Recieved my long awaited order of 10 ducklings from Metzer Farms yesterday. They were shipped through the holiday and as a result were in transit for 4 days! Needless to say - only 5 survived. 50% survival rate... Not so great. It was pretty devastating. They will replace them for me I'm sure, but I'm so nervous to ship ducklings again! Who else has shipped from Metzer? Is a 50% loss super rare? Has anyone experienced this? Should I trust another shipment? On the bright side... Here are some happy pics of the 5 that made it.
I think Metzer has good survival rates depending upon the time of year you order. Many people have had great experiences with the hatchery, and I believe it's definitely among the better hatcheries. But it's getting cold. And it's starting to get into the holiday season, and there is a lot of postal traffic. I tried to send a package last week that took two weeks to deliver rather than the three days I was promised. Delays will be a major issue in shipping chicks at this time of year.
I have ordered from Metzer before. Last February, I received my order of six ducklings and one was dead. I live in Ohio and it was very cold, and too early to order ducklings but I was excited and I wanted them as soon as possible. The people at Metzer are very good about refunding, and they agreed to replace the duckling right away. I ordered two more ducklings to travel with the replacement duckling, so they could keep warm better. This entire shipment, along with hundreds of other shipments of chicks and ducklings, was delayed about a week after being sent due to a bad winter storm. Thousands of birds died in transit from the delay. Metzer, again being very good about refunds, replaced the birds, and I finally received my last three ducklings in late April.
My lesson learned is to never order during cold weather, even if the hatcheries offer to ship chicks in the cold weather months. It's not worth the risk and just better for the birds to wait until warm weather. Also, always always pay a little extra for the Gro-Gel for them, and heating packs if the weather is chilly. This definitely increased their chance of survival. I would see if they will hold your replacement order until next spring, unless it is warm weather where you are now. In that case I would see if they can hold your order until the holiday traffic slows down. And check the calendar to ensure the shipment doesn't fall over a holiday with no postage. Upcoming holiday with no postage to look out for include:
-Christmas Day: Friday December 25 2015
-New Years Day: Friday, January 1 2016
-MLK Day: Monday January 18 2016
Metzer does everything they can on their end to ensure the survival of your chicks, and if everything goes according to plan and the chicks ship Monday and arrive Tuesday or Wednesday, their survival rate is very good. But sometimes unforeseen events just happen. It's always a risk. Good luck with your ducklings!
