"Easter chick" purchases

[silkiechicken]

As a chicken community, instead of always bashing those who know nothing about chickens, we should strive to educate others about chicks and their care to help spread the disease of chicken keeping! It is a sad state of affairs when someone wants to buy a chick for a basket, but if you can share with them how cool it would be to get fresh eggs, maybe they would want 4 or 5 and start their flock. Everyone has to start somewhere, and I'm sure there are many on the boards who's first chick was an easter chick. If you could be one to open someone's eyes on how neat chickens are as pets, they may get a good impression of chicken people and wish to be one too!

 

[gpamela3499]

I know that some of you will hate me but we are all guilty of chickacide if we ever bought pullets. For each pullet there was a roo that got a terrible view hours of life. In the wild most chicks don't make it either. Like some of the posts many have bought on a thought and later became totally addicted. I think intentional cruelty is bad but if the Easter (colored)chicks are sold they are usually roos and may help educate some parents and other families about chickens in their short life. I think that the lady in the store was gently educated about chick needs. That was good. The stores should make people sign a paper like they do at petsmart saying that they understand the needs and the risks of ownership. PS everyone who eats store or restaurant chicken is cruel as well. In this we are all guilty.

 

[newchickmom]

Our Rural King has a 20 chick limit, but they do make exceptions. I wanted to buy 10 meat birds and they let me because they see me in there all the time buying layer food. They know I'm not just buying them for Easter.

 

[gotpoodle]

As an aside, the same thing happens with baby bunnies this time of year...Easter presents gone bad that end up in shelters a few months later. And dog shelters have the same issues with puppies after Christmas... dogs that were given as gifts being sent to shelters after the holidays when they out grow that cute puppy stage. (In my area, most shelters won't adopt puppies out around Christmas at all, hoping to control those impulse/gift purchases!)
It's sad we're such a throw-away society.

 

[BoerneChickens]

Quote:
You are right - I'm sorry I didn't think of that at the time - but that probably would have been a better way to handle it.

 

[mmfarm]

I think you did the right thing. Unfortunately, everywhere you look at Easter there are pictures of chicks in Easter baskets - it's such a cultural icon that blunt may have been what she needed to get past that image (I bet the image someone presented of chicken poop in the kid's Easter Basket would have done the trick, too!

). But I really like the suggestion of hatching eggs. By the time they've spent 3 weeks tending, watching & waiting, then see them slowly pick their way out of the shell, the kids are totally invested in the chicks' welfare. Our first batch hatched right around Easter last year (didn't plan it that way, just how it worked out), and my little one was mesmerized! WAY cooler than a single chick in a basket, and, after watching them grow up, he got the money from selling them, which was put toward a (Thomas the Tank Engine - themed) vacation.

Oh, and ITA on bunnies - I have a friend who does rabbit rescue, and every year she gets calls to come round up bunnies that were just turned loose after Easter. People believe that they'll go feral and thrive, but they can't breed w/native cottontails, and will not be accepted. If they don't die of exposure, and the native rabbits/dogs/hawks/etc. don't kill them, and they don't get hit by cars, they'll starve to death. And I won't even get started on puppies & kittens...

 

[raimnel]

I'm gonna go post an ad on Craigs List. I'll take free chickies any day of the year!

 

[quetsweyo]

Totally with you on this, you were right to speak up. Like the idea about the ad to take in babes when the novelty wears off and the dinks have had their picture ops. I mentioned my ckix to my bank teller just last week and she commented that she had been considering getting her kid a duckling at easter, which had already passed, thank Dog. I quickly told her about all the care it would need and she said "I hadn't thought of that". Said she was glad she had not done it. Hope she remembers next year. It also happens to baby bunnies. Maybe a few calls to the pet stores, feed stores about all the negatives might help put an end to this. Animals are not disposable wind-up toys! I'll get off my soapbox now. Quetz

 

[Booswalia]

I can only imagine the poopy mess the chick would have made in her gift basket. Ha!

 

[AZSummer]