Hello from TN!

[weimarmama]

& from Alabama. Glad you joined us.

 

[redsoxs]

Greetings from Kansas, highforestfarms, and

! Great to have you here and happy you are getting into chickens! I always order mine as day old chicks so I can have fun watching them grow. Good luck to you!

 

[cowcreekgeek]

Brand new ones, straight from the shell ... startin' out fresh eliminates problems comin' in w/ the bird that can wipe out flock(s) down the road.

Welcome to BYC!

 

[liz9910]

 

[highforestfarms]

I love how friendly y'all are! So any recommendations as to mail order hatcheries? Based on my checking the closest hatchery is Poultry Hollow. Our local Co-Op wasn't much help finding anything. The other feed store in the area closed about 2 years ago. So my chicken resources are limited.

 

[cowcreekgeek]

I love how friendly y'all are! So any recommendations as to mail order hatcheries? Based on my checking the closest hatchery is Poultry Hollow. Our local Co-Op wasn't much help finding anything. The other feed store in the area closed about 2 years ago. So my chicken resources are limited.

Missed your post (blind as a bat, 'n these forums tend to bury stuff )-;~

You're close enough that you could just steal mine. My state is one of the few that some hatcheries refuse to ship to, due to delays that somehow happen only here ... they can come from anywhere, and they'll most probably get to you in plenty of time.

If you've not specifically chosen your breeds, I'd consider Murray McMurray ... in my case? They communicated well, shipped when they said they would, and actually don't mind talkin' to their customers on the phone. I was lookin' for bargain chicks, and the rainbow layers is what I ordered (twenty-five, plus one free rare breed ~'-)

A few tips, so as to get the best start:

• Have your brooder ready, and tested for temperature 'n such. Cover the floor w/ layers of paper towels.
• Be certain to use your cellphone as the contact information w/ the hatchery, but check whichever phone that's associated w/ your method of payment as well ... the Post Office should try 'n call you when they arrive, but they left one message on my home phone instead.
• Contact the Post Office a day or two in advance of arrival (usually, you'll be given a window of several days that your order will ship).
• Take your own box lined w/ paper towels, just in case anything went wrong, and transfer them out of the shipping container.
• I make a sugar water, with just a dash of salt, and give it to them right then 'n there -- another good reason for the second box is that you've gotta dip the beaks of each one, so as to make certain they've taken a drink. And, be certain to never give newly hatched chicks cold water.
• Sprinkle chick starter in the box, 'n peck it w/ your finger 'til some begin to eat ... the other's will then figure it out ~'-)

I run the municipal water through a filter, so as to dechlorinate, which results in approximately 8% higher intake of water by my birds. Also, adding a little over 1 tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar per gallon of water is something I do absolutely every time I refill their water, which is several times daily.