Best hatchery to order from with a minimum 3 chick order?

[The Moonshiner]

So I was just poking around on ideal and you can request no extra males but need to buy a heat pack and insurance. They also have a $25 minimum (not including shipping and handling) so I had to cart 7 chicks in order to meet the minimum (I only want 3 as well). My estimated charge was ~$45 total (which included a small order fee and a 1/4 box fee) to SC which still wasn't bad! They have a good selection but i couldn't order from them without splitting with someone

Did you get the heat pack and insurance? I was curious of the cost of that.
Thanks

 

[bruceha2000]

BTW, when I ordered from Ideal I specified a shipping week when all the breeds I wanted were available. I planned my brooder equipment buying and stall conversion to a coop on that date.

They sent them 2 weeks early; not horribly convenient as I wasn't ready with the coop or the brooder space. I was informed via email that they had shipped so I had 2 days to get the brooder supplies and set it up. They spent their first 3 weeks in a bathtub in the downstairs bathroom before the coop was finished. We didn't use that tub so that part wasn't specifically a problem.

 

[NorthTexasWink]

I did read on Ideal's site that they might ship early. I got ready just in case. I'm in Texas, not really far away from them by Texas standards, but me driving there and back same day wasn't happening at this time. My chicks left Ideal approximately 9:00 pm the evening of their scheduled ship date of June 28, 2017, arrived at my Arlington, TX PO 7:00 am the following morning. All 25 were in great shape when I got them home, before 9:00 am that same day. I wrote a detailed review on a thread in the forum here dedicated to such.

A day and a half later, and all 25 remain active and content. Got exactly what I ordered, but I did adjust my order slightly to hit the 25 bird mark (quarter box). I think I posted a pic of my invoice with the shipping charges too. I know I get a break in shipping since I live closer.

If I only wanted three chicks, I'd understand the premium I'd need to pay for that. Packing up three very fragile living birds takes as much care as packing 30. Maybe more if you have to add heat packs and purchase extra padding in a form other than living surplus chicks. Such small shipments will invariably have higher mortality rate, and the hatchery must also account for replacements or refunds. They are in business to make a profit. USPS has limits on the sizes of the boxes, both how large/heavy and how tiny they allow. The box my 25 chicks came in was roughly a foot square by maybe 4 inches high. Can't get much smaller than that.

 

[Beer can]

Didn't read everyone's comments and might have been suggested already, but what I would do if I only wanted three chicks.
The more shipped the better, get the three you want and add enough of a breed you think you can sell easy locally. Or ask on Craigslist or local paper for people to go in on a order (ask for prepayment?)
Or look locally on Craigslist to see if there is some already available you can just pick up.
Shipping chicks is always a risk and the odds get worse when you get down to just a few chicks. Even if they're guaranteed safe arrival or replaced no one likes receiving dead chicks.
I have to add I've always had good luck with shipped chicks, never any casualties in transit, but I always either get 15 or 25.
Some breeders will only ship a minimum of 25. Not because they want to sell more chicks, they usually have more orders than they can fill, but because they want to ensure they don't have to replace them out of their own pocket.

 

[RepeckaBecca]

Any luck with Strombergs anyone? They have what I want in stock currently.

Hi, I'm new to this but this was my experience: I actually ordered 2 hens (20 wks old-'ready to lay') & so far so good. They are beautiful, I physically inspected them (looking for any signs of injury, mites etc) they look healthy & again are beautiful! Hope this helps.

 

[bruceha2000]

If I lived (relatively) close to a hatchery I would definitely give them high priority for my business assuming they had a good reputation. Even one with a lousy website . The less time spent in transit the better!

@NorthTexasWink - Yes, the PO does have limits on box sizes but nothing chicks are shipped in surpasses it. My wife is a PO clerk. She regularly gets full size boxes with 100 chicks. Sometimes 10 in one day for the egg farm just up the road that also does meat birds.

 

[NorthTexasWink]

Hi bruceha2000! Sorry if I wasn't clear. The point I was trying to make is that a box tiny enough to hold 3chicks to keep them from rattling around overmuch would be a really really tiny box. An easy to lose, drop, misplace, smash tiny box.

 

[Quackems]

No they do not check with the customer first. They do it so there is enough chicks to keep warm.
May be super upsetting but better then getting your chicks and having them all dead.

Actually, Ideal will send extra pullet chicks of your breed choice instead of male warmth chicks to complete your box if are willing to buy them. I've never understood why customers think "warmth chicks" will die because they're "warmth chicks." Each bird shipped in the box has the same percentage chance of surviving or not surviving USPS shipment and annoyingly, most fatalities are usually the fault of incompetent and/apathetic postal carriers. Most hatcheries recommend that you buy more ducks or chicks anyway to fill up the box even if they do supply heating pads. As for the ethics of shipping warmth chicks, I would much rather support a hatchery that gives male chicks a chance rather than deposit them in a grinder just minutes after birth.

 

[The Moonshiner]

Actually, Ideal will send extra pullet chicks of your breed choice instead of male warmth chicks to complete your box if are willing to buy them. I've never understood why customers think "warmth chicks" will die because they're "warmth chicks." Each bird shipped in the box has the same percentage chance of surviving or not surviving USPS shipment and annoyingly, most fatalities are usually the fault of incompetent and/apathetic postal carriers. Most hatcheries recommend that you buy more ducks or chicks anyway to fill up the box even if they do supply heating pads. As for the ethics of shipping warmth chicks, I would much rather support a hatchery that gives male chicks a chance rather than deposit them in a grinder just minutes after birth.

Well of course they will fill your box with more pullets if you buy them.
We were talking about if someone didnt want to buy more then say 7 to 10 that they added extra males. One poster said they would be upset if they received a bunch of extra males. My point was that yes someone may not want the cockerel chicks but without them tne chicks they did want and paid for may very well die in transit without tne extras.
Im not going to.complain about extra male chicks when theyre added for the safety of the few i ordered.
You are exactly right about ideal finding a way to purpose their extra chicks instead of grinding them up. I think ideal is really doing a good thing with how tney do this and wish other hatcheries would follow suit.
Dont know where you got the idea that anyone tbinks warm chicks would die before the purchased ones. Point was yes every chick has a chance to die in route but small order chicks have a lot more of chance to not make it over chicks in a full box of chicks.
I also wouldnt agree that most issues come from postal workers. Most issues come from the weather and or shipping delays.

 

[Crazy for Chickens!]

Does Ideal check with the customer before adding extra roosters? I would be super upset about getting extras...

We ordered chicks from them over the phone, and you can ask to buy a heat pack for three dollars instead of extra males. That is what we did.