Frustrated about the availability of chicks

[CatInTheHenHouse]

@Nifty-Chicken I sent you a DM with the PDF, I believe it's in good order but let me know if I should adjust anything.

 

[McChooky]

I would love to hear from anyone living on the east coast who has ordered chicks from Ideal before.

 

[McChooky]

Yes but when I was new to chickens and didn't know better I got 2 silver laced wyandotte pullets. Surprise and Thanks TSC they were 1 Barred Rock pullet and 1 Barred Rock Cockeral. So even sticking to pullet bins doesn't guarantee a thing.

If you're familiar with the breed and only select those that you're sure about you'll get it right 99% of the time(they're an autosexing breed)

 

[McChooky]

If you're familiar with the breed and only select those that you're sure about you'll get it right 99% of the time(they're an autosexing breed)

PS I only buy chicks I get to select.Some employees will grab the chicks with insides coming out or sluggish because they're easy to catch

 

[alwaystj9]

I would love to hear from anyone living on the east coast who has ordered chicks from Ideal before.

I am in South Louisiana and have been ordering from Ideal for 7 years. Only one order went astray and the Ideal person and the post office person worked together to locate them quickly. I was able to drive to another town and pick them up. I usually order 25 -30 chicks, I usually get one of their assortments (This year's Rainbow Carton Assortment had some really cool birds in it) but have ordered individual breeds. This year one chick died the day they arrived and another died the following day, no other issues and they have always been awesome on the phone and quickly refunded the $ for the 2 chicks. I do usually place my orders in late Jan/early Feb. for a March delivery. This year they hatched on a Wednesday and were here on Thursday. I have also had good experience with Mt.Healthy Hatchery.

 

[ValkerieGunn]

If you're familiar with the breed and only select those that you're sure about you'll get it right 99% of the time(they're an autosexing breed)

Yes for people familiar with the breed but I was getting my first chickens so I had no clue how messed up the process at stores could be. Now a few years later I know better and that's great but when starting out it sucked.

 

[Iluveggers]

I would love to hear from anyone living on the east coast who has ordered chicks from Ideal before.

Rural upstate NY delivery. Shipped Wed, arrived Fri, 2 different years. I was super nervous first order, tracking was WAY off both times, but they were all fine! No immediate losses, one weak chick died day 2 in one order, and they refunded.

I usually order 25 -30 chicks, I usually get one of their assortments (This year's Rainbow Carton Assortment had some really cool birds in it) but have ordered individual breeds.

Oh I’ve always wondered about their rainbow assortment! What did you get?

 

[McChooky]

Yes for people familiar with the breed but I was getting my first chickens so I had no clue how messed up the process at stores could be. Now a few years later I know better and that's great but when starting out it sucked.

I split an order of 10 Dominique pullets with a friend and picked 5 that definitely looked like Doms plus one odd ball that had a big comb. I gave the other 4 to my friend and he ended up with 2 Dom's and 2 barred rocks.One of his ended up being a dom pullet the rest were barred rocks.I only ended up with one barred rock(mine was a pullet)

 

[alwaystj9]

Rural upstate NY delivery. Shipped Wed, arrived Fri, 2 different years. I was super nervous first order, tracking was WAY off both times, but they were all fine! No immediate losses, one weak chick died day 2 in one order, and they refunded.

Oh I’ve always wondered about their rainbow assortment! What did you get?

It was a wild mix! I got 25 chicks: Anconas, Buff Minorcas, Easter Eggers, Blue & cuckoo marans, Hampshires, Delawares, Buff Orpingtons & Black Stars. I'll definitely get that mix again next year.

 

[ValkerieGunn]

I split an order of 10 Dominique pullets with a friend and picked 5 that definitely looked like Doms plus one odd ball that had a big comb. I gave the other 4 to my friend and he ended up with 2 Dom's and 2 barred rocks.One of his ended up being a dom pullet the rest were barred rocks.I only ended up with one barred rock(mine was a pullet)

My husband wanted some more bantams this year so I picked out a few, I asked for and pointed to the 2 silkies I liked to go with our order and the employee tried to give me a cochin and then argued with me when I said no put it back. Evidently she was told if it has feathered legs it is a silkie.