Shipping Eggs?

[MoodyChicken]

Ok, so these may be dumb questions. But I've never ordered anything alive or soon to be alive in the mail before. I'm buying six eggs from a breeder on BYC (yay!) and I want to know...

Is there anything special I have to do for the eggs when they arrive? I've heard somewhere that they should be left alone to sit and chillax after the traveling. True?

Are they shipped like chicks, do I have to tell my post office to listen to the "fragile" labels? I'm assuming they'll be small enough to fit in the package mailbox at the bottom of our street. But if that's the case... what if it's really hot that day and they get cooked?!? It's a metal mailbox... a giant oven!

Any other things I should be aware of?

 

[DawnSuiter]

Is there anything special I have to do for the eggs when they arrive? I've heard somewhere that they should be left alone to sit and chillax after the traveling. True?

Yes! 24-48 hours to settle and acclimate to the room temperature

Are they shipped like chicks, do I have to tell my post office to listen to the "fragile" labels? I'm assuming they'll be small enough to fit in the package mailbox at the bottom of our street. But if that's the case... what if it's really hot that day and they get cooked?!? It's a metal mailbox... a giant oven!

I would recommend if your post office WILL cooperate to have them call you when your box arrives and pick it up yourself. Less travel in the car/truck of your post carrier the better. But if they DO deliver them they probably won't fit in your mailbox... at least I've never seen one that small. SO whatever your post people do with your packages is the same treatment you can expect for your incoming eggs unless you talk to them and make other arrangements.

You should work with the BYC member to make sure everything goes as well as it can, and often times the P.O. will call you when your box arrives if your number is on the package or if you've already made arrangements.

I've shipped eggs to people at their work too.. next time have them delivered to where you'll be if you can. Congrats and good luck!!!​

 

[MoodyChicken]

Thank you BodyFlight!

Next to our mailbox is a giant locked metal box that the PO puts packages inside of. If you get a package, they put the key to the box in your mailbox and then you get the open the giant metal box. lol. So I'm kinda worried that they'll get stuffed in there to bake. Fortunately, I'm good friends with one the people at the PO, so I'm sure I can work something out with them. But if only Star Trek was real and we could beam eggs to each other...

 

[DawnSuiter]

Quote:
If we could only configure our own Heisenberg Compensators we COULD transport our own eggs that way! LOL

 

[klf73]

I always have everyone put *please call for pick-up (207)???-????* because my mailbox is a mile from my house
I let my eggs set about 6-8 hours, not really much longer because I figure hatchability goes down the older they get. You really only do it so the temp comes up to room temperature before they go in the bator to prevent sweating. I haven't had any with blown air cells fix themselves by sitting so I don't see any use to let them sit longer than that.....

 

[fowltemptress]

The eggs I receive are always left in the package mailboxes at the end of our street, but the weather hasn't gotten insanely hot yet so I haven't had to worry about it. I know what you mean, though . . . it is like an oven on hot days! I certainly wouldn't call that a dumb question, and I'm hoping it gets answered so that I can prepare to make arrangements with a neighbor if it is something I need to be concerned about.

 

[DawnSuiter]

Quote:
I thought it was clear, I'm sorry.

It is a BAD idea to PRE-INCUBATE your eggs. They should stay COOL but not cold until you are ready to incubate them. So a big metal box in the sun should be avoided if at all possible.

 

[KattyKillFish]

LOL!

yes, it is a good idea to let them "chillax" at room temp (like on a kitchen counter, or on the table. somewhere safe) for 4-24 hours. i usually wait around 8.


eggs chillin'

as for leaving them in the mailbox, just watch it closely and check it as often as you can. if you won't be home see if you can get a friendly neighbor to check. i would open the box as soon as possible to be sure they are stored pointy-end down. good luck on your hatch!

also, shipped eggs generally have a 40%-50% hatch rate, but i've heard of people getting 90% (PURE luck in my opinion)

XD eggs chillaxing. LOL!

 

[MoodyChicken]

Quote:
LOL That just made my night.

 

[UrbanFarmChix]

Moody - Thank you for asking this. I have eggs arriving and wanted to know how long to let them set/sit for. I was also wondering if during those 8 hours they should be laid on their sides or sitting big end up? Do they need to be lightly tilted too, to prevent the embryo sticking to the sides?

Cheers,
Alisan