MPC (my pet chicken). They answered all my questions, made suggestions on breeds for my climate, allowed me to change my order as many times as I wanted up until the Thursday before hatch day (Mondays) and all my babies showed up healthy and thriving, Will absolutely order from them in the future. Since they are still babies I cannot tell if they were sexed correctly, but I have faith in this company.

This was the first time I've ordered by mail, and I had no idea what to expect. I chose "Ideal" because I didn't want a lot of chicks, but I wanted a variety. Most hatcheries require a minimum of 5 for any breed ordered. I ordered 25 straight run bantams the end of February with 10 different breeds. They shipped 3/27/12 late in the day, and I received them 3/29/12 at 8:00 am. (it was an unusually warm week for March) They were all alive and well. Ten days later, they are thriving and healthy. I read the reviews for numerous hatcheries and it seems that there are fantastic and horrible reviews for every one. I highly recommend Ideal, although I have nothing to compare it to.

I ordered 15 ameraucana chicks from them in December and they told me that there was a waiting list, I probably wouldn't get them until May. This was fine with me. He got back to me last month and said that it would probably be sooner. I got an email the other day that they had been shipped out. I went and picked them up at the P.O. There was one DOA which I contacted him about and he said that he would send me a refund check. He even punches their toes in unique patterns so that he can tell you which chick is which.

Really friendly, cordial people. Great customer service. Here is their email: [email protected]

I have used Cackle at least a half dozen times (for both chicks and Broad Breasted Turkeys) and they are my go-to hatchery. The prices are good & the birds are always healthy and vigorous upon arrival. I've also never had an order arrive and be incorrect, which can sometimes happen- but it's so much better when it doesn't! Also, I have been fortunate enough to never have sexing errors of more than 10% which is a BIG plus.

There's always so many new people wondering who is good to order from, and Cackle, in my opinion, is always a safe bet for quality hatchery birds.

I ordered 3/each of five different breeds of chickens. They threw in an extra too my shipment arrived within three days and the post office called my as soon as the chicks arrived. I was very happy with this order and will order from them again. Thank you Mt.Healthy!!!