Sand Hill Preservation Center

[Red Barn Farms]

Has anyone ordered from them in the past? I'm thinking I might. It seems hard looking on their site to find out exactly what breeds they carry. I ordered a printed catalog though.

 

[snowpetals907]

I don't know but I gave up on trying to contact them. They never respond to e-mails and all I wanted to know is what breeds were still available since it hasn't been updated since April 4. I'd be afraid if I sent in an order they would just never respond....

 

[A.T. Hagan]

I've ordered from them a couple of years ago and was pleased with what I got.

You do have to keep in mind several things though.

They are a small family operation that work to preserve a lot more than simply poultry. This means they don't have a lot of "office time" to read e-mails, take phone calls, and that sort of thing. If you just have to interact with someone there then do it by phone.

Second, their birds are strictly straight-run. They don't sell sexed birds of any type the last I looked.

Third, they are trying to preserve breeds/strains they find to be worth preserving. They are not show bird breeders and do not pretend to be.

I've ordered both chickens and turkeys and have been pleased with what I got. They sell out pretty early in the season so if you want some of their birds you have to get your order in EARLY. In fact I'd seriously think of getting my 2013 order in as soon as possible.

I'm thinking of ordering some of their Wishard strain Bronze turkeys for next year.

 

[ki4got]

i agree, if you need to speak with them, call.

i ordered 25 Dorkings, got 27, tho i lost 1 the first day, but other than random losses (kicked by a horse, drowned in the water bucket, possum, etc) they've been nice and healthy.

as for availability, send your order in ASAP, and if it's not available someone will contact you to let you know, and see if you want to order something else. they won't take orders by email or phone.

if the variety you're looking at says sold out till ___ that's usually fairly up to date. if they are sold out for the rest of they year it will be noted online.

and their mailed catalog is identical to what you see online. it's organized by chicken (LF) bantam and turkey (and whatever else they have?). the names are then alphabetical.

i found the descriptions of the varieties fairly accurate for the ones i received, if that helps.

 

[BlacksheepCardigans]

We've ordered from them three times now, and really like them.

You have to know what they are in order to understand what you'll get - they are a family-owned business, only a few people work there, and they're breed preservationists. They see their mission as setting up good flocks of heritage breeds that can produce, and are NOT inbred, so that people can get an order of chicks from them and found their own flocks.

I've seen a lot of complaints from people who ordered from Sand Hill and got some birds with (for example) wrong color legs, some off-color feathers, not all the Japs were short-legged, etc. And they say "Bad breeder! Doesn't cull and doesn't breed tight enough!" And the answer is YES, they do NOT breed tight. That's kind of the opposite of what they do. They give you as unrelated a group of birds as possible so that YOU can cull hard and breed tight if you want to select for different show-type traits, or you can keep breeding loose if you want to have the best chance of getting healthy happy unrelated production birds.

They're the only hatchery I've ever found that cared about keeping the breeds close to the production standard that the breeds were founded on. We got Jersey Giants from them two years ago and the one boy we kept is STILL growing. He's absolutely massive, tall and deep and wide and heavy, and passes his frame along when crossbred. His EE daughters lay eggs the size of your palm. We were also pleased with the dorkings, who at two are still laying an egg almost every day. We've culled very hard over the last two years, with the goal of health and production rather than show, and the few remaining from the older chickens are all Sand Hill.

This spring we ordered 100 chicks from them, to fill the barn up again after we had culled so hard. We have yet to see the size and eventual feathering of the chicks we received, but we are very pleased with the order we got. Compared to a typical hatchery order, where the only difference between a New Hampshire and a Cochin is the color, the chicks have obvious differences in frame and look like they're supposed to. There are definitely off-color legs and so on, but we have a lot to work with.

So:

For quick orders? HORRIBLE. It's normal to wait two months or more. The way the bigger hatcheries are able to fill your order fast is that they are always setting huge numbers of eggs of all breeds. If there aren't orders for them by the time they hatch, they become dog food or whatever that hatchery does with them. Sand Hill won't do that, so they keep only enough birds to lay enough to set what they know they can sell or they will have assortment orders for. That means you are behind whoever else ordered that breed or that assortment, and when they get to you they get to you.

For show birds? You'll be disappointed if you think they'll all show up perfect. I think if you want the predictability of show birds, you're better off spending your money on a trio or quad of adults and doing the tight linebreeding that show birds require.

For a healthy and unrelated flock you can pick show birds out of in a year or two? Great.

For a production-oriented heritage flock? Fantastic.

Oh, and they always send SCADS of extras. We've ordered 25 and gotten 30+, 50 and gotten 60+.

 

[snowpetals907]

I admire what they're doing but they should really update their website once in a while so people know what is available and not have to make an appointment to talk with them on the phone. I finally got an e-mail response and all it said was "No, its not an updated list. The website hasn't been updated since April 4"
I mean come on people, get on it.

 

[NYREDS]

I admire what they're doing but they should really update their website once in a while so people know what is available and not have to make an appointment to talk with them on the phone. I finally got an e-mail response and all it said was "No, its not an updated list. The website hasn't been updated since April 4"
I mean come on people, get on it.

They're a 2 person operation & at least one of them is also a full time teacher. They're pretty clear about their time constraints viv a vis communication, etc. They're not a large hatchery with a customer service department, they're a small preservation center. If you need a different level of communication they're probably not people you should try to do business with. It will just continue to frustrate you.

 

[snowpetals907]

I get it. But why bother having a website with availability lists if you're never going to update it? Why bother having an email if takes them 2 weeks to say a few unhelpful words? Besides...the 2 people I know who did get a hold of her via phone told me she was very unpleasant and short with them. If they want to better business (and preserve rare birds) they need to change a few things. I myself and a few others I know would gladly have bought quite a few birds from them had it not been for their lack of customer service.

 

[ki4got]

i agree with NYREDS... their birds are good, the service stinks. if you want exceptional customer service go elsewhere. if you want hard to find rare breeds, i doubt you'll find any better short of a private breeder. they both work full time jobs, and then caring for however many hundreds (thousands?) of birds they have, plus the heirloom seed end of the biz. it's a wonder they have a life of their own, IF they do.

i'll continue recommending them to anyone looking for something no other hatchery has.

 

[Narragansett]

I am far from one of those who feels that the customer is always right. In fact, more often than not, I believe that most customers are unreasonable and ignorant. Sandhill lists it's policies very clearly. All you need to do is to read them. You don't have to agree with them, and if not are free to buy from whoever else you choose. Those who complain about off color legs or other traits simply don't read or understand what Sandhill is all about. Sandhill is the antithesis of what most people today stand for. They're not about to hand hold or coddle those that won't read or educate themselves. They expect people to have some personal responsibility, rare as that is today. What I do find inexcusable about Sandhill is their refusal to not notify you if your order will not be shipped. They give you an expected ship date, and you wait, and wait. I don't know about most people, but I live a life. I need to work, and to schedule appointments. When I am expecting a shipment of chicks I arrange my schedule to be sure to be home when they are due. Usually Wednesday for birds shipped on Monday, but I have had them arrive on Tues, Thursday or even Friday. When they don't arrive, according to Sandhill's policies, I have to wait for next week and do it all over again, being sure to be near the phone, or checking the machine frequently for the post office to call. This can go on for months. You are expected to just keep your mouth shut and not even question when they might arrive. For my first and last order, after leaving three messages I finally got a surly return call from Linda, just repeating her policies. They just don't understand or care that their refusal to notify you of orders that are not shipped affects your entire schedule for a week. They are not the only ones who are busy, but their behavior sure makes it seem like only their time is what matters. Quite self centered if you ask me. A simple email on Monday night saying that my order that was supposed to be shipped is not going to be, would free me up for the rest of the week, and make me a fervent supporter due to the rest of the work that they do, but their extreme inconsideration over shadows that in my eyes.