Questions about Guineas. Coop is finished! Keets were moved out today.

[StevenW.]

They said they would only replace the 3 Lavendar Keets. Not a total loss for me anyway.

 

[appychick]

My dream is to have poultry transported in something better than a flimsey cardboard box with a lot of holes in it from the hatchery to the new home. Imagine how stressed out the youngsters must be travelling hundreds of miles at different altitudes,other possibly contaminated birds,varying temps,sounds,chemical exposures,concussion,forest fire smoke,etc. Totally amazing a single one survives the trek across the US and actually lives to adulthood healthy! And it always seems the hatchery no longer is responsible once poultry leaves their facility ! I think I may have gotten only 1 or 2 boxes of normal hatchery poultry in the past couple years since I started ordering. And I don't think I have ever encoutered the same problem twice yet the hatchery personel has never had such a thing happen before.......My first shipment nightmare,the box was damaged(smashed & gobs of tape covering the airholes & tears) & arrived open with only half the correct number of bantam birds in attendance and all mixed together instead of in compartments, but cuz the box was open(no strapping bands) the next to last PO cleaned their floor of various lg breed chicks running around from who knows where or what they had stepped in- and threw them all in with my tiny bantams thinking they had done me such a favor !!!!!! Of course the hatchery only replaced missing number and wouldn't take in account the remainders were seriously damaged !

 

[StevenW.]

Quote:
The PO needs help badly. They need people that are actually smart and know what they are doing.
I'm just so saddened right now. I found another pearl and Lavendar dead. One got stuck between the feeder and the wall. And the other looks like it just died.

 

[appychick]

Yes I am so sorry ! It is just awful to watch the birds linger on & not know from day to day if any will survive......In my experiences,seems like once they have been stressed,always weaker individuals....
But once they leave the hatchery & arrive at destination,they claim no responsibility ! So far I have only lost 2 out of 15 of these asst. keets at 7 days out from hatch date so thinking I am quite lucky as they arrived looking like little shriveled up cold prunes . My blues & lavs look much better than the pearls at this point. I call the post office day before my birds are possibly arriving & they post a notice on their bulletin board that I need to be called immediately upon arrival even if it is 2 AM ! Then I drive over an hour to get them. But I have saved lots by always putting a couple of those "hand warmer" dry chemical packets that produce heat upon being exposed to air (& last for 8-12 hrs.) into the shipping boxes until I get home to warm brooder. Seems like my chicks are never packed for warmth & arrive almost always chilled down. If I can get them slightly warmed up on trip home,then they are ready for some sugar water ,etc & have more " want to survive" attitude. Otherwise a cold baby just has given up & dies. I also use these "warmer packets" if I have a weak bird that needs to be isolated & don't have to set up a heat lamp & brooder for sometimes just a single chick.

 

[PeepsCA]

Dang, 2 more dead keets...sigh, another of your Lavenders to. I'm sorry again Ducky. You'll have to keet-proof your brooder, keets are pretty brainless when it comes to getting caught behind or tangled up in things. Hopefully the next batch arrives on time and in good shape.

How is the Pearl Grey with the bubble eye doing?

 

[StevenW.]

Quote:
The turkeys I raised for someone were smarter than these Keets! And those Poults were pretty dumb!

Bubble Eye Keet we might have to cull because its just stumbling around and going in the waterer and getting the bedding and other keets wet.

 

[StevenW.]

R.I.P. Bubble Eye Keet crossed over the RainBow Bridge last night. He/She died in its usual spot.

I'm afraid to even count how many are left..

 

[StevenW.]

Ideal shipped out the replacement keets today. Time for more worrying!

 

[PeepsCA]

Quote:
How many did they send? 8 Pieds and 3 Lavenders? Did you get some tracking info on them this time? Is your post office supposed to call you when they arrive?

Sorry about Bubble Eye

Hope that's the LAST one you lose.

This is just some friendly advice, but... If I were you I would not put the new keets in that same brooder with your first batch. I'd set up a new brooder, completely clean/sterilefor them, even if it is just a cardboard box with a brooder lamp at one end and a net or chicken wire zip tied over the top. You can use some shallow dishes for feed and water (be sure to put marbles or stones in the water dish). Wal-Mart sells brooder lamps at a decent price, under $10 here anyway. It would also be a good idea to wash your hands before and after handling the new keets and old keets and your ducks, just as a precaution. I would keep them all separate until everyone's eating, drinking, running around well and all look visibly healthy.

Crossin' my fingers for ya this time

 

[StevenW.]

Quote:
How many did they send? 8 Pieds and 3 Lavenders? Did you get some tracking info on them this time? Is your post office supposed to call you when they arrive?

Sorry about Bubble Eye

Hope that's the LAST one you lose.

This is just some friendly advice, but... If I were you I would not put the new keets in that same brooder with your first batch. I'd set up a new brooder, completely clean/sterilefor them, even if it is just a cardboard box with a brooder lamp at one end and a net or chicken wire zip tied over the top. You can use some shallow dishes for feed and water (be sure to put marbles or stones in the water dish). Wal-Mart sells brooder lamps at a decent price, under $10 here anyway. It would also be a good idea to wash your hands before and after handling the new keets and old keets and your ducks, just as a precaution. I would keep them all separate until everyone's eating, drinking, running around well and all look visibly healthy.

Crossin' my fingers for ya this time

Yep. The Pieds and the 3 replacement Lavendars.
I saw on the box it had some kind of tracking thing but I asked Ideal if I could have the number and they said "No."

Oh Peeps Peeps Peeps... Germ-X and DisInfecting Spray is my best friend!