I ordered 8 "hens" and 17 straight run slow broilers from Welp 8 weeks ago this next Tuesday. They arrived with one extra hen and one extra broiler.( 5 male, 12 female broilers) They are all still living and very healthy. The only issue I had with them as chicks was maybe two with pasty butt for about two days. My one complaint was that when I ordered the hens I wanted 7 different breeds so I had to pay an additional cost for each chick. Also since I wanted my hens and my meaties to add up to the 25 needed per order I had to order slow broilers instead of the cornish x. It seems that the broilers and the hens come from a different plant than the cornish x. If I would have insisted on cornish x I would have had to order 25 of them and 25 hens. Sure didn't need 50 chickens so I settled for the slow broilers. It was probably a blessing in disguise. The slow broilers are very healthy and active even at 8 weeks. No health issues. I am thinking that they won't be butchering weight for another 4 weeks but probably a fair trade for healthy birds. I can't address the laying ability of the females since they are only 8 weeks. Customer service was great. I ordered via phone since I had a mixed order.
