Do you have chickens from Poultry Hollow Hatchery In TN?

[Lots A Cluckin]

got 24 new chicks from poultry hollow yesterday.

 

[hiddenchickmama]

We got 3 BO's from them 2 weeks ago and they are doing great.They were 4 weeks old when we got them, we didn't want day old chicks. The woman we worked with was very helpful about the birds. She answered our questions and invited us to look around the property at some of the exotics chickens and other fowl they had.

One of our girls even went to a college class with my daughter her first week with us. She was doing a speech on chicken ordinances in TN. Maggie (the BO) was a big hit~~a real beauty and good natured.

We just got their coop and run finished tonight and they settled right in.

Maggie on the right, Ruth on the left, and a tiny bit of Joyce's tail feathers showing on the far left.

 

[nichag]

We bought 2 chickens from Poultry Hollow when they were 3 weeks, a Cinnamon Queen and a Partridge Silkie. They are both so very beautiful and healthy. We have been so happy with the babies that we decided to go back for the remainder of our chicks. Judy is a great ol gal. She is SO incredibly knowledgeable about her birds. Don't go to her farm if you are in a rush, she will take the time to answer all your questions, but because she has such beautiful birds she is VERY busy. Like I said we have been out 2x and BOTH times she was super helpful. It is a true farm experience. I also was very pleased at how organized she was with as many breeds and birds that she has, at all ages. It is really impressive if you ask me. I also love knowing were my birds came from and that she has so many uncommon birds. This is a treat to have so close to home.

One last thing, we lost one of our first birds. It was COMPLETELY human error, no error to the hatchery. Sadly our toddler grabbed the chick when we were not looking and she didn't make it. Sometimes things happen, especially when you have young tender aged birds. I just want people to know Poultry Hollow really is a great family place. It is sad that the persons who posted had a bad experience, but I have had 2 GREAT EXPERIENCES! Give Judy a call if you need good advice, she answers all my calls, and there have been many!

How how do I post pictures of my beautiful ladies?

Also this is not to disregard the fact that someone lost their chicks, I just wanted to let you all know I had a really GREAT experience.

 

[cmfarm]

I agree it depends on the hatchery. Small ones that don't keep things clean and disinfect, have a biosecurity in place and that are inspected regularly could have issues. Farms that continually buy and sell birds bringing them on the farm has a big chance of disease breakout.
Like I mentioned before, it is a good thing that these are none of our practices. We clean, disinfect, do not buy birds nor do we bring any on the farm, and we are inspected by the USDA & NPIP
Not to say we don't loose birds as anyone who raises them knows there are unfortunately deaths in young birds though very few, it does happen. Is it a disease? NO, not here. When they leave here? Could be, we cannot be responsible for the care when they leave. We have some calls from people that have lost chicks and we always try to figure out what happened. 99% of the time we figure out it is human error. Something they have done or not done to cause the problem. High heat, low heat, cold draft, wrong feed, dropped, handled too much, poopy butt, impaction, eating metal, and many more. Chicken disease is not as bad as people believe, they should talk to the state vet who will tell them disease is uncommon cause of deaths. If disease is susspected to have caused a death I encourage people to send the bird in for autopsy to determine cause of death. Lastly, poultry does get colds and this will cause death if not taken care of. Colds get mistaken for disease all the time...

Chickens DO NOT get colds. They do get cronic respitory diseases.

 

[speckledhen]

Quote: I'm sorry, but you are mistaken. Chickens do not get head colds as humans do. They get contagious respiratory diseases, many are herpes-type viruses, some can be passed down from egg to chick through the hen, etc. Most of these diseases leave the bird a carrier, like Chronic Respiratory Disease/Mycoplasmosis, Infectious Coryza, etc.a

Chickens may encounter a particular situation where they will develop pneumonia, like from being soaked to the bone and becoming chilled, or they may develop fungal lung infections, and from those fungal infections, may get secondary bacterial sinusitis, but those are isolated situations, not contagious- they do not get simple colds. To slough a chicken illness off as a "cold" is a huge mistake that has cost many BYC members their entire flocks.


Quote:
As far as I know, the USDA runs the NPIP program, so it's not actually two separate entities. What are you tested for, besides the usual pullorum/typhoid? Do you test for AI? For MG/MS? What else? Just to say you are "tested" is inadequate. You must clarify "tested". Folks get a false sense of security when someone says they have been tested clean.

ETA: Never mind, I checked your site and you are only tested for Pullorum/Typhoid.

NPIP tested flocks have been the cause of major outbreaks of nasty stuff like ILT and one hatchery had an outbreak of Avian encephalomyelitis, resulting in many BYC members having losses.


Quote: That is an unusual statement for a hatchery to make and quite concerning for me. You haven't hung out in the Emergencies & Diseases section of the forum for years, as most of us have. Disease is a very common cause of death, and if not death, certainly expense and heartache for many flock owners. If it's not that bad, then I suppose all the true breeders who've been around for 50+ years are wasting their time taking a symptomatic bird to the stump with axe in hand, and I assure you, that is exactly what they do, rather than keep a Typhoid Mary in the flock.


On a different note, I see you list "Ameraucanas(Easter)", but it goes to a Wikipedia page which contains photos of both Ameraucanas and Easter Eggers. Do you have Easter Eggers or do you sell true Ameraucanas, because they are not the same thing. I'm sure folks would like to know this if they are going to order from you. Do you have pictures of your actual stock? I know that many BYC members would be elated to find any hatchery who sells an actual Ameraucana.

ETA, again: Never mind this question. I saw the other thread, so I see you are selling Easter Eggers, not Ameraucanas.

 

[stefan333]

We bought chicks from Poultry Hollow last week, and I was very impressed. It was a REAL chicken farm. I did a lot of research and talked to a lot of people about chickens before purchasing. One of the things I have found is that no matter where you get your chicks some might die. I recently talked to a farmer who has an established flock who just hatched chicks, and some of them didn't make it -same with the ducks. It seems to me that it's just part of life in the animal world, as I've witnessed the same thing happen to kittens and fish even when you do ALL the right things. Knowledge and experience increase the chances of survivial and make for happier animals, but sometimes things still happen. It's upsetting when a chick dies, but loss is part of raising animals. People die, too, even with all our modern technology and sanitation. It amazes me how some people can get so nitpicky about the smallest of details when it comes to chickens. No, I'm not saying disease is a small detail, but if chickens were as finicky as people they would have gone extinct years ago. If an animal lover is obsessed with getting ALL the smallest details just perfect I suggest they raise fish. They will have plenti of time devoted to pH, temperature, chlorine, etc., levels because you can't be off even the slightest bit or you will have a disease outbreak. I want to raise my backyard flock just like a farmer would, not like a diehard enthusiastic super human hen. I'm going to implement the same philosophy I do with my human children. My children are happy healthy individuals who don't need the latest iphone and don't eat everything organic. Heaven forbid I give them a little soda. No soccer mom here, just happy healthy children. Same goes with chickens (don't worry, I won't give them soda). I want to take care of them, give them what they need, and enjoy them and their eggs without having to stress myself out with every little perfectionistic detail. That is why I went to Poultry Hollow. They have healthy happy chickens raised just like my local small town farmers raise theirs (only on a much larger scale). No, they don't have the latest state of the art buildings with white painted walls, tiled floor, and hospitally sanitized chicken coops. And guess what? It smells like... you guessed it...chickens! Their animals are so happy and quite beautiful, and if you don't believe me, go see for yourself. You will have a lot of very happy dogs (eager to play fetch), donkeys, chickens, goats, and turkeys all wanting your attention.

 

[stackwood]

I got a dozen Speckled Sussex pullets from them last May. The girls have been a joy! Began laying in October (the first teen-age attempts) and have not stopped, the winter in MdTN didn't phase them. Great birds, curious & personable.
The visit to the hatchery near Carthage was... interesting, but an honest event. The country ain't Green Acres, people!
We're down to nine - lots of hawks in the neighborhood - and I'm thinking of what breed I'd like to go with next. I'll be talking with PH again once school's out....

 

[LaurieA]

I got these two from Poultry Hollow. They are 9 1/2 Weeks now. One is a Black Sex Link and the other is a Golden Wynadotte. Both are very healthy. I have read a lot of differing reviews of Poultry Hollow so I will share my experience with you.

First let me say I am a big animal advocate. I work with several emergency animal response teams on both a local, state, and national basis. I have handled neglect, puppy mill seizures and hoarding cases so please keep that in mind.

My experience with Poultry Hollow was positive. The chicks as well as cages were clean. There was no over powering smell. I know that when I have just 2 chicks at a time in my bathtub under the heat lamp it gets dirty and smelly fast and I am changing paper towels non-stop to keep it clean so I was surprised at how under control everything is. Yes the place was cluttered as many have said, but its a farm... and farms have stuff. I am not sure what some people were expecting. A white room with little cribs with little chicks dressed with bows on their heads? LOL But on a serious note, when I went I found everything to be as expected.

From some of the stories I head, maybe things were different at one time and cleaned up now... I don't know. All I can tell you is what I experienced and I would gladly do business there again.

 

[WestNashChick]

I just bought a beautiful Cochin bantam, today, from Poultry Hollow. I had a great experience. The birds all looked happy and healthy. Everyone was very busy, but she talked with me and helped me pick out my chicken. The chickens and pens looked clean, especially considering all the rain we've had. Judy obviously cares a lot about her birds. She spotted one chick in a brooder that she thought didn't feel well, she immediately took it out and to another area to care for it. They didn't have a pullet in one of the breeds I wanted, but I will definitely be back when they have more!

 

[francis1978]

Judy, your knowledge of chicks and chickens is very limited and as I posted earlier you don't have the expertise to sex chickens. You prey on people with little knowledge of chickens. You need to explain to people that sexing of chicks is a very difficult task even for those who have been schooled and you sell only straight run birds except for sex linked birds.

I hope that others who read this post and all the others about your operation will take heed and stay away from your "hatchery."
I only discovered this post and others after purchasing "pullets" from Poultry Hollow and these posts have only reaffirmed my experience with Judy and Poultry Hollow.