Postal Service delays leading to boxes of dead chicks :(

[Sonya9]

Like Armageddon: Rotting food, dead animals and chaos at postal facilities amid cutbacks

"Inside a massive mail-sorting facility in South Los Angeles, workers fell so far behind processing packages that by early August, gnats and rodents were swarming around containers of rotted fruit and meat, and baby chicks were dead inside their boxes. "

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-08-20/usps-cutbacks-post-office-chaos

Mods if this is in the wrong section please move. This article is very disturbing but people also need to be aware that it is happening.

 

[Ryguy3684]

Thanks for bringing this up. I would be wary of shipping now, unless the hatchery can ship one of the guaranteed shipping times. I know some hatcheries do not offer express shipping, so check before you order.

 

[Sonya9]

Thanks for bringing this up. I would be wary of shipping now, unless the hatchery can ship one of the guaranteed shipping times. I know some hatcheries do not offer express shipping, so check before you order.

The post offices in question could have prioritized live animals. IMO the managers that decided NOT to prioritize should face animal abuse/cruelty/neglect charges. Course gov workers are typically above the law.

 

[Chickenchiquita]

thanks for bringing this to everyone's attention. This is such a tragic, atrocious side effect of the current sabotage that the USPS is undergoing right now. If there's any actions that we consumers can undertake on our end, even if it's small, like delaying chick orders from hatcheries until the USPS gets more stabilized, I think it will be worth it. I am going to post this article everywhere just to get the word out

 

[3KillerBs]

I get all the hatchery email newsletters. Myers sent out a notice about this -- it seems to have been sensationalized by scaremongers.

We too have read the tragic story about chicks dying in the mail. While loss does happen on occasion, it's certainly not the norm and we are not experiencing anything like we're reading about with the Maine farmers. We believe what happened in Maine was an isolated incident that had a very unfortunate result. Meyer Hatchery has been shipping chicks for more than 35 years and chicks have been shipping in the mail for much longer than that. Most chicks reach their destination in 1-2 days alive and well. We are certainly monitoring the situation with the post office as our business absolutely relies on our chicks getting to their destination timely and healthy. You can read more via our press release here.

 

[Ryguy3684]

P,

I get all the hatchery email newsletters. Myers sent out a notice about this -- it seems to have been sensationalized by scaremongers.

Thanks. I'm glad to read that. It's hard deciphering what's really going on unless the hatcheries make their statement. The media is very good at scaring people by taking a one time incident and acting like it's the norm. That being said, it does suck that there are these shipping delays at all, when live animals are shipped.

 

[MarkJr]

I just received hatching eggs from PA to OR in five days. Sent standard cheap mail, not priority.
I think it’s the media blowing stuff out of proportion myself.

 

[3KillerBs]

The media is very good at scaring people by taking a one time incident and acting like it's the norm.

I think it’s the media blowing stuff out of proportion myself.

Yes. The media make money off scaremongering so we should always be cautious in passing on anything that might have been sensationalized.

 

[Acre4Me]

FEAR mongering. Seems like the one skill the media is currently solely capable of. It’s bad that it happened, but it seems to be the exception for shipping chicks.

recently, the 2 storms that were projected to hit the gulf coast within24 hours of each other was an excellent example of fear mongering to show my kid. These were written, online examples, not videos. Example 1 was from a local (gulf coast) meteorologist ...very calm, informative and factual, even addressing some common questions. Example 2 was weather.com....huge bold red wording “Prepare for the worst, hope for the best”. What??? these were two TS systems, not yet hurricanes and predicted to be cat 1 at most (at that time). Anyway, as it has played out the first one is over, some wind and rain, but mild. Next one hits tomorrow, currently cat 2, and current track takes it onshore in a low population area, so minimal property impact. So, the media often acts irresponsibly and only with their own interests in mind-getting people to read/watch them, and live in fear so the cycle repeats.

Since the postal story contains animals harmed, they hit the goldmine of playing to people’s sensitivities, indignation, and fear.

 

[Tonyroo]

Though the story is of animal cruelty, investigate and understand the situation the postal service is going through in 2020. That will give an idea whether to use it or not.