Horrified

[Spiase20]

I went to Tractor Supply to get more supplies and check out the ducklings.

What I saw horrified me. They we wet, covered in their on feces, bald in spots, red irritated skin, and panting.

Then I saw this one duckling, missing the most fluff, qaucking it's heart out. Then it throws to stand and I saw it had extremely deformed legs, where they were completely pointing inwards and he couldn't walk, just stumbled. The other ducklings were duck picking on him and walking on him.

I confronted the lady that worked there about it, and she said they will just leave him in there and try to sell. When I brought up their conditions, she just brushed it off saying they always spill their water. Then when I mentioned that they are all looking sick, she brushed me off and ignored me.

I can't have any more duck in the city limits and my husband won't let me take the deformed leg one home, saying I'll get too attached. That either he will die and I will be heartbroken or he will live and get untroubled if someone reports that we have more that 4 ducks.

I left the store in tears. I am going back tomorrow to see if they clean the cage and will talk to their manager. I used to work at a local pet store for 7 years, and I know that they are held accountable for the health and conditions of the animals they sell! If they come in sick from the hatchery then they have to be accountable and help make them better.

It made me sick to my stomach. I was able to snap a picture of the one with the legs.

 

[Knighstar679]

my tractor supply hangs their water to prevent the spilling so much. All theirs looked good. They had one chick that didn't look great, but they at least were watching it and even checked in on it while i was there to make sure it was doing ok. This store is not doing a good job. I know in NY state there is a area that tracks animals in stores like these to make sure proper conditions are being kept and if they aren't the store can get heavy fines up to and including loosing their liscense to carry live animals for a period of time. (i work at a pet store here so it is something we kinda know about and have to watch a lot.) Maybe see if there is someone that can check in with an agency on these animals

 

[Pyxis]

That's definitely not normal for TSC conditions and if the manager doesn't do anything about it, call corporate and lodge a complaint that way. Believe me, the store manager WILL hear about it.

I worked in a TSC as team leader for a time, and the correct way to take care of the chicks and ducklings, according to their policy, is to give them fresh feed and water every day at store opening and closing, change the bedding every day, and the ones that aren't doing well should be taken out back to a special little 'hospital' bin to keep them separate. Usually those can be given away to customers to try to save them. In my store, they usually go home with me.

 

[Isaac 0]

Absolutely awful people would treat an animal in such a way. Lets us know what the manager says.

 

[MGG]

The one with messed up legs probably has a niacin deficiency, which is easily treatable. Maybe you can take it home and treat it and then take it back, or you can teach them how to do it? If it is fixed now while he's young he will recover. That is so sad they are treating the poor things that way.

 

[Spiase20]

I went and talked to the manager. He said they were just wet. When I told him that isn't the case, these are sickly ducks. I suggested at least giving all of them a bath to wash the feces off, which was causing extreme skin irritation.

He said they didn't have the time or means to do so. I replied that I will be willing to do it right now for them, which he rejected.

In the end, he said "What do you want me to do? I can't do anything about it."

That poor lame duck is still there. I wanted to take him but my husband won't let me, we could get in trouble with the city and I'll get too attached.

Another photo

 

[Bellagrl]

I just bought quail chicks from tractor supply, my boyfriend went and got them, said the guy didn't put the box together right and ended up dumping them out, dropped one on the ground, he was most of them didn't look good and there were dead chicks in with them and also dead chicks in with the chicken chicks. They do not take good care of them. Also, I called 2 tractor supply stores to ask what breed of quail they were selling and they had no idea.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I went to Tractor Supply to get more supplies and check out the ducklings.

What I saw horrified me. They we wet, covered in their on feces, bald in spots, red irritated skin, and panting.

Then I saw this one duckling, missing the most fluff, qaucking it's heart out. Then it throws to stand and I saw it had extremely deformed legs, where they were completely pointing inwards and he couldn't walk, just stumbled. The other ducklings were duck picking on him and walking on him.

I confronted the lady that worked there about it, and she said they will just leave him in there and try to sell. When I brought up their conditions, she just brushed it off saying they always spill their water. Then when I mentioned that they are all looking sick, she brushed me off and ignored me.

I can't have any more duck in the city limits and my husband won't let me take the deformed leg one home, saying I'll get too attached. That either he will die and I will be heartbroken or he will live and get untroubled if someone reports that we have more that 4 ducks.

I left the store in tears. I am going back tomorrow to see if they clean the cage and will talk to their manager. I used to work at a local pet store for 7 years, and I know that they are held accountable for the health and conditions of the animals they sell! If they come in sick from the hatchery then they have to be accountable and help make them better.

It made me sick to my stomach. I was able to snap a picture of the one with the legs.

View attachment 2051008

Report them for animal abuse that is awful! More than awful! Call animal control this is animal abuse. Call corporate headquarters. Who is going to buy sick an dying birds this needs to stop now!

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I went to Tractor Supply to get more supplies and check out the ducklings.

What I saw horrified me.

Call a news station to do a report on it... public pressure should mount to something. This happens EVERY year.

I have to say... even the condition of the bin they are in is horrible. It looks rusty. TSC sells those bins new... no reason for them to cheap out like that. Those ducklings are WAY over crowded... they can't possibly stay dry like that and the bedding isn't deep enough for ALL that poo. Spreading them into 2 bins would make a huge difference.

The one with the leg issues is probably a deformity and not a niacin deficiency this early... it should have been culled at the hatchery. Or as stated by another poster... taken to a hospital bin... even corporate stores like Walmart have differences on the local level... my daughter saw one in LV selling their USED cardboard boxes and labeled "manager's special".. plus they had a much better (more efficient) register area set up for their alcohol sells compared to our local Wally. Point being, not all stores and their management teams are created equal... so that store might not have yet learned about a hospital bin.

Hope conditions do improve for them babes!

 

[johntfs]

Report them for animal abuse that is awful! More than awful! Call animal control this is animal abuse. Call corporate headquarters. Who is going to buy sick an dying birds this needs to stop now!

This is pretty much what happens when people who feel a calling to something, encounter other people who have jobs at that something. The folks at TSC aren't poultry/duck people. They're people working crappy, hourly pay jobs who would rather be somewhere else. Ducklings/chicks/etc aren't adorable sweet little babies to them. They're smelly rats with beaks. They're chores, and kind of gross chores, too. So those chores tend to not get done consistently. Now, some store cultures make more of an effort than others, but figure "Corporate" isn't going to care unless they think there's going to be some big bad publicity blowback on them. Figure animal control is likely going to be too busy dealing with stray cats/dogs/animals to pay much attention to TSC livestock. If there's a chapter of PETA or the ASPCA locally, you're more likely to some some action.