Experience with Meyer Hatchery?

[aliciaFarmer]

You have to call them with issues, you get much better results than with email.

True! ☺

 

[aliciaFarmer]

I get that with a lot of actually breeders as well as hatcheries. No one is perfect. A breeder (and this guy was one of the best in Canada) I once bought around 6 Light Sussex from gave me 3 males and one female and the rest were Bresse and Ixworth

Yikes! That would frustrate me!

 

[BlackHackle]

Yikes! That would frustrate me!

Yea, expecially since I paid $500+ for them

 

[aliciaFarmer]

I ordered from Meyer for the first time this year. Our hatch date was June 25th. I live about an hour and a half away so I picked them up. All 11 chicks were healthy and active. I received all the breeds I asked for and as of right now I believe they are all pullets. They are only 5 weeks old so I'm going to give them a few more weeks before determining their sex. The only disappointment I had was that the blue laced red wyandotte I ordered turned out to be the black laced variation. It is clearly stated that a black or splash chick is possible so I'm not upset with Meyer by any means, but I was looking forward to a true blue laced chick. The day of hatching they called me because one breed I ordered didn't have enough chicks hatch. They were very helpful in picking a replacement breed. I will definitely order from Meyer again.

That's fantastic that they were so helpful! My previous orders were great but this one has been awful -- lots of cheap filler chicks in place of the more expensive ones I ordered. Last time I had to reschedule twice and they were super sweet, fast responding and wonderful. I hope they return to their former glory in spring when I redeem my credit.

 

[Bawk2theFuture]

I ordered a white legbar rooster and pullet from them and got two pullets. That'd be great if that's what I wanted. They're getting back to me saying that their Id specialist says that one is a rooster.
Ummm nooooooo
What doesn't crow and lays eggs?
How do.i know that the other blue egg I'm getting daily is from this so called rooster?
Because in my flock I have
Three English Orpington
Two bantam cochin
A Svart Hona
A white cochin
A broiler
Seven baby chicks
An Austra White
Two Belgian Bearded D'uccle
And two roosters
Add the white legbar hens
Which of these chickens would.lay two blue eggs a day for me?

I'm livid that they're arguing this and don't give a crap that they're about to.lose all my.business and the business of the people I tell about this.
I've stood up for them so many times when people bad mouth hatchery chickens too
Handed out brochures at chicken fairs like some kind of dang representative

 

[Alexandra33]

I ordered a white legbar rooster and pullet from them and got two pullets. That'd be great if that's what I wanted. They're getting back to me saying that their Id specialist says that one is a rooster.
Ummm nooooooo
What doesn't crow and lays eggs?
How do.i know that the other blue egg I'm getting daily is from this so called rooster?
Because in my flock I have
Three English Orpington
Two bantam cochin
A Svart Hona
A white cochin
A broiler
Seven baby chicks
An Austra White
Two Belgian Bearded D'uccle
And two roosters
Add the white legbar hens
Which of these chickens would.lay two blue eggs a day for me?

I'm livid that they're arguing this and don't give a crap that they're about to.lose all my.business and the business of the people I tell about this.
I've stood up for them so many times when people bad mouth hatchery chickens too
Handed out brochures at chicken fairs like some kind of dang representative

Would you be able to attach a picture just for us to confirm Meyer's gender statement? Not meant to insult anyone, but I've seen several instances where hatchery employees hand out incorrect info.

All your breeds (Legbars aside) produce either white or brown eggs.

~Alex

 

[Bawk2theFuture]

They took care of the matter. So I'm satisfied.
It took having to be in contact with the CSR manager.
She was very helpful. Thanks Meyer!

 

[aliciaFarmer]

I ordered a white legbar rooster and pullet from them and got two pullets. That'd be great if that's what I wanted. They're getting back to me saying that their Id specialist says that one is a rooster.
Ummm nooooooo
What doesn't crow and lays eggs?
How do.i know that the other blue egg I'm getting daily is from this so called rooster?
Because in my flock I have
Three English Orpington
Two bantam cochin
A Svart Hona
A white cochin
A broiler
Seven baby chicks
An Austra White
Two Belgian Bearded D'uccle
And two roosters
Add the white legbar hens
Which of these chickens would.lay two blue eggs a day for me?

I'm livid that they're arguing this and don't give a crap that they're about to.lose all my.business and the business of the people I tell about this.
I've stood up for them so many times when people bad mouth hatchery chickens too
Handed out brochures at chicken fairs like some kind of dang representative

I feel for you. They wanted me to wait a month and resend photos to prove that my Black Copper Marans girl is a boy ("her" comb and wattle were bigger than my Welsummer and Barnevelder rooster were at 9 week). They've been awesome at remedying all previous issues though, and for buying over 50 chickens from them to date, there have been very few issues. Two boys that should have been girls and one wrong type sent -- all refunded or replaced.

 

[aliciaFarmer]

They took care of the matter. So I'm satisfied.
It took having to be in contact with the CSR manager.
She was very helpful. Thanks Meyer!

That's awesome! They've been good like that for me too though I've had to jump through some hoops with photos, then more photos because the "expert" couldn't tell yet.

 

[Bamabexchicks]

I received an order from Meyer this week and I'm extremely disappointed. I'm wondering if anyone has had similar experiences and if I should order from them again in the spring with my store credit or just ask for a refund...

I ordered 16 chicks and received 15. I called and they said the Blue Ameraucanas were oversold and someone called me to see if I wanted a replacement. No, no one called AND they hadn't provided me a credit ($22). I ordered 2 Rhode Island Reds for my neighbor and received 4 (one was the Meyer meal maker as it turns out but the other? No clue.). I ordered 3 Barnevelder females and a Barnevelder male, but received 2 females and a male. I also ordered the same number of Welsummers but it looks like I have only 3. Then there is a mystery girl (?) with a red head/back and white wings and chest.

View attachment 1484082

I emailed them that morning and received no response. I chatted with someone the next morning on their live chat feature and she said "email photos and we'll get right back to you." No response. I finally called on the afternoon of the third day and was able to at least receive a credit for the missing Barnevelder.

I'm hoping this is just a fluke and would love to hear other people's experiences, good or not good.

That's great you've had such good luck with them (with the exception of the deaths). Previously they had been wonderful to work with. My first batch arrived in late April with only one death at 3 days old (she arrived injured, couldn't walk and I had to hand feed her). That batch was 28 chicks so not bad, though as of today I realized the fourth rooster in the batch. I thought I only had one so this last week order had two. Oops! I'm thinking this last issue was out of the norm for them and will give them one more shot in spring.

I had great luck with Meyers. I had 1 substitution in that we ordered a White Leghorn ,and b/c of " bad hatches" we got a Splash Blue Andalusian ( skittish but very lovable. ) Ordered 6 and got 7 that all lived. I have heard good things about Cackle Hatchery too.