New chicks - Some have problems...

[ButtonquailGirl14]

Sorry about the chick! that was the white chantaler

 

[Acre4Me]

Sorry about the chick! that was the white chantaler

Thanks.

I do wonder if it was the white Chantecler, but it looks like the beginnings of a regular comb, and dark lines under its eyes which don't match any pics of a Chantecler chick, so I'm hoping it's not the Chantecler, but won't know till we get more feathers all around. It might be an Erminette chick.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

We ended up euthanizing the poor chick that had the more extreme leg issue. It was more lethargic, not opening its eyes, and appeared to have some oozing around the joints (maybe due to the bone poking through that my tween could see, but I could not).

The others we have given Nutri Drench, water, and electrolyte water. We put foot "splints" made with vet wrap on the chick with crooked feet and put a brace on two of the chicks that appeared to have spraddle/splay leg. The one with crooked toes is still having some issues walking very well, even with the vet wrap which provides good traction, so we will see how it does over the next 24 hours. We put them all into the 3x6 brooder with a large heat plate, several water stations, 1 electrolyte station and 3 feed stations. We lined it with puppy pads for these next couple of days. So far, so good.

I'm sorry to hear about the chick

I hope the rest start to improve.

 

[silkie1472]

I’ve done some research on the hatchery, and in all honesty I would be leery to use them. Yes, it is a small, family owned operation (or so it seems) with fairly cheap prices for chicks, but their poultry they advertise does not have anything to show/prove their quality or health as some of the larger, more renowned hatcheries such as Ideal Poultry, McMurray Hatchery, Metzer Farms, etc.

Don’t think that I am going against the hatchery in any way as there could have been complications with this hatch beyond the control of the hatchery, but just remember what I said when ordering birds — know the quality before getting the quantity.

Good luck with your new baby chicks!!

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

Thanks.

I do wonder if it was the white Chantecler, but it looks like the beginnings of a regular comb, and dark lines under its eyes which don't match any pics of a Chantecler chick, so I'm hoping it's not the Chantecler, but won't know till we get more feathers all around. It might be an Erminette chick.

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ohh... I thought you said that white Chantaler was the only white bird you ordered... Sorry

 

[Acre4Me]

ohh... I thought you said that white Chantaler was the only white bird you ordered... Sorry

Technically it is the only white bird we ordered. But, many chicks start out white and the Erminettes are white with black as adults. However, time will tell which one we had to cull - I'm not completely sure which one it was!

 

[Acre4Me]

I’ve done some research on the hatchery, and in all honesty I would be leery to use them. Yes, it is a small, family owned operation (or so it seems) with fairly cheap prices for chicks, but their poultry they advertise does not have anything to show/prove their quality or health as some of the larger, more renowned hatcheries such as Ideal Poultry, McMurray Hatchery, Metzer Farms, etc.

Don’t think that I am going against the hatchery in any way as there could have been complications with this hatch beyond the control of the hatchery, but just remember what I said when ordering birds — know the quality before getting the quantity.

Good luck with your new baby chicks!!

Although I also did some research on this and a few other places, I'm not sure I would try to compare them to the large hatcheries you mention. Their basic goals seems somewhat different from a large hatchery. As for health - they are NPIP certified, like any hatchery of any size seems to be. Not a guarantee of overall health by any means, as genetics plays a role in addition to contagious illness. As for quality, I can't say as the chicks have to grow up in order to see what they are like according to breed standards. However, there is a hatchery that I've seen mentioned on BYC that sells chicks for $$$ and gives the impression of very high genetic quality, but as other BYCers that have purchased from that other hatchery will point out to those thinking of purchasing the $$$chicks from that particular place, the fine print indicates that the chicks can be of widely varying quality....and seems many have been disappointed in the quality from that particular hatchery given the advertisement and high cost.

We have purchased some chicks from an OH hatchery for a very good price and have gotten some lovely quality (according to APA standards) birds - of the ones they advertise as "exhibition quality", whereas the other breeds we've gotten from them (not listed as EQ) have been more variable in size and feather patterning, and not the best examples of the breed. We purchased some random chicks from the "extra" bin at a large OH hatchery and one of them is a breed that they sell for over $50 per chick (yikes!!), and several others breeds sold for somewhat higher prices. Of the seven chicks we got, only two were really nice examples of their breeds, so I think that there is wide variation when hatching the many hundreds that a hatchery hatches.

For us, this will give us some experience in some new breeds, and we are looking forward to that, and we were able to get some harder to find breeds at a reasonable cost. So, time will tell as to whether we have gotten some decent quality chickens or not.

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

Technically it is the only white bird we ordered. But, many chicks start out white and the Erminettes are white with black as adults. However, time will tell which one we had to cull - I'm not completely sure which one it was!

Ok, that makes sense... What comb type did it have? What comb type do the other white chicks have?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Although I also did some research on this and a few other places, I'm not sure I would try to compare them to the large hatcheries you mention. Their basic goals seems somewhat different from a large hatchery.

You're right. Imho, you cannot compare SH to a large hatchery, different operation and mission.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

Hi @Acre4Me, sorry to hear about your sick chicks and the one you lost. I hope the others make a speedy recovery.