Box of dead chicks

[Texpatriate]

Well, I was disappointed to pick up a box of dead Mille Fleur D'Uccles bantams at the post office this morning. And part of my order was missing- 3 Dominique pullet chicks. I'd rather not say who the hatchery was at this point, as they seem to be making it right by sending me out another order next week. Just kind of a bummer.

6 were definitely dead when I opened the box, and the remaining 4 chicks died within the hour in spite of my attempts to warm them up under the brooder light and give them each some water. The (barely) live ones felt cold to me so I'm guessing they got cold, and they shipped out on Weds. and arrived at my post office this morning. Post office never called me in spite of my number being on the shipping label, but fortunately the hatchery texted me to let me know they were at the post office, not that it helped.

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

I'm so very sorry they all passed away, that's such a blow and very sad

Good luck with your next batch, I really hope that goes better

 

[Texpatriate]

Thanks YC. Poor little guys. I've got some cream legbars and CL crosses (CLxBrown Leghorn & CLxAmeraucana) in the incubator due to hatch on the 29th, so I guess if nothing else it's better that they'll all be closer to the same age now. Just hope we don't have any casualties next week, such a terrible waste.

 

[Folly's place]

So sorry! Mary

 

[azjustin]

USPS seems to have a niche specialty of removing the life from small poultry while shipping, at least in this area.

On the bright side, they know that and have paid out 100% of the claims we have filed.

Don't lose any $$ on the deal especially if it was the USPS's fault. Good for the hatchery to make it right, but it needs to be 100% right.

Good luck.

 

[realsis]

Oh i am so very sorry! This is my worst nightmare! You might try a hatchery that ships with a long lasting heating pack next time. (Meyer hatchery does this) this year my 11 shipped from meyer in ohio to me in southern California and thank God all 11 made it. Its true at Meyer you pay more for shipping, but its very much worth it. If you order early (December) and pick your ship date the have a HUGE BREED SELECTION! They offer sexed females and offer very affordable Mareks vaccinations. Their stock has been strong and healthy. I hope this helps. You might consider next time trying Meyers.im so sorry you had to go through this.its heartbreaking. My thoughts are with you. I hope you NEVER have to expirence anything like this again!! How awful!!

 

[Darchangel Farm]

So sad! We've had trouble at times with loosing chicks while enroute to our farm. The USPS can be very negligent in taking care of the live chicks. When we are notified that the chicks have been mailed, my wife then is constantly checking their tracking online and phone calling post offices in order to find them. We drive 66 miles one way to pick them up from the postal hub in Evansville in order that they don't sit in there an extra night. We also go to another postal hub a little closer in a different town to pick them up a day or so earlier. We have also learned that the USPS hub in St. Louis keeps the A/C on so frigid that chicks are dying coming out of there from the cold. We do pay extra for the express 1-day shipping when we can. We find that ordering from breeders is much better than ordering from hatcheries. Sorry for your loss. -Mike M

 

[Texpatriate]

Well, kudos to the hatchery and the USPS for making things right. Tonight at 10pm I got a phone call from a USPS employee in Express Mail at the postal hub (I called down there yesterday to check in with them about the expected chicks), letting me know that they'd arrived and I could come and pick them up! I was totally not expecting to actually get a phone call from them, I was planning to just watch my tracking number like a hawk and head over there when they arrived. So I'm impressed that both the employee I spoke to on the phone when I called, who apparently left a note for the employee who called me tonight, teamed up for great customer service. So thanks to them and the hatchery, I've now got 16 chicks in the brooder- 10 Mille Fleur D'Uccles, 3 Dominique pullets, and 3 Welsumer pullets- 100% of my order arrived alive and chirping!

On a side note, I could not believe how many boxes of chicks were sitting there at the hub going out to different places! Literally thousands of chicks stacked in boxes going to different places. Most were coming out of the Privett Hatchery about an hour from here in Portales, NM. Pics bellow!

All accounted for:

Home sweet home:

Oh, the places you'll go!

 

[ShanandGem]

I am deeply sorry for your original experience and glad they made things right, but it just reaffirms why I won't buy from hatcheries. What an awful traumatic beginning to life even for the chicks who survive. For myself, I really try to source birds from smaller operations and farms. I made have to spend a day on the road picking them up but I have not been disappointed so far.

 

[Texpatriate]

I am deeply sorry for your original experience and glad they made things right, but it just reaffirms why I won't buy from hatcheries.  What an awful traumatic beginning to life even for the chicks who survive.  For myself, I really try to source birds from smaller operations and farms.  I made have to spend a day on the road picking them up but I have not been disappointed so far.

Generally I 100% agree, and this was the first time for us to order chicks shipped from a hatchery. All the rest of our birds come from local breeders and I doubt that we'll do it again. But our birds got hammered pretty hard this year with CRD, and our kids, who love their little Mille Fleurs, lost 4 out 5 of the chicks that I bought them from a DFW area breader in the Spring before they ever even layed an egg, and I haven't been able to find any locally. Even the guy we bought them from in DFW hasn't had any for weeks.

So when I saw that Ideal had some Mille Fleur D'Uccles hatching, I figured it was worth giving it a try. I added some welsummers and dominiques to the order in hopes of increasing their warmth and chance of survival, with the added benefit of growing out some layers to our free range "big bird" flock for the spring.