Do NOT order baby chicks by mail right now.

[azygous]

Scanning these threads here, I didn't immediately see anything on chicks dying on USPS docks and sorting plants due to the recent USPS intentional slow-down of mail processing. It's a real thing, people. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...chicks-die-in-mail-in-latest-postal-imbroglio

Stop ordering from mail order hatcheries such as Myer, MyPetChicken, etc. until Congress can get to the bottom of the post office shenanigans. Chicks can go as long as three days without food and water after they hatch, but longer than that, they will die. Chick shipments are being caught up in this mail slow-down along with mail order prescriptions and other critical mail. The post office cannot deliver overnight mail. It's now taking up to a week for overnight express mail.

Unless you are prepared to receive a shipment of dead chicks, please consider postponing your plans to order chicks by mail at this time.

 

[FishingCreek]

I see a ton of articles around the interwebs that are all referring to Rep. Pingree's statements about issues in Maine and New Hampshire, but nothing around the rest of the country. I see Postal carriers driving our route a minimum of twice per day (sometimes three) here in Maryland. The only delays we've experienced have been weather-related. Given the political climate, the fighting over the mail-in ballots for the upcoming election, the back-and-forth over the latest gazillion-dollar spending bill in Congress of money we don't have, and the scheduled testimony today of the Postmaster General DeJoy... this sounds an awful lot like political hay. Shouldn't we also see articles and complaints all across the country if this was a larger issue?

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

If you get them delivered Priority Mail Express the shipping times are the same.
I just got some chicks from Greenfire Farms in Florida to Iowa; they were shipped Monday at 6pm and I got them Wednesday morning at the post office.

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

The post office says that this is due to Covid and it was posted in April.
https://faq.usps.com/s/article/USPS...cordGlobalValueProvider.RecordGvp.getRecord=1

 

[azygous]

This thread isn't meant as a vehicle for polarized political discussion. It is to inform of a potential for loss of chick lives so chick purchasers can make an informed decision and to plan accordingly for possible disruption of mail services.

 

[drinkoj]

FYI, mail operations are back to their normal selves in the last few days. The COVID package volume is still tremendous (Christmas season volumes) but delivery of animals should be okay. Keeping this non-political as I can.
Chicks and crickets have been going out with no problems at my processing and distribution facility, just the normal problem of transposed numbers dealing zip codes or house numbers.

 

[Ihavesomechickens]

I’ve only heard of these problems happening in New England. I live in Maryland, and it hasn’t really been happening here. There is a feed store I was going to go to that was suppose to get their chicks this morning, but they haven’t yet. I’m pretty sure it was just poor planning on their end though.

Why do we need another crisis to worry about? First it was the virus, then it was the protests and the virus, and now this?

You also have it consider where these chicks are being sent to. New England is big, with a lot of country areas that can take days to get to from hatcheries by automobile. The postal workers also take longer delivering stuff due to the virus, they have to take extra precautions they would necessarily have to otherwise.

I’m personally not going to blame the postal service for this. They have a lot of things to do right now, and there has to be some fault on the hatcheries end too.

 

[Chick_Maelle]

I don't live in the USA but even with just the virus, my hatchery had a box of chicks accidentally left to starve so they had us come to pick them up (looong drive), so I too would recommend not ordering chicks through the mail at this time, especially in the United States. You could try finding a good hatchery near you instead, and pick them up yourself.

 

[CHlCKEN]

Scanning these threads here, I didn't immediately see anything on chicks dying on USPS docks and sorting plants due to the recent USPS intentional slow-down of mail processing. It's a real thing, people. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...chicks-die-in-mail-in-latest-postal-imbroglio

Stop ordering from mail order hatcheries such as Myer, MyPetChicken, etc. until Congress can get to the bottom of the post office shenanigans. Chicks can go as long as three days without food and water after they hatch, but longer than that, they will die. Chick shipments are being caught up in this mail slow-down along with mail order prescriptions and other critical mail. The post office cannot deliver overnight mail. It's now taking up to a week for overnight express mail.

Unless you are prepared to receive a shipment of dead chicks, please consider postponing your plans to order chicks by mail at this time.

I’m glad I got my littles before this started I’m so sad about what all has happened to so many people in the past months

 

[Acre4Me]

and there has to be some fault on the hatcheries end too.

In the case of postal delivery, I can’t see how the hatchery could be at fault unless:
1. They ship sick or dead chicks. But, really can’t imagine a hatchery packing up dead or obviously ill chicks.

2. they ship older chicks (not day olds, that have their yolk reserved), but then they don’t meet postal regulation of shopping day old chicks..

3. They ship in an inappropriate box, such as without ventilation.

4. They ship at a strange time, like maybe Friday night or Saturday afternoon, when *maybe* the time to deliver may take longer.

otherwise, once the chicks are in the hands of USPS, it’s their fault -or the fault of their Sub-contractors If the chicks dont arrive on time, or are mishandled.


well prior to COVID, I’ve received dead chicks and had very lengthy delivery times On packages.