I think everyone here is of the same mind.
Why wast more time debating put them in the incubator - does it matter really what you know they have been through????
Give them a chance these wee chickies are hardier then you think!!!!!! Even if you only get one or two hatch - well look at that positively if you get a roo boy and a hen you can always mate them next year and then you wont need to get anymore posted eggs!!!!!!!!!
GO FOR IT AND LET US KNOW IF ANYTHING HATCHES!!!!!!!!!!
If you don't try they will all die anyhow!!!!!!!! What have you got to lose - you have more to gain in giving them a chance. They have been though enough already
PUT THEM IN THE BATOR!!!!!!!!
Wait and see!!!!!!
Give them longer - about 23/24 days tops. - though I got live chicks 27/28 days and I boiled mine then froze them - ok I only got two live ones but hay it worked!!!!!!!
It was my first hatch by the way! - I didn;t mean to try to kill them all - It had nothing to do with the postal service as all my eggs were fine until I got my mits on them!!!!!!!
I've put the 4 that look viable in the incubator the other 2 had broken air cells and were oozing sticky stuff so I threw those. These are seriously precious eggs the roosters can fetch up to £1000 so I have to give them a shot.
Such a shame there's not a safer way to send them as the postal service is a bit of a lottery with hatching eggs. Seems a waste of time marking things as fragile as they don't seem to make a difference in the handling. Regardless of the value if something is fragile it should be treated with extra care not just tossed about.
Will candle at 7 days to see if they're looking good or not hopefully I'll be lucky this time
Well ya' know what? If you hate the Post Office, don't use them. Period. Simple. Go get the eggs (or whatever), yourself! Seriously! Then figure how much those eggs cost you. I appreciate the Post Office for bringing my silkie chicks to me. I sure wasn't going to drive to Ohio (or where-ever) and back for 5 chickies, no matter how cute they are...
Good luck with your hatch rate, I love my local post office but get a tad irate over the length of time eggs are stuck at certain PO, but that is the chance we take when shipping eggs. But best of luck, maybe you will hatch 4 beautiful babies.
Eggs are not on Fed Ex's prohibited list. If I was shipping eggs from a breed that can bring that much money as adult birds then I'd pay the extra money to ship Fed Ex. In fact, I'd be shipping Fed Ex next morning delivery. It might be $30 but it'd be worth it for really expensive eggs. (For super expensive eggs, Fed Ex same day might even be worth it...)
I ordered eggs online and I was expecting them. We had a fill in Postman. I have a detached garage with a window. I was in teh garage. The postmand read the label that said "Fragile Hatching Chicken Eggs- Live" on it and cocked his head and tossed the box eight feet onto the porch. 6 out of 9 are good which I think is good as I paid for only 6 but nonetheless. I think you are better off not marking them at all. He didnt know I was watching him until he turned around. The Postmaster doesnt care either. I just make it as difficult on them as I can now. Its not just the post office though, UPS, FedEx, and others frequently do not open my gate and just toss it over the 6 foot wooden gate. I see them do this regularly and complaints dont stop it.
Good golly. Don't expect leaving fragile off to help much. I just received a totally mangled package in the mail today. I think it was probably the most mangled one I've ever received. Mushed on multiple corners and actually torn partly open. Thankfully, it wasn't eggs.
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I believe the people I have bought my eggs and chicks from will tell you that is exactly how I do it. I have never bought a shipped egg or chick. Now to be honest, I picked up 44 eggs in Al, last year and had less than 20 hatch, picked up 2 more dozen and had less than half of them hatch. Picked up 30 chicks in Tn and lost part of them. So even picking them up yourself is no guarantee they will hatch or survive the trip home. My opinion is simply that you take what you get, any way you can get them, and hope for the best. The shipper has a responsibility to do everything in their power to pack the eggs in as safe a manner as possible, but once those eggs are shipped, the seller no longer has any control as to how they are handled.