Sitting with a cup of coffee. (coffee lovers)

[chickisoup]

Make sure MPC knows what you ordered, and where it came from.
They do not need the bad press and need to either talk to their suppliers or discontinue using them.

for the babies.

they are beginning to work closely with individual breeders for special breeds like Swedish Flower but from what I understand 90% of their birds are shipped from one or two big suppliers.
I just notified them. Tho I don't get back the shipping (which was the biggest expense) I am supposed to get refunded for the lost birds. To be continued.

 

[Alaskan]

Arg... What a nightmare.


I went through that last week...remember? Out of 25 shipped bantams, I have 5 nice and healthy ones. And yes, they refunded my money on the dead chicks, but it felt like nothing, after the heartbreak, and loosing the ones that were alive on arrival but so far gone that I couldn't save them... And then the three that we had to keep handfeeding for four days before they finally decided to make it or die (1 died, 2 look great).

Just

So giant for this continuing nightmare.

 

[ClearSkye]

Oh big hugs to you both for the trauma to both you and the chicks you ordered. Makes my tummy hurt with mommy empathy darn it.

 

[2crazyflockers]

Oh

Picked up a very silent box from the post office. Didn't bother opening until I got home because one look at the packaging alone told me they didn't stand much of a chance. I have to be honest. This was not all the the fault of the post office. i have gotten a few chick shipments in the spring over the years and I am far from a rookie at this. I have NEVER gotten a shipment this poorly packaged. For starters it was a single box (all my prior spring ships have always been double boxed), only one strap holding it together, and there were no less than 26 holes JUST IN THE TOP with the only blocked were those covered with the post office label. There was NOTHING to contain any heat from escaping the top and of course all 4 sides were wide open as well. The box was so well ventilated it looked like it had been used for large shell skeet practice! They were packed in a manner I would guess as if they were going to Florida not northern WI.

Inside the box there was NOTHING but very stiff and very cold beautiful little chicks. No grow gel, no starter, and NO heatpak even tho I had left a note in the message section of my order reminding them where these babies were going and how we could still be cold. I even received a very nice email assuring me there would be a heatpak, etc. It even had a heatpak listed on the invoice inside the lid of the shipping box. I looked all thru the box and packing straw, No heat pak. Did I not pay enough in shipping and handling? Trust me, I did and then some. (I have never before received a shipment from a hatchery etc. that did not contain a bit of grow gel and a sprinkling of starter added for the "just in case" such as this post office debaucle.)

Yes, the post office shares a huge part of the blame, but in this case so does MPC. Did I forget to mention? I could actually smell the box before I opened it,so I wasn't expecting anything good but as I stood there staring down at those stiff, still little bodies mostly in a small pile, I saw a tiny foot ever so slightly flex it's toes. I quickly scooped that one up, stuffed it into my shirt for warmth (us girls come equipped with a built in chick warming "pocket") and carefully sorted thru the pile for more signs of life. One poor SLW had clearly been dead for some time (the smell) but I held the rest, one at a time, clam shelled in my hands as I blew my warm breath over their ice cold little frames, watching and feeling for signs of life. I felt one more give the slightest twitch and another a sudden gasp for air. I rushed these three into the brooder where I had plugged in the Brinsea EcoGlo before I left for the post office. I flipped it over and laid them directly on the warming plate. I gave one final check of the remaining chicks, one more maybe?, and returned to the possible survivors. long story short, after over 2 hours of intensive care, a lot of Nutridrench and a prayer, two of the three stand a pretty good chance of survival. (The maybe didn't make it). The third, a little GLW, is looking like she may just be too weak to fight her way back (but I won't give up until she does).


I still believe the customer support folks of MPC in Connecticut are great and do the best they can BUT there appears to be a total disconnect between them and what actually happens in Ohio unlike others (such as Cackle Hatchery) who have direct contact and control with their breeders and are more actual hands on with quality control when it comes to shipping. In my defense, I did not know MPC was more of an online marketer than an actual product supplier until after I had placed my order and then read the postings on their review thread on here. They just happened to be the one I found that would ship small batch of the breeds I was looking for. I'm afraid my chicks paid the price for my ignorance of the difference.

Now I have to go and make sure my little survivors are still that.

oh no!

I am soo sorry! I sat here with fingers crossed until I read the first few lines, then w tears in my eyes and a sinking feeling in my stomach I read on. This is just terrible! I would be tearing into them about packaging alone! They are a company obviously this is not their first shipment and with the extra notes you left for them those little ones should've have been package to survive a world war!!! Uuuugh! I hurt and am furious for you! Wishing the little survivors lots of luck and love. Sending you hugs!!

 

[sourland]

Chicki, sorry for the anxiety that you had to deal with and sorry for the poor chicks. Sad update, but pretty much what I expected.

 

[chickisoup]

Arg... What a nightmare.


I went through that last week...remember? Out of 25 shipped bantams, I have 5 nice and healthy ones. And yes, they refunded my money on the dead chicks, but it felt like nothing, after the heartbreak, and loosing the ones that were alive on arrival but so far gone that I couldn't save them... And then the three that we had to keep handfeeding for four days before they finally decided to make it or die (1 died, 2 look great).

Just

So giant

for this continuing nightmare.

It gets so frustrating. I totally agree with you on the refund, whoopee. That doesn't cover the cost of the heartbreak, then there's the shipping. The refund doesn't cover what it will cost you to replace the lost ones once you pay out for the shipping all over again. (and the potential heartbreak all over again) I so wish that UPS or FedEx would accept live shipments. At least here they are so more reliable with their delivery times, often ahead of schedule, and I have never had a UPS package show up with a big shoe print (or several) on it. I know they would do a better job. I have my own ideas, but does anyone know why they won't?

5 out of 25? That's worse than my percentage. DH has offered to buy me replacements and drive me to go get them but the problem there is I can't even locate breeders of what I want anywhere within several hours of us and then there's the issue of breeders not usually sexing chicks. I would also love to get involved with raising some high quality unusual Icelandic breeds but then you are talking a good cash investment and trusting them to the post office!!! Oh to be much younger, and rich!!!

 

[Alaskan]

Ah... Don't know about being younger... I was so stupid back then, rich though, that would be awesome.

 

[Alaskan]

Chicki, pick a breed that can be easily sexed at hatch or 1 week of age... Like Dominiques.

 

[3goodeggs]

Ah... Don't know about being younger... I was so stupid back then, rich though, that would be awesome.

No, no, no. We get to take our wisdom with us, but our brains get younger so we can still easily learn stuff.
or, at least that is my fantasy,
Youth, money, looks, and the wisdom not to waste it all on some idiot in a fast car.

Because I will be rich, and have my own fast car!

 

[chickisoup]

Chicki, pick a breed that can be easily sexed at hatch or 1 week of age... Like Dominiques.

Thanks Alaskan!! DUH!! I forgot that not all easily sexed breeds are the industry created egg machines.

Like I just shared with Sour, it looks like all 3 survivors might actually make it. Give them one more day before I make a decision, but if they do, I will probably wait until they're in the grow out pen before attempting to replace the losses.