Hatcheries?

[tinkerbell265]

I recently MAIL ORDERED chicks and after receiving stressed, unhealthy, babies, i decided NEVER AGAIN! I have no problem with the hatchery from which i ordered, but the fact that it took two days to get to them to me. I understand that it's no ones fault that it took that long and understand that they arrive in 2-3 days anyway, but i just feel like there is a better way.

I was wondering if there are hatcheries around Indiannapolis(IN)/Cincinnati (OH) areas where i can just order a minimum of 5 or so and go pick them up myself? My yard is not big enough to house an obnoxious minimum of 15-25 birds. If anyone knows of a hatchery near Lizton IN where i can buy a few chicks and pick them up myself, that would be most helpful! I don't mind driving a couple hours either. Anything would be better than what i experienced recently. (Preferably one where i can replace my dead Rhode Island Red, Buff Orpington, and Golden Laced Wyandotte.)

Thanks!

 

[JimmyLang]

Sure there is a better way, go and pick them up at a hatchery. Or probably better yet, pick them up from a breeder locally. That will take more effort to line up what they have, and what you want though. I can understand the frustrations of stressed chicks, but I have yet to loose a chick that has been shipped to me. You said they were unhealthy. Was the unhealthiness from the stress, or were they just absolutely unhealthy, or is there any way to know? If they were unhealthy just because they are unhealthy then that is a hatchery issue and not a shipping issue. I don't have any hatcheries for you in Indiana, but there may be some listed in the sticky thread at the top of this breeders hatcheries forum.

 

[tinkerbell265]

What hatchery do you use?

Well there really is no way of knowing if it was a shipping issue or a hatchery issue. But i did fail to mention that my package arrived at the post office the very next day it shipped but for some reason they wouldn't allow me to pick it up unit six A.M the following morning. They only allow you to pick up livestock in the morning and the chicks arrived there around noon the previous day. So i had to wait a whole 18 hours before they let me get them. I Don't want to go through my post office again because clearly they do not work with people who have live animals... As a result, one of my chicks were dead when i opened the box. And the other two were just very weak. I did all i could do for them but they died almost a week later.

I just don't like my post office. After everything was said and done i just want to pick up my birds personally. I'm not a fan of he shipping thing.

 

[JimmyLang]

I have used townline on at least three different occasions and I just used cackle this past week and have not lost one bird because of the hatchery or the usps. I have lost birds because I smash them later accidentally with the chicken tractor or something like that and one time my father in law put the heat lamps too close to the floor and burnt up over 100 broilers but anyway. The ones from townline always came in the next day, so really should not be a problem with them anyway. Birds have always been really strong. I just got chicks assortment mystery package and waterfowl ducks and geese from cackle this week They took two days to get to me, but they were fine. They are all very alert, moving, drinking, eating, right now. That is so messed up about your post office, I can't even comprehend it. Seems like they would want them out of there as soon as possible.

 

[JimmyLang]

Cackle will let you order a very small amount of birds, but it is expensive because of the special shipping requirements and it would still be coming through the mail and probably dealing with an ignorant usps

 

[WoodlandWoman]

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience. It's always hard if you lose chicks.

It's really hard on chicks to be shipped in hot weather or cold weather. If you can time shipments for the spring or fall weather that's more moderate, they usually arrive in good shape. Two days shouldn't be a problem. Bad temps are a big problem. This spring we had a lot of unseasonably hot weather from time to time, which also makes it difficult. A delay in transport that extends the travel time by a day or two is also bad. I have sugar water and electrolytes available, along with an eye dropper, in case chicks need emergency care from a bad trip.

Now that it's summer, I think picking some chicks up locally is a fantastic idea. I hope you can find what you want in your area. If you don't get enough suggestions in this thread, you can try asking in the thread for your state. Those are usually full of good local information. You can also try a google search for hatchery and your state. That's where I found a local hatchery.

 

[DelcoChix]

Sure sounds more like a USPS issue than a hatchery issue....Totally agree that I'd hesitate before ordering again, but I'm afraid I'd probably try to straighten out the post office first...starting with a meeting with the manager. They are under an obligation to provide the service to deliver the packages, and they have been shipping poultry for at least 60 years. You are the customer. If you didn't bother to come when they notified you or weren't available when the chicks arrived, 100% your fault. If they did not allow you to pick them up...not acceptable, and I'd climb the ladder. And we wonder why the USPS continues to struggle financially. My local P.O. is great, they called me first thing each time and were as excited as I was to open up the box...they get quite a few deliveries.

I think there are quite a few Hatcheries in Ohio, depends on how far you'd want to travel...Our local feedstore gets theirs from Mt. Healthy (I've heard good and bad about them, but the EE's I've gotten from them are wonderful and the feedstore thinks a lot of them), I think that's in SW Ohio. Eagle's Nest provides the broilers for the Delaware County Fair, and I've met the owners (done poultry clinics and judging for 4-H in the past)--very good people, think highly of them based on interaction with 4-H kids that I've seen. Doesn't have the variety of the larger hatcheries but definitely recommend them. They are aways from you, between Bucyrus and Upper Sandusky.

Meyer Hatchery in Polk (near Ashland) if even further but I have bought from them a few times--about an hour and 15 minutes from Delaware, so another longer drive for you. Fantastic to work with, HUGE variety, and nice place. They have a wonderful catalog (both paper and online/cyber), sort of like a Sears Wishbook (dating myself...) for chicken nuts. Although they tend to sell out of the popular breeds they have a list each week of 'extras' available--I've spoken with them on the phone previously, asked about what was available...I was asked what was on my wishlist and got a call the following week to let me know they had what I'd wanted so my dh and I roadtripped up there last minute and got the lovely Welsumers--which are awesome birds four years later!!

Totally agree, breeder is a great way to go, BUT you're buying straight run and then you have to rehome/sell/eat the cockerels unless you have the time, room, neighbors, and inclination to keep them. Not everyone can deal with the trouble, especially if you just want a few nice laying hens and aren't planning on breeding or showing beyond 4-H level (our Meyr birds did great at the county fair level).

Good luck!