Ok there are points I agree with and others which I don't. I'm not trying to start a war here either. Just trying to clarify. Everyone of you that sells chicks or buys chicks gets them from somewhere. If you don't change your bloodlines, mother nature will make unhealthy chicks. If you produce chicks who the heck is going to buy them if it's not safe to buy local chicks? Being on BYC doesn't guarantee by any means that your birds are healthy. I think it's a double standard you are promoting. You say don't buy; but you want to sell. I would much rather buy from a local breeder where I can check out the breeder birds and the facilities than chance buying from Orshlems or someplace like that. Mainly because they use the same pens over and over without sanitizing them, and there's no guarantee that one of the past or current chicks didn't have coccidiosis. AT least the hatcheries are regulated and bound by law to sanitize everything.
I think many of you are scaring Hawkeye needlessly. Surely she can look at a bird and tell if it is healthy or not especially if she looks at the other birds and how they are kept. Yes I would quarantine a bird from Seymore for at least a month. Hawkeye you won't be able to put older birds with your chicks. If I were going to buy from these people I would ask if they would have some chicks hatching about the time yours were going to arrive....after you go look things over. Go take a look at their birds and facilities. Use common sense. NPIP testing doesn't guarantee healthy birds but if someone goes to the expense and trouble to do it it probably means they care about having healthy stock. Besides it is the law that birds be tested, not that most people abide by it. If it is a hobby farmer I woudn't worry about it. I think more importantly you should ask what people feed their birds. A hobby farmer is probably the best people to buy from. They don't have large numbers of birds where they would miss something if a bird got sick. Here I am shooting myself in the foot because I have lots and lots of birds, but I care for them and monitor them. I don't just mass produce chicks without caring for my adults.
