Cackle Hatchery Experience?

[maddog3355]

I live 60 miles from them and everybody around here orders from them and pickes them up from the post office. I never heard anything bad about them other than the extras you get might be some rare breed that you don't wont. A buddy of mines family orders 200 Cornish cross from them everyyear and they send around 20 extras. They must be doing something right they own the whole city block along with there farms.

 

[mshuck]

Just received my first batch of red broilers from Cackle. 3/were dead on arrival a fourth died in the first hour after arrival a fifth one won't make it through the day and the others are quiet, weak and lethargic. My feed store and McMurray birds are thriving in separate enclosures. It's depressing to check on the Cackle birds, they are very unhealthy. I am doing everything I can for them but feel I may just be prolonging their miserable lives. Customer service reps have been very difficult.

 

[popsicle]

Just received my first batch of red broilers from Cackle. 3/were dead on arrival a fourth died in the first hour after arrival a fifth one won't make it through the day and the others are quiet, weak and lethargic. My feed store and McMurray birds are thriving in separate enclosures. It's depressing to check on the Cackle birds, they are very unhealthy. I am doing everything I can for them but feel I may just be prolonging their miserable lives. Customer service reps have been very difficult.

Out of curiosity, are the McMurray birds broilers also?

My Cackle order this year had 57 birds in the box. Only one didn't make it. Last year I lost a bunch, but they were shipped earlier and it was much colder (not sure if that is why they were poorlier), the year before that I had only lost two out of +50.

 

[mshuck]

No, the McMurray birds are layers and I am so grateful that they are thriving, happy chicks. Lost one more Cackle broiler last night but I have hope for the rest as they seem to be perking up. They must have had a very rough trip.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

I ordered 25 White Rocks from Cackle Hatchery and 25 White Rocks from McMurray. Both sets of birds arrived on the 30th. All birds, except one, arrived healthy and vigorous. The less than perfect one (McMurray) had wry neck and we nursed it back to health with Vit E. We feed fermented feed so didn't feel the need to add baby vitamins.

The only difference we noted was in the quality of birds. Cackle's birds were very substantial birds. We ordered 5 pullets, received 7. Noticed all of their birds grew astonishingly fast, had thicker legs, wider stance. Overall, surprisingly nice birds.

McMurray's birds were much more slender and legs more closely set. All of them other than the wry neck chick, have been very healthy. We ordered 25 cockerels and received 2 pullets in the mix.

Based on the healthier, more productive body type, I have to give this one to Cackle.

 

[CrazyChickLady7]

I ordered from cackle last year, and receive a very pleasant and healthy batch. Most of the chicks turned out to be pullets, and I have already made up for the cost by selling the roos. Two of the chicks died, but that was my own fault. One died of dehydration and the other died because I hadn't realized it had become blocked up. I am planning on ordering tonight. I will report back when the chicks are received.

 

[collie1470]

From my understanding, the hatchery just hatches and ships the birds. If there are inherited issues, that's the fault of the breeder, not the hatchery. (That'd be like blaming a wholesale store for a manufacturer error).

 

[costello]

From my understanding, the hatchery just hatches and ships the birds. If there are inherited issues, that's the fault of the breeder, not the hatchery. (That'd be like blaming a wholesale store for a manufacturer error).

Wholesalers can be held liable for products liability.

 

[collie1470]

To an extent, yes. Your state would have to have lemon laws in place regarding chicks though, I would think. Otherwise, it would be like buying a sick puppy with no lemon law in place. It ends up being a "sucks to be you" type situation, unless they are sick with something contagious, of course.

The sale of live animals works a bit differently than the sale of a product that is an object.

 

[SunHwaKwon]

I am new here but thought I would throw some feedback on my experience on here since I received 32 guinea keets from them this past friday. They were ordered through efowl.com but the shipping doc has the Cackle Hatchery NPIP# and they shipped from MO so...

Anyway, I ordered 30 hatchery choice and 32 were sent with an equal mix of pearl gray, lavender, royal purple, and white. I ordered Saturday 7/11 and they shipped Wednesday 7/15 and arrived to me on the Eastern Shore of Maryland on Friday 7/17. On Sunday one of the white ones died (past the 24 hour window). On Monday another white one died. The Sunday white one seemed ill so I was not surprised, and the second white one also suddenly seemed ill and had the squirts, so again I was not fully surprised. I have 3 more white ones that seem to be having bowel issues, 2 being muddy bottoms and 1 seeming pasty. I also have 1 lavender and 1 pearl gray that are pasty. Still, it seems odd that so many whites are having issues. Also, all of the whites are developing slower than the rest. I even weighed them all to make sure it wasn't an optical illusion of some sort or a relatively insignificant difference.

So, my point is that it's possible I was shipped some white keets with a disposition toward being slow growing and more susceptible to illness, but like someone else said that is more the fault of the breeder (although I thought cackle does their own guinea breeding but I'm not sure).

On the upside, everyone's behinds are looking much better today, which is good news since I was sure I was going to wake up to three dead (2 white 1 lavender) this morning.