Chicks Arriving 2/22 !!!!

[Wjeffgriggs]

Excited about my order of chicks arriving on the 22nd. Here is what I am getting:

5 SULTANS
3 RHODE ISLAND RED
3 W. C. BLACK POLISH
2 MILLE FLEUR BANTAMS
3 BLACK SILKIE BANTAMS
3 BLUE SILKIE BANTAMS
3 GOLDEN POLISH
3 SILVER POLISH

Also I have 8 white Silkie eggs in the incubator that should be hatching around this time.

 

[McKenley5]

From which hatchery did you order? I ordered from Murray McMurray and mine should be here the 22nd as well...they are 5 each of Delaware, Barred Rock, Buff Orpington, Speckled Sussex, & Araucana. SO EXCITED!!

 

[Wjeffgriggs]

I too ordered from Murray McMurray.
In the past hour I have got myself worried about Murray McMurray reading post on BYC. There seems to be A lot of complaints. I am going to hope for the best
Congratulations

 

[McKenley5]

In the past hour I have got myself worried about Murray McMurray reading post on BYC. There seems to be A lot of complaints. I am going to hope for the best

Me too! But like someone said, there are many more successes, but it is the bad ones that we hear about. I am in GA and it is supposed to be warm here next week, I am not sure if there will be bad weather between here and Iowa, but I guess there is nothing I can do to change the situation.

 

[Wjeffgriggs]

I emailed Murray McMurray with my concerns and this was their response:

Chicks are good up to 72 hours from the time they hatch. They ingest the yolk right before they hatch and that is their food and water for 72 hours. Also, we put a gel food in their box for them to eat while they travel. The chicks ship very well

 

[AprilAWZ]

As long as they get there within that three-day window, you should be fine. This is kind of cyclical....every spring when we're getting our chicks, bad experiences get posted, and it seems like the disaster is the norm. It's really not, and more often than not, you'll get a box of healthy, yelling chicks, with perhaps one or two that didn't fare so well.

Regarding the weather - I'm in SD, and I normally get my chicks and eggs in this time of the year, or a couple weeks later, depending on when the temps start staying above freezing. My experience has been that, even in early spring, if they get here in the three-day window, they are energetic and healthy. The couple of times I've had chicks stuck in the PO system for four days were the instances I'd see higher mortality.

Just be sure to have a clean, dry brooder waiting for them. What I like to do for the first two days is to keep them in the basement in a large tote, with a small heat lamp suspended over one end. They should be able to get under the lamp when chilled, but they should also be able to get away from it when they want to....I don't want to cook the little buggers! I've never worried about adding sugar or other supplements to the water, but YMMV. After two days, they go out into the barn brooder. Any longer than that, and I start to worry that they won't develop the plumage needed for the cooler temps, and I have no desire for a flock of thinly-feathered, diapered chickens in the house...LOL! But anyway, same thing with the barn brooder - control drafts, give them easy access to heat when they want it, but also room to get away from the lamps when they're too warm.

 

[AmyLM]

I ordered from MMH. While I did have losses I think the majority of the losses were due to the cold weather we had. I think the hatchery does a really good job shipping. and their customer service with me was absolutely fantastic! they are shipping me replacements for the ones that i lost (at no charge) and the survivors look to be like really healthy chicks.

 

[crystal195655]

I ordered from McM...received my chicks on Feb.2...all arrived alive. A friend of mine and I split the order, in the first few days I lost 2, one of which was blind....and she lost 7. She had a problem with the paper under them getting wet and she thinks that may be why she lost them...the rest are doing well. We live in Washington State and it was in the low 40's when we got them. I agree that there are more happy stories than bad ones...but the bad ones get more attention. Good Luck and I hope you recieved happy healthy chickies

 

[thasista]

I don't think the complaints are with McMurray. At least mine hasn't been. Its the postal service thats messed up. And McMurray told me they were having trouble with a few states and the mail not all. I am sure your chicks will arrive alive and well.

 

[Longview]

I have ordered three times from MMH and have never had a loss. I supposed the odds are in favor of it, eventually, but I have always been extremely pleased with the results. In fact, never lost a MMH bird of ANY age except by unfortunate battles with cars. RIP Sheba and Tubby.