survival rate of shipments...

[DCALHart]

Hi There,
They are finally here! I placed an order for 15 Light Brahma chicks from Lancaster Fancy Fowl. Unfortunately, I only have 8 live chicks. I know it's their policy to replace the loss so, I'm still working on that. I'm just wondering if this is somewhat typical as far a loss goes or is it above average loss? Until now, I've only ever gotten chicks from our Agway. The last time I ordered from them, when I went to pick up my chicks, they were short on Buff Orpingtons due to death so they replaced it with my silver laced wyandotte.

Anyway, just wondering what your shipment losses have been like.
Thanks.
Carrie

 

[jtn42248]

I order from Murray and Ideal and have never had a dead bird in shipment. I have had a couple that did not make it past the first 48 hours. I do have a policy though to not order birds during the winter months. The weather is just to unpredictable and, especially this year, I read too many post about lost birds due to delays and the weather. So, if you avoid ordering in extreme cold or hot weather you have a better chance of survival. That and the fact that the postal service is making so many changes that what used to be a simple shipment taking less than two day now takes almost a week to get here.

 

[Thebluegrassbel]

Following. I'm a newbie to urban chicken and have been searching desperately for silkies but have had no luck. Came across some sites that will ship live birds but many are not sexed (ordinances by the city are keeping me from getting a rooster) and I'm not sure how safe it is to ship a bird via USPS.

 

[DCALHart]

I'm not sure exactly what happened with the shipment. I did not receive notification of the shipment from LFF until 5:00 the day they were shipped, Thursday. I'm not sure if they do all their shipments and then notifications at the end of the day. Then, I was not able to track the package at all through the USPS website with the tracking number that I was given. I double checked the number with LFF and it seemed to be correct. At this point in time, my feeling is that the Post Office dropped the ball somehow. They seemed to be packed with adequate food and heating pads.

 

[DCALHart]

I am in NH and I specifically chose LFF because, being from PA, they seemed to be the closest hatchery to me with the breed of bird I wanted. I was trying to avoid a longer than 24 hour ship time. Didn't work out for me this time.

 

[jtn42248]

Following. I'm a newbie to urban chicken and have been searching desperately for silkies but have had no luck. Came across some sites that will ship live birds but many are not sexed (ordinances by the city are keeping me from getting a rooster) and I'm not sure how safe it is to ship a bird via USPS.

The only hatchery that I know of selling sexed Silkies is My Pet Chicken. I do not know what their accuracy rate is and you might end up with a mis-sexed rooster. That is a risk you always will take. As for shipment by USPS. That is sadly the only option. They are the only ones that can legally ship life poultry. Places like FedEx, UPS, etc. will not even take them in their SmartPost option where they move the package from the shipper to the nearest post office and then release it to the USPS for delivery. So, if possible, try to order from a hatchery near you or to find a local breeder that has what you want for sale.

 

[Thebluegrassbel]

The only hatchery that I know of selling sexed Silkies is My Pet Chicken. I do not know what their accuracy rate is and you might end up with a mis-sexed rooster. That is a risk you always will take. As for shipment by USPS. That is sadly the only option. They are the only ones that can legally ship life poultry. Places like FedEx, UPS, etc. will not even take them in their SmartPost option where they move the package from the shipper to the nearest post office and then release it to the USPS for delivery. So, if possible, try to order from a hatchery near you or to find a local breeder that has what you want for sale.

So shipping birds is not advisable? That may be a silly question but I really don't know. I certainly do not want to cause undue stress or harm to a chicken just because I want one SO. BADLY.

 

[Thebluegrassbel]

Why oh why must Silkie hens be so elusive?!


Edited for emotion.

 

[jtn42248]

So shipping birds is not advisable? That may be a silly question but I really don't know. I certainly do not want to cause undue stress or harm to a chicken just because I want one SO. BADLY.

It is not that shipping is not advisable and people order their birds at the peak of the shipping season which is typically mid to late winter and successfully get their shipments. We hear mainly about failed or bad shipments and not about the thousands of shipments that arrive just fine. I am only suggesting that you carefully consider all the possibilties when ordering your birds. If you are in an area where it is still really cold you might want to wait a bit to assure they have a little warmer weather just in case there are delays in the shipment.

 

[Thebluegrassbel]

It is not that shipping is not advisable and people order their birds at the peak of the shipping season which is typically mid to late winter and successfully get their shipments. We hear mainly about failed or bad shipments and not about the thousands of shipments that arrive just fine. I am only suggesting that you carefully consider all the possibilties when ordering your birds. If you are in an area where it is still really cold you might want to wait a bit to assure they have a little warmer weather just in case there are delays in the shipment.

I see. I appreciate the advice! Sorry for hijacking the tread...