Just placed order for spring...but my dream team is sold out.

[javaferret]

So after not having chickens for 10 years or so, I am finally have a home where were have lots of land and I can once again have chickens! I was kind of surprised (ya imma newb) that Meyers and MyPet Chicken have already have sold out dates for some of their chickens already! Yikes... I had planned to order from Ideal, but they are still not taking orders for 2016, so, with the concern of not being able to get my most wanted breeds, I placed an order with My Pet Chicken for a few breeds, just so I could ensure I get blue ameraucanas since they had always been my fav, well the blue wheaten bantams were, but going for bigger hens this go around, and sexed silkie since they are the only ones that sell sexed silkies. I had really wanted to get a few spitzhaubens, but they are sold out as well and do not carry the Brabanters that Ideal does. Basically I wanted very pretty eggs and interesting chickens, and since I don't have any 4H kids or really care for showing, hatchery chickens is the way I am going.

I was wondering, since I have my order now for April 4th, if Ideal does take orders for the ones I could not find at My Pet Chicken, what are your thoughts on getting two batches of chicks and integrating, isolation ect? Would it be best to merge them at the same time when they are all about day olds, or get them prior or after the new ones with time for isolation? Do day olds need isolation? Many people out here just get chicks at various feed stores and toss them together. Any ideas or thoughts? After reading so much about disease and biosecurity, I am now paranoid about getting chickens from various places (breeders, swaps, feed stores) and mixing them, mostly cause I been waiting so long to get chickens again and really don't want to mess things up with a diseased flock, or other issues I have never had before.

 

[RIR-YELLOWLEGS]

Anyone interested in RIR eggs???

 

[RIR-YELLOWLEGS]

Anyone interested in RIR eggs???

here are some pictures of my flock

 

[RIR-YELLOWLEGS]

Anyone interested in RIR eggs???

here are some pictures of my flock

my hens

 

[torilovessmiles]

If you're ordering chicks from popular hatcheries, I don't think there's much to worry about disease. They go through a lot of testing to make sure they're disease-free. Feed stores are a little more risky because they're exposed to the public, but my local tractor supply has the chick area gated off from customers. You request your breed and the employees go in and get them for you. I've yet to get a sick chick from there!

Have you checked out Meyer hatchery? They're located in Ohio and they have quite a few rare breeds. They have Ameraucanas, but they also have Spitzhaubens, Swedish flower hens, cream legbars, lavender and jubilee Orpingtons, though the rare breeds are all pretty limited.

 

[javaferret]

Yes I checked out Meyer hatchery first, but they were limited, and not all the ones I wanted were available on the same day (of course I was hoping hatcheries would be the safest in regards for not getting chicks with diseases, because of what you said the testing they have to do, as well as its bad for business i suppose if they get known for having issues. I didn't think about checking with the feed stores and seeing if they could do an order, but that makes sense if they are already ordering chicks then it would prob not be a problem for them to just get some special order for customers. I will check out the Wilco and see what their policy is! Thanks!

 

[Folly's place]

I've been happy with Murray McMurray, and Cackle hatcheries; check them out too.Mary

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I haven't ever mixed batches before so I can't comment on that, I did find it interesting you wanted some appenzellers, I did get some from My Pet Chicken two years ago and have found them extremely flighty and I wouldn't get them again, so of my favorite breeds were ones that were fall back breeds or ones I didn't plan on, this year they were sold out of some but now I see they have some available again, sometimes you can get what you want on short notice if you watch the websites.

 

[Blooie]

I don't think I'd worry that much about bio-security between hatcheries. As @torilovessmiles said, they are all usually pretty careful. And you know, it would always be possible to order from one hatchery and get healthy chicks then order again from the same hatchery and have issues.....you just never know when some nasty little bug can pop up.

Another thing to think about regarding the mixing of ages of chicks - just because the hatchery you wanted to order from isn't taking 2016 orders yet doesn't mean that you can't check back regularly, order what you want as soon as they start, and set up delivery for about the same time as the chicks you've already ordered so they'd all be the about the same size and age. If you are johnny-on-the-spot with ordering the minute they start offering, you could still get what you want exactly when you want them. Then you can decide whether to cancel your order with MPC or keep both orders going.

If you still miss the ones you want from Ideal, and you do end up with chicks of different ages, you are wise to think of integration early. One method that rarely fails is to have an enclosure within your coop or run for the new chicks so they can see the older ones and vice versa, without being able to come into physical contact. They get used to seeing each other, the Tinys learn from the Littles, and after a couple of weeks you can open the babies' enclosure with a portal that the Tinys can use as a panic door but the older chicks are too big to follow. @azygous uses this system very successfully and has had her chicks integrating with even adults when the chicks are as little as 3-4 weeks old. I do the same, but wasn't smart enough to think of the portals....I just cracked the door open enough for the littlest ones to fit through but not the big ones. I had 3 week old chicks mingling with older chicks and adults, and every batch of chicks was fully integrated with the flock by 3 and 4 weeks old.

Here's an article that will show you what I mean. I don't ever brood chicks in the house anymore - they learn faster, mature faster, and do better if raised in the coop from the get-go.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/yes-you-certainly-can-brood-chicks-outdoors

 

[javaferret]

Oldhens- thanks for your comment on your experience on the appenzellers, I was also worried about reading about other posts on them being flighty, so maybe it was for the best I didn't get them, I kinda like friendly chickens, though they are so pretty and just crack me up with their mohawks.

Blooie- thank you soo much for the info and the link, this really helps! I am making it a habit stalking Ideal's website every now and again