WARNING: Hoovers hatchery

[Bella the Chicken Lover]

Hello, I know this has been said a million times before, but I just want to tell my story of this because I have never worked with a hatchery so frustrating

They first delayed my order twice, which was a big problem for me because I was hatching chicks out to raise with the hatchery chicks, they never notified me my hatch date was moved, not until the day they were supposed to ship them, and no email about any of this, only when I randomly checked the website did I realize

Then when they finally do ship the chicks out, they shipped them without a heater pack, it’s the winter and I don’t know what they were expecting, 9/15 chicks arrived dead and the rest dying, maybe 1-2 chicks were acting normally?

The customer service was really long and I tried calling so many times, the only way I could ever get ahold of them is by email, and they took forever to respond

Really upsetting scene when I had to open that box, I just want to warn others because I’ve never had any of the other hatcheries I’ve bought from be so careless about what they are doing

Another update, 10/15 died, 3 super weak, 2 semi normal, I’d highly warn against Hoovers hatchery, no response from them either

 

[The Moonshiner]

I'm shopping for chicks for this spring. I think the big hatcheries are my best option. Last time, I picked my chicks up from the only hatchery I could find that allowed it (there were still covid restrictions). That is my first choice again but I'm looking at shipped options too.

This morning, I noticed Hoovers website says they ship with a heat pack under the grass mat.

So it looks like a glitch problem rather than a policy problem.

They ship literally millions of chicks. There will be glitches.

There is no excuse for not honoring their guarantee. Hopefully, it is still coming.

I read the dozen one star reviews from over the past year. And found a third party site with one star, two star, three star, four star, and five star reviews in about the ratio typical of any big company.

Edit to add link to the info I put here via a screen shot.

https://newsfromthecoop.hoovershatchery.com/raising-winter-chicks-part-2-the-concerns/

They seem to glitch a lot up there at Hoover's. Just saying.

 

[BlessedChaosHomestead]

A lot of really good discussions going on here, and I definitely should have done a bit more research into the hatchery beforehand and considered the weather, I think shipping chicks when done correctly and at the right time can be relatively safe, but some of these hatcheries are just trying to make a quick buck and it’s sad they don’t care about the lives of the birds they sell

Even if I were to order chicks again through the mail at a correct time I’m never going to order through a hatchery that doesn’t care about the live animals they sell, and I think it varies wildly between hatcheries

Honestly, I’m not sure it does vary wildly.
I just had a massive bad experience w McMurray. (Posted about it tonight here too.)
What it’s looking like is all the hatcheries use each other for various breeds.
In my area, it seems Hoover’s is favored hatchery as both Rural Kings & my local feed stores use them.
But from what I’m seeing McMurray sources ducks from Metzer Farms. (Hoover might also.)
Hoover & McMurray source turkeys from Privetts in New Mexico.
And there is a wholesale hatchery (maybe?) in St. Paul MN, that both Hoover’s and McMurray use for chicks.

Hoover’s changed one of my local feed stores delivery date from Wed to Fri this week without telling them. (Last year they had a mess w them changing dates, iirc.)

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Honestly, I’m not sure it does vary wildly.
I just had a massive bad experience w McMurray. (Posted about it tonight here too.)
What it’s looking like is all the hatcheries use each other for various breeds.
In my area, it seems Hoover’s is favored hatchery as both Rural Kings & my local feed stores use them.
But from what I’m seeing McMurray sources ducks from Metzer Farms. (Hoover might also.)
Hoover & McMurray source turkeys from Privetts in New Mexico.
And there is a wholesale hatchery (maybe?) in St. Paul MN, that both Hoover’s and McMurray use for chicks.

Hoover’s changed one of my local feed stores delivery date from Wed to Fri this week without telling them. (Last year they had a mess w them changing dates, iirc.)

It's pretty normal for hatcheries to outsource some flocks and breeds. To think every hatchery has the hundred or more breeds in numbers capable of meeting customer demands is pretty idealistic

 

[BlessedChaosHomestead]

It's pretty normal for hatcheries to outsource some flocks and breeds. To think every hatchery has the hundred or more breeds in numbers capable of meeting customer demands is pretty idealistic

For those who have been dealing with chickens for years; yes that may just be accepted. But I’ve only been doing this a few years & am constantly learning. So finding that out is a let down.

 

[Ladybluearm]

Ok, I wasn’t going to comment but I have to now, some of you are saying it’s not the hatcheries fault, why isn’t it their fault. They are the ones selling and shipping! They should be the ones responsible for the chicks! This is why I don’t order chicks thru the mail.

 

[NatJ]

Ok, I wasn’t going to comment but I have to now, some of you are saying it’s not the hatcheries fault, why isn’t it their fault. They are the ones selling and shipping! They should be the ones responsible for the chicks! This is why I don’t order chicks thru the mail.

If you order a book, and the seller packs it properly and sends it through the Post Office, do you blame the seller when the Post Office loses the package, or drops it in a puddle and it gets sopping wet and ruins the book? Most people would blame the Post Office in that case. The Post Office does deliver most packages safely, so it was reasonable to trust them with this package-- but they do mess up sometimes.

So if the hatchery packs the chicks properly and mails them as usual, I see no reason to blame the hatchery for Post Office problems. MOST shipped chicks do arrive safely, which is a large part of why the hatcheries keep using the Post Office. (Plus the fact that UPS and FedEx will not take chicks.)

Anyone who is not willing to trust the Post Office to deliver chicks can make the same choice you mention for yourself: do not order chicks through the mail. (For that matter, if you have anything else that really must arrive safely-- like a family heirloom that cannot be replaced-- I would not trust it to the Post Office either. Nor to UPS, FedEx, or as checked baggage on an airplane.)

 

[Chicken_tiger_catt]

Hello, I know this has been said a million times before, but I just want to tell my story of this because I have never worked with a hatchery so frustrating

They first delayed my order twice, which was a big problem for me because I was hatching chicks out to raise with the hatchery chicks, they never notified me my hatch date was moved, not until the day they were supposed to ship them, and no email about any of this, only when I randomly checked the website did I realize

Then when they finally do ship the chicks out, they shipped them without a heater pack, it’s the winter and I don’t know what they were expecting, 9/15 chicks arrived dead and the rest dying, maybe 1-2 chicks were acting normally?

The customer service was really long and I tried calling so many times, the only way I could ever get ahold of them is by email, and they took forever to respond

Really upsetting scene when I had to open that box, I just want to warn others because I’ve never had any of the other hatcheries I’ve bought from be so careless about what they are doing

isn't hoovers the hatchery that supplies Rural King? this is why I hatch my own birds

 

[Cheems]

If you order a book, and the seller packs it properly and sends it through the Post Office, do you blame the seller when the Post Office loses the package, or drops it in a puddle and it gets sopping wet and ruins the book? Most people would blame the Post Office in that case. The Post Office does deliver most packages safely, so it was reasonable to trust them with this package-- but they do mess up sometimes.

So if the hatchery packs the chicks properly and mails them as usual, I see no reason to blame the hatchery for Post Office problems. MOST shipped chicks do arrive safely, which is a large part of why the hatcheries keep using the Post Office. (Plus the fact that UPS and FedEx will not take chicks.)

Anyone who is not willing to trust the Post Office to deliver chicks can make the same choice you mention for yourself: do not order chicks through the mail. (For that matter, if you have anything else that really must arrive safely-- like a family heirloom that cannot be replaced-- I would not trust it to the Post Office either. Nor to UPS, FedEx, or as checked baggage on an airplane.)

I agree in a lot of scenarios however in this one I do believe Hoovers improperly packaged them as they had no heating and I’ve seen some birds sent with a grow gel type of thing and this was not included here.

I decided to just buy some silkie eggs and hatch them myself and it has gone a lot more smoothly.

 

[NatJ]

I agree in a lot of scenarios however in this one I do believe Hoovers improperly packaged them as they had no heating and I’ve seen some birds sent with a grow gel type of thing and this was not included here.

You are welcome to your opinion about whether your chicks were packed properly or not: but you are complaining about chicks that were packed the same way that usually DOES have them arrive alive, all over the USA, for decades.

Packing a certain number of chicks in the box is a reliable way to keep them warm.
Grow gel is a relatively new thing. Chicks were arriving alive and well for decades before anyone thought of it.

I decided to just buy some silkie eggs and hatch them myself and it has gone a lot more smoothly.

I'm glad you found a solution that works for you