Bad Hatchery Experience

[LulaBell]

I have never ordered baby chicks before. I’ve always been a Tractor Supply buyer. This year I wanted colored egg layers which our local TSC didn’t have. I did some looking and decided to order from Hoover’s (the Hatchery which supplies our TSC). Out of 18 chicks I have lost 6 so far. 4 seemed very lethargic when I picked up my shipment and they ended up dying yesterday evening. One more passed before I went to bed and I found another first thing this morning.

I have shown them to their food and water. Some still are very “tired” and don’t show much interest. I put save a chick electrolytes in their water to give them a boost after their long transit. Is there anything else I can do?? Is this how it goes? Did I do something wrong??

 

[DobieLover]

I have never ordered baby chicks before. I’ve always been a Tractor Supply buyer. This year I wanted colored egg layers which our local TSC didn’t have. I did some looking and decided to order from Hoover’s (the Hatchery which supplies our TSC). Out of 18 chicks I have lost 6 so far. 4 seemed very lethargic when I picked up my shipment and they ended up dying yesterday evening. One more passed before I went to bed and I found another first thing this morning.

I have shown them to their food and water. Some still are very “tired” and don’t show much interest. I put save a chick electrolytes in their water to give them a boost after their long transit. Is there anything else I can do?? Is this how it goes? Did I do something wrong??

Have you given them any poultry nutri-drench? If not, I would give them each a drop or two.
Have you seen them all actually drink after you showed them the water? Are they eating? What are they eating? How warm is the brooder? Can you post a picture of your setup?
Shipping is very stressful on the chicks. IMO, they ALL should receive extra care the first three days after arriving.

 

[Chullicken]

A little bit early in the year to order chicks in all honest via the mail in states such as yours, and mine. The temperatures are really not ideal for fragile chicks and the cold. seems they probably had shipping stress at some point during their travel and/or way home. That's my assumption.

 

[WeSt Tn]

I have no idea why this happened, but I find it very discouraging as the only way I can get the breed I want is to buy from a hatchery. Hope someone can answer your questions.

 

[DobieLover]

I have no idea why this happened, but I find it very discouraging as the only way I can get the breed I want is to buy from a hatchery. Hope someone can answer your questions.

You can order from a reputable hatchery. I chose the closest one to me that I could find that had decent reviews. The closer the hatchery, theoretically, the shorter the time to arrive.
I always wait until a time period when the weather is not extreme. That is late April to early June for my area. As I mentioned above, the chicks should receive extra care the first three days. I fed my around the clock those first three days by leaving the lights on overnight to ensure they ate as much as they wanted to gain strength.

 

[jolenesdad]

Yes, time of year has a lot to do with it.

There’s often losses with shipping. “Guaranteed alive” just means they will refund your money for the dead chicks. When you go the feed store, those sick or dying chicks have already been removed, but it happened there too, likely.

These best luck I’ve had shipping is August. The most hardy and active chicks I’ve ever gotten and raised.

 

[jolenesdad]

Also, a note to anyone looking, I was a little frustrated with Hoover. I chose them as Iowa isn’t toooo far from me. But it turns out Hoover loads up their boxes onto their own truck and drives them north to Minnesota. They say it’s quicker, but I just didn’t like the fact that the birds were being moved around in Minnesota in early March at 10:30 at night.

Plus, Meyer has ALWAYS been under 24 hours for me, and because of this late night delivery to Minnesota, my Hoover birds took 2 days. I lost 5/22 that seemed to have failure to thrive.

 

[flygirl1973]

Ok @LulaBell, I orderd mine from Hoover as well. The local TN hatchery was a 3 hour drive one way...Hoover is the hatchery for our TSC as well. I only orderd 15 which was the minimum so we’ll see how many survive? I’ve never ordered either...so this is my first time too. They are supposed to be here Wednesday. I have a brooder mama plate so I hope that helps, not that I’ve used one before or know otherwise. But it’s still a bit chillier than I preferred. I felt like it’s just getting later in the year and it was time to pull the trigger and jump in. TSC didn’t have the breed I wanted either. Well, they did but I wasn’t ready.

 

[flygirl1973]

Oh, one other thing @LulaBell, while I was bathing my dogs at TSC, I heard them saying in their shipment that 25 had died that morning. I didn’t think about it at the time, I hadnt orderd mine yet and didn’t even know what hatchery they used. It wasnt until I found out the one I had planned on driving to was 3 hours away and that TSC didn’t have the one I wanted and wouldn’t for some time. So I went through their hatchery, Hoover in OH. Just FYI.

 

[WeSt Tn]

@flygirl1973, where is the TN hatchery located? I am between Jackson and Dyersburg.