my experience with meyers hatchery! With pics!!

[amyandkids]

I ordered 19 chicks in july 2013 the babies arrived early aug. black giants, delewares, dominiques, white rocks, barred rocks, new hampshires! first off I had 2 doa at pickup, 3 more died the next day, they did send replacement chicks! Now my babies are 5 months old and have had problems since I received them. The one giant that did survive is only about 4 lbs. and has trouble walking far distances. My male deleware has bad problems with his legs they are twisted in at the knee bad, and he is very scrawny, one of my female delewares is skin and bones and very pale and sleepy! And they are all ratty looking and thin! I know hatchery chickens are not the biggest prettiest birds but I had no idea they would be so UNHEALTHY

! I have other chicks I got that are 8 months old from breeders and they are healthy beautiful shiny happy birds!! I have spoke to many breeders and they say they look like they r just not bred good!! I will NEVER get ANYTHING from them again! Please let me know if anyone else had this problem with Meyers, or was this my bad luck? I will post some picks of my poor babies when I have time!

 

[Pyxis]

I've never had a problem with Meyer. What have you been feeding them? I'm wondering if they're having trouble eating what you're feeding, which would explain why all of them are thin. I have a jersey giant rooster from them that is doing phenomenally. Really big boy, already bigger than my other roos and not even done growing yet. He's about 6 months old now I believe. I also added some barred rocks to my order for my aunt and they're doing great too, laying her eggs already. I added a salmon faverolles and a partridge rock for a friend and they're thriving, as is my welsummer and the new hampshire red. I think you just got unlucky or they're having trouble with what you're feeding. Pictures would help.

 

[amyandkids]

I feed all my chickens starter till 4 months, then finisher for 1 month then I give layer feed! they don't eat much of it cause they free range all day starting at 2 months! I don't ever use pesticides in my yard, and I do give them veggie scraps and bread as small treats. I do have a total of 57 chickens right now and all the rest I have hatched out (not from Meyers chickens they havnt started laying yet at 22 weeks old) and bought elsewere are doing fantastic!! I do love all my chickies, I don't want to cull but I feel I am making them suffer keeping some of the worse ones around! I will post pictures later today!

 

[amyandkids]

ok so this is my 14 week old roo giant and my 22 week old pullet giant she was from Meyers! don't let the fluff fool you she is smaller than she looks!



I can fit both my hands around her with room to spare!



ok so this is mr. wibbles see how his right foot is twisted around? he is 22 weeks and that is my sickly giant to his left and the sickly deleware hen infront of her! The barred rock to his right is one of the healthiest ones I got from Meyers but he is mean as could be!!!!



this is a closeup of his knees, but his hips aren't right either!! and he no longer can get up on the roosts so he lays on the floor of the coop and gets pooped on all night! Poor mr. wibbles!

 

[Pyxis]

Is it possible that the other older birds are bullying them away from food? The jersey giant is a little small, I do agree. As for your bird with a twisted leg, did he come from Meyer like that or did it develop? I know that sometimes if they are kept on slippery surfaces it can cause things like that. Although hatchery birds are never going to stack up to breeder birds, and I myself am done ordering from hatcheries, not because of a particularly bad experience but just because after seeing the difference between well bred birds and hatchery birds I won't go back.

 

[amyandkids]

yes his legs developed like that slowly, no slippery surfaces and they keep getting worse!! and I just found out I think my giants are austrolorps

! All birds in each flock are the same age! Also im a stay at home mom of children who are in school all day so I have nothing better to do with my time than spend ALL day outside with my birds

, no bullying really they all seem to get along since day one. The few that have been mean have gone to freezer camp! thank you for replying

 

[Pyxis]

I'm sorry you had a bad experience If you ever do order from a hatchery again, give Ideal a try. I order from them more than Meyer since their shipping is VERY cheap and I've never had any problems with them. Good luck with your birds, I hope Mr. Wibbles does okay!

 

[amyandkids]

Thank you, but I don't think I will keep him around much longer to suffer for my selfishness of trying to help him

!!! I always get more attached to the weaker ones cause I baby them!