Finally got new chicken today, but...

[Spydrworks]

I am soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo mad at the hatchery. OMG. I ordered this bird back in March for an early July delivery (I ordered a started pullet...a black star to accompany Chickie who is a red star). When I was supposed to get her in July, the hatchery told me there was a mistake in the orders and they ran short of birds, so I had to wait an extra month. She finally arrived today, but her beak is clipped. THEY NEVER HAD THIS STATED ANYWHERE ON THEIR SITE OR THE ORDER THAT THEIR BIRDS ARE DELIVERED WITH CLIPPED BEAKS!! I never would have ordered from them if I knew.

She can't defend herself...nor can she ever been shown. IMO, They sent me a defective bird. Her beak will never grow back will it? I am so sad for this little girl. I don't want to send her back, but I do want my money back. This is outrageous to me. I sent the hatchery an email with my complaint.

Any thoughts?

Also, so far so good with Chickie. She does peck at the new girl from time to time (the first half hour I was playing ref with a broom between her and the new girl...lol). Right now all seems to be fairly quiet with an occassional cluck that bellows "ouch". Any ideas on how to make the new girl comfy? Her feathers are so pretty. I love the green irridescence in the black. Her comb is so small right now...lol, but she is a sweet bird. Nice and friendly. I'm just so bummed on the clipped beak.

 

[asher]

Oh my gosh!

Definitely complain and if they say ship her back, demand that they pay shipping.

Do you mind saying where she came from? There's only a few hatcheries I know of that sell started pullets to ship.

 

[SandraChick]

It should grow back--- but I would definitively complain to the company. It should be stated that they will be beaked.

Sandra

 

[thndrdancr]

It really depends on how far back it was cut as to whether it grows back or not. Some of them sauterize, in that case it never will.

Jill

 

[kybukabu]

I guess I'm too new to chickens to know why the bleep they would clip a chicken's beak in the first place. Why on earth would this be done? I don't understand. Is there a possible reason?

 

[Spydrworks]

Do you mind saying where she came from? There's only a few hatcheries I know of that sell started pullets to ship.

Meyerhatchery.com

I guess I'm too new to chickens to know why the bleep they would clip a chicken's beak in the first place. Why on earth would this be done? I don't understand. Is there a possible reason?

Beak clipping is exclusively done for factory egg farming...so the chickens don't injure each other when they are stuffed into tiny cages with a bunch of other chickens...but it's OK when the deplorable conditions of not being able to move without their wings and legs getting broken, injure them.

It's a pathetic practice for pathetic reasons.

Look up factory egg farming and you'll understand why I am so disgusted.

I did write a follow up email with a compromise. I don't mind keeping her, but full price for a maimed animal is totally unacceptable. I told them I'd be content with a 50% refund and I'll just call it a rescue adoption. She is fine otherwise and is a sweet bird. I'm falling in love with her already...

It's hard to tell if it's been cut or sauderized. It's pretty smooth, so I'm guessing this was done a while ago...probably shortly after hatching...when it's usually done. The hole to her mouth makes her whistle. That's what made me notice. I was like "why are you whistling?"...looked closely at her beak and my heart sank. I really don't want to send her back there knowing the possible bad conditions she'd be going back to. She'd be well cared for here. No more overcrowding.​

 

[silkiechicken]

Yeah, they probably clipped her beak as a day old so it will never grow back. It is done as part of the large operations things. Hope you get a response.

 

[lexustami]

Quote:
This black beauty is very similar to the Golden Buff with a quiet temperament and excellent brown egg production and about 1 pound more body weight. The pullets are fully vaccinated, beak trimmed, floor raised and ready to move into your laying barn.

Says beak trimmed on their website.

 

[Chickenlover88]

Yeah I just noticed that on the website as well. Sorry but you probably wont be able to get any refund...

 

[Spydrworks]

Thats' what they are calling a "trim"??? Oh geese. It may not matter now anyway. She got out of the yard...and it's a five foot fence. I layed down about 7pm after checking up on the girls. Looked out there at 9pm to see if Chickie had allowed her in the doghouse and there's Chickie, but no new girl. I looked in the tiniest crevices to see if maybe she was tucked under or behind something and nothing. It was already dark...though looked anyway around the condos and the stream...she's most likely tucked under brush somewhere nearby. I know Chickie generally wakes up about 5:30am, so I'm gonna start looking around at that time to see if there's a chicken free ranging nearby. If she did jump out...then she must have taken a heroic leap off the back table without any signs of struggle, which I cannt see happening. One area, there's a plant hanger in the way, so I highly doubt she went that way. In another area, there's the next door neighbor and she has a ton of plants and there's a large spider web...both undisturbed...no broken web and Mrs. Spider was happy at home...and no broken leaves or twigs from her plants and small trees. No poop in her yard either.

Later that night after having dinner, I went out back with the flashlight and was standing on a chair looking over the fence toward the stream. I found out who the night critters are back there...lol. One opposum came by, but he just clambered away. I heard a lot of rustling about in the tree right in front of me (no chicken...but thought maybe...). I'm looking around wondering what was rustling about. Then I looked straight ahead a bit up and there's a raccoon coming down from the tree. He comes down, sniffs around, goes back haf way up the tree and here comes a different opposum from the other end of the stream...and the one I've caught in the yard eating Chickie's food. The opposum was getting closer to the raccoon and thought...wow...this should be interesting. The raccoon comes down after the opposum crosses the stream...then another raccoon...and a third came climbing down. I was in my glory last night (I love watching wild critters up close like that and it helped keep my worried mind off the new girl). All three raccoons approached the opposum. Mind you all of this was all going on less than 20 feet away from me. They knew I was there watching...especially with the flashlight beaming on them and they paid me no mind at all. Anyway...I had expected the raccoons to go ape s**t on the opposum, but the opposum just opened her mouth and the raccoons just stood on their hind legs looking at her. She walked away from them. After the raccoons made there way down the stream, the opposum came back and I noticed she had started to slip under the fence. When I looked on my side of the fence, there was the opposum just looking at me like "what the hell are you looking at?". I got a real good look at the opposum and looks like she may be too weak to go after Chickie. The first one I saw however, looks pretty big and strong. She eventually wandered back to the other side of the fence (I was too close to the chicken feed she usually dines on).

Where the opposum slipped under is behind a grass like bush that I remember filling in quite a while ago (to keep Chickie from possibly getting out. I was unaware this depression under the fence had reformed (maye the opposum dug it in). Makes me wonder if this is perhaps how the new girl got out. Maybe she discovered it while looking to roost and slipped under.

After the critters called it a night...I got depressed again

Certainly not having any luck here trying to get a black sex link. I could get hatchlings, but that takes a lot of time. I've got classes coming up and right now have no room for an incubator (renovating the condo). That's why I had ordered a starter pullet. Big enough to deal with Chickie and hold her own in the yard without any special treatment.

I know I didn't have to go into the whole raccoon thing, but figured I'd share the experience. They are cool critters. I remember long time ago back east when my now ex hubby and I went camping and we hung out with a family of four raccoons. I've got pictures tucked away somewhere. We gave them marshmellows and hotdogs till four in the morning when they decided they had enough and took off...lol.

Ooops...sprinklers are going off outside...maybe I should go take a look around right now for the new girl in case she's getting showered and waking up.

I still can't believe this horrible luck...