Does anyone know of a hatchery that will ship only 2-3 chicks at a time?

[eggorthechicken]

Yeah Ideal Poultry only has a $25.00 min...you may get some extra boys as packing peanuts for warmth unless you call and tell them otherwise.

 

[DavidJr]

That is why I went with ideal poultry I did not want 25 or 30 chicks minimum order I didnt not care what it cost I only wanted 10...

 

[debid]

MPC bases the minimum on your location. It's 3 in a few places, yes, but I'm 30 minutes from an international airport and they said my minimum is 6. You can get the minimum for your location on their website.

Have you asked here? There is a Where am I/Where are you board where you can find local BYC members and possibly one of them has chicks that would meet your needs which takes the risk and cost of small-order shipping out of it. And then there is the possibility that someone else is planning to order and you can place a combined order to split on arrival...

 

[seminolewind]

I've been a member here for 5 years. In that time, I can't tell you how many times I've heard some very upset members talk about getting dead chicks in the mail. The most of these sad stories happens in February and March. People get that spring fever itch and want some little chicks. Me too. I have the itch pretty bad, LOL. That's why I bought an incubator.

The heating packs they use are great but not when there's only a few chicks and the temps are low. Day old chicks need to be kept around 90 degrees. That does not happen when just a few chicks are in a box with a heating pad. Cold stressed chicks can die. Of course the hatchery will reimburse you the $2-3 per dead chick.

I always get upset Along with the member when they are horrified getting chicks that are dead or sick when they are so excited about opening that box for those cute little chicks.

So please consider where the hatchery is and where you live and the temps at night.
Consider the excitement of getting an incubator and hatching eggs
Don't order a few chicks. And packing peanuts are mostly boys. Order a larger amount and pay for all girls, and sell them. My 3 feed stores are set up for day old chicks. Craig's list would be a great place to sell female chicks. Feed stores buy larger amounts of day old chicks, see if they can include some for you in that order (I think Tractor Supply will)

Not everyone gets dead chicks in a shipment. I certainly don't want any. If a hatchery has strict rules about how many you need to buy, I'm glad they are being more responsible about it. My hat's off to them.

Please don't think of me as a negative person. I would just like people to think about the other side of ordering just a few chicks. I appreciate the time some of you took to read this post.

 

[seminolewind]

I'm looking to get several more chickens for my coop, I want to get something cool like a Phoenix and something else neat and different looking. They are a part of a petting farm so I like having the more unusual breeds people have never seen before. (They are mostly for looking at not being pet!)

Does anyone know of a hatchery that has lots of breeds that will ship only 2-3 at a time? I was thinking of waiting for TSC chick days but last time the most "unusual" ones they got were silkies, and I have 5 already.

You might be able to place an order with them, and yours would stay warm with the amount they buy.

 

[debid]

You might be able to place an order with them, and yours would stay warm with the amount they buy.

Our TSC won't . You can order 25 through them and pay more than you would if you placed the order directly with the hatchery. Mom&pop feed stores might be more accommodating.

 

[donrae]

You say you want "several", then "2-3"? those are different to me!

If you have the space, I'd order 25 from someplace like mcmurray that has some of the funky breeds, then fill your order with layers and sell them. You'll probably be able to offset your shipping costs by reselling chicks. Or, see if someone local with you wants to go in on a larger order. I've split orders 3 ways cause each of us only wanted 8-10 chicks. Just make sure you can tell what chick goes to who!