Hatcheries?

[JustinaMarie]

I'm looking to get some more Chickens and wondering what hatcheries you guys have used whats your likes and dislikes? I'm looking to get Cochin's maybe some more silky's and some guineas. I'v never bought from a hatchery so some info would be good on that too.
Thanks for any info!

 

[boskelli1571]

Hello & welcome!
I have always ordered from: www.mypetchicken.com and have been pleased with the chicks and their overall healthiness. You can order as few as 3 chicks or as many as you wish. Some of the rarer birds ( e.g. lavender Orps) have a max. quantity. The prices are reasonable too, Sue

 

[missCLUCKLES]

I think you should go for Meyer Hatchery.

I have purchased from My Pet Chicken, and the shipping cost was of the greatest concern. MPC shipping cost: $40 and Meyer: $20.
So I suggest that you should save some money and go for Meyer instead of MPC.

Similar to MPC, Meyer also has a three chick minimum as well.

 

[cstronks]

Both are good sites. Whichever you use you will more than likely be satisfied. I like Meyer, though, no reason. I will probably use MPC in the spring. However, as for shipping, MPC has 2 options - Expedited which is 40 and priority which is 20, so it is false that they are more expensive.

 

[missCLUCKLES]

So in that sense, would you say that MPC ships chicks sooner than Meyer would due to the pricing?

 

[petrel]

I purchased two small batches of chicks from Meyer Hatchery in August. They were great to deal with and provided excellent support both before and after the sale. I've been very pleased with the health and appearance of my chicks/hens. I've got a few more weeks before I can comment on their laying.

 

[cstronks]

That I cannot say. The priority from MPC will take 1-2 days depending on where in the country the buyer is located. The expedited services are usually 3 days, sometimes sooner, usually no longer. I would choose priority just because quicker sounds better to me. However, if Meyer ships priority (which I do not believe they do) and it is $20, then that is the better deal. But I do believe that Meyer uses expedited.

 

[Kelsie2290]

My Pet Chicken is a drop shipper, not a hatchery, they usually drop ship from Meyer. If Meyer has what you want, you might as well order from them. Some other good big commercial hatcheries are McMurray, Ideal, and Cackle. I have ordered from McMurray quite a bit and like them, they have the best web site / set up for on line ordering ime. Ideal and Cackle have more breeds, especially bantams, if you are looking for a bantam selection.
http://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/index.html
http://www.idealpoultry.com/
http://www.cacklehatchery.com/

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I have found Cackle Hatchery to have absolutely beautiful Buff and White silkies (for a hatchery- if you want the really large crests go to a breeder). So for silkies that is who I would buy from again.

For Cochins, I have bought them from McMurray and Welp and been pleased. I have ordered from Mypetchicken.com also for other breeds and been happy.

I have never had guineas.