I had the same experience the first time I ordered from Ideal. I know they are a Texas based hatchery, which is why I chose them. I figured, being in the same state would cut down on the amount of travel time the chicks spent in their box. When I picked them up...all DOA or dying. (This was early June.) 1 out of my order made it. It was really sad. I called the hatchery and they made every effort to fix the problem. I had a hard time deciding if I should do it again. I decided to give it another shot and let them send me a replacement order. Luckily, every chick made it!
The only thing we could come up with was that, during shipping, the box was not level. This caused all the babies to slide to one end and pile up. I'm not sure how common this is, but it only takes one careless driver/loader, etc. and the whole box is at risk.
I poured through online chick ads and found a farm a couple of hours away who had chicks hatched the same day as our little miracle baby. It was royal pain in the butt, but worth it in the end to get some nursery mates. I thought about keeping everyone separated (normal if bringing in new chickens) but figured she was spending so much energy crying, she'd die from that if I didn't do something. Luckily no diseases were spread, and she made a special friend right off the bat. They are still very close and snuggle next to each other each night!
Good luck, and I'm so sorry...
