Muscovy ducklings arrive today

[Happyfarmwife]

My order of 15 Muscovy ducklings arrived today, with 8 of them dead and one more about to go, possible two more that aren't too chipper.

Does anyone have any experience getting these from the hatcheries?

I ordered mine from Ridgeway. They say they guarantee 100% live delivery. Well I am at 50% at best. Of course today is Saturday and they aren't open, but I did leave a message about my ducks.

I know some hatcheries won't sell Muscovies because they say they have a hard time wtih live arrival.

Deborah

 

[Ace_king_brahma]

I never heard of that and now I'm a little worried I have an order coming in from JM Hatchery Tuesday. Are they real fragile?

 

[Rare Feathers Farm]

Muscovies usually seem very hardy as ducklings, much more hardy than other breeds. I think they aren't sold in a lot of catalogs due to regulations about them getting set free & populating areas they shouldn't.....but I'm just guessing.

I'm sorry they arrived poorly....how far did they travel?

 

[Happyfarmwife]

I had talked to Metzer Hatchery on the phone last year. They used to carry Muscovies, and they are in California. I am in Oregon so I thought it would be better to order closer to home. Well they told me they wouldn't be selling Muscovy ducklings any more as they had a high mortality rate when they had to ship them.

Ridgeway is in Ohio, so the ducklings were two days getting here. But I order my other birds from that far away and they do fine getting here in two days.

I know they are hardy when they are raised on the farm, that is part of the reason we want them. I had them years ago and they did really well.

I will see what the hatchery offers me. I might end up just having them ship me a batch of meat birds instead of trying to get more ducks. I just hope that at least one of the survivors is a male.

I had two others die this morning. They sent me 18 birds, and I have 7 that are alive and well.

Deborah

 

[SundownWaterfowl]

Quote:
I am so sorry that 8 are dead. Did you open them up at the post office, and fill out a form. Usually they only guarantee live delievery if a postal worker fills out some form.

In the event 10% or more of your poultry arrives dead on arrival, the Supervisor, Claims Appeals, states that claims must be filed on PS Form 1000 by the addressee at their post office as soon as the poultry are received dead on arrival. By doing so, confirmation of postal responsibility will be on the claim form when our office receives it.

That is what their website says. did you fill out that form?​

 

[Happyfarmwife]

Quote:
That is what their website says. did you fill out that form?

No, I didn't do that. It was Saturday and the PO wasn't open, the lady just handed me the box out the back door.

Great! I hope that I will get my money back!
Deborah

 

[fowlfriends]

I am really sorry about your ducklings. If the hatchery requires proof of them arriving dead and in poor health, I doubt the PO will give you any trouble. Just explain to them what the circumstances are. Likely they had a feeling some of the babies had passed away, because of less noise and sometimes the general smell just isnt right - even in just a couple of days.

I do know of a family in the Portland, Oregon area who sells high quality Muscovies. Just not sure off the top of my head if they sell ducklings, or only adult birds. If you might be interested, let me know and I can give you the contact info. They do not ship, but do bring to shows if you have any in your area.


ETA:

Please keep the box! If it has a delivery confirmation scan on it, the PO might want to be able to re-scan to enter correct info into their computer.

 

[CountryMom]

I am so sorry to hear you lost your ducklings. I hope the rest survive.

I just recieved an order of 15 white Muscovy ducklings from Country Hatchery the 4th of this month. The owner sends out a printed instruction sheet with them that explains they need to be watered slowly and that really helped. ALL 15 arrived alive and are still growing so fast it isn't funny. I received a call the day they shipped and they arrive 2 days later. I would highly recommend this hatchery for Muscovies.

 

[Happyfarmwife]

I talked with Micky Ridgeway on the phone this morning. She was very helpful and is crediting my card the price of the birds that arrived dead and the ones that died right after we got home. That was 11 out of the 18 that were sent. She told me the reason why Muscovy ducklings are harder to ship is because they have a smaller yolk sac and don't get as much nutrients as other day old poultry, so they have a higher mortality rate when shipped.

I didn't have to get any forms from the PO or do anything like that. I just told her on the phone, and she said no problem they would credit me for them. Usually they will send replacements, but she said they are back logged for Muscovies and the season is about over already for them. I told her I am happy with what I have and wouldn't want to chance killing more anyway.

I was very impressed with her concern and very generous offer to refund my money for the ones who died.

I would definately buy from them again. Although I won't be ordering poor little Muscovies!

Deborah

 

[SundownWaterfowl]

Good thing they recredited your money. Good luck with the other ducklings you have.