What do you think of Tractor Supply’s new chick bins?

[tigger19687]

I didn't see any around here but I did hear that they went like hot cakes last year.

 

[Pullet Press]

I was just at TSC, and their Chick Days started about one hour before I got there. They have new bins!

No more stock tanks with filthy waters sitting in the shavings.

I wish I would have thought to take a picture. They are multi level brooders with plastic coated wire on the floor and slide out trays beneath. They have a heat plate suspended in the middle for the chicks to warm up under. I didn’t see the food, but the water was in a trough outside the brooder where the chicks reach their heads out to get a drink. The ducklings were drinking a lot, and without making a huge mess!

The one drawback I noticed was that the heat plates must not have been warm enough. All the chicks were huddled together underneath them crying. Just like they do if you have a heat lamp that’s not warm enough. The guy did say that they were only put in there within the last hour, so maybe they hadn’t had time to acclimate yet. But to me it says that the brooder isn’t warm enough.

The guy also said he was waiting to decide whether he likes the new system until he sees whether it stinks more than the troughs they used before. He suspects the poop in the slide out trays will stink really quickly between cleanings.

In my opinion, I won’t be buying any chicks from these bins if they continue to look like these ones did this morning. Chicks are stressed enough as it is from the shipping. If they remain stressed in the store, then I don’t think they will do very well in their new homes. To be fair, I did get there within the first hour of them having a new system. Next time I go buy feed, I’ll see if they have got it working better.

Oh! And I was really impressed that the signs said “Easter Egger” instead of “Americana” !! They finally figured that one out! Way to go Tractor Supply!

I noticed those new brooders! Pretty slick if I don't say so myself.
Also, way to go TSC! I'm glad that they actually wrote EE instead of Americana!

 

[lilmillefleur]

Watching this!
I've seen the new brooders at our local TSC just a week before the first shipment, but only my sister has seen it with the chicks in.
As others have said, she noticed the bantams looked cold but the others were fine.

 

[pony007]

I went to my tractor supply today, though not for chicks lol.. I saw the new stacked brooders and the chickies inside didn't look overly thrilled to be alive. They were all silently huddled in the very center with their eyes closed. They looked very cold! The only chicks that seemed to have any life in them were the mixed bantams, but i think they had just arrived that morning or the night before. I felt really bad for the little buff Orpington babies, as they looked in the worst shape, so i had to rescue a couple. When I first got them home they were a little rocky, but they seemed to be doing fine now. I really hope they survive.
Anyways, I'm not sure if the new bins are actually better than the old setup.. They look nice, but the chicks just don't seem as perky and lively.

 

[333113]

I just left my tractor supply they have the big clear brooders and general consensus of the employees are they absolutely hate it. The warmers are to high no way to lower them. They said they came in this morning half the chick's had died during the night. I saw some bantams that were so packed in together trying to stay warm the middle one will probably suffocate. They also said getting them clean is a pain. They called corporate to get them removed and go back to the simple metal bins.

My Tractor Supply employees said the same to me today, that they can't change the warmer height. There were a handful of guineas shivering under a high warmth plate,

but the plate for the bantams was tilted, and they all looked comfortable.

I pointed out the wing nuts that allow them to raise and lower and tilt the warming plate. They told me they weren't allowed to touch any of it.

Plus, there was just enough feed in the feeders for the chicks to see it, not to reach it. When the employee stepped away I pushed some of the feed closer and the chicks ate fast, they were very hungry.

Tractor Supply store #2067 in High Ridge, Missouri, for the record.

 

[JCaseyHammond]

I was just at TSC, and their Chick Days started about one hour before I got there. They have new bins!

No more stock tanks with filthy waters sitting in the shavings.

I wish I would have thought to take a picture. They are multi level brooders with plastic coated wire on the floor and slide out trays beneath. They have a heat plate suspended in the middle for the chicks to warm up under. I didn’t see the food, but the water was in a trough outside the brooder where the chicks reach their heads out to get a drink. The ducklings were drinking a lot, and without making a huge mess!

The one drawback I noticed was that the heat plates must not have been warm enough. All the chicks were huddled together underneath them crying. Just like they do if you have a heat lamp that’s not warm enough. The guy did say that they were only put in there within the last hour, so maybe they hadn’t had time to acclimate yet. But to me it says that the brooder isn’t warm enough.

The guy also said he was waiting to decide whether he likes the new system until he sees whether it stinks more than the troughs they used before. He suspects the poop in the slide out trays will stink really quickly between cleanings.

In my opinion, I won’t be buying any chicks from these bins if they continue to look like these ones did this morning. Chicks are stressed enough as it is from the shipping. If they remain stressed in the store, then I don’t think they will do very well in their new homes. To be fair, I did get there within the first hour of them having a new system. Next time I go buy feed, I’ll see if they have got it working better.

Oh! And I was really impressed that the signs said “Easter Egger” instead of “Americana” !! They finally figured that one out! Way to go Tractor Supply!

Yep, I too was at TSC today. Apparently chicks just arrived and were in the new style brooders, huddled screaming under the heat plate. You know, the kind of piercing cries that hungry kittens make. Told the manager there was too much ventilation and should block half the vents with cardboard cut from a box and taped to the sides. None of my chicks under broody hens scream like that unless they get separated from their mothers. To be fair, manager said they were taking the temperature through the day and could not turn it up any higher. I think one of the brooders in particular needs to be recalibrated. Walked out with just my feed.

 

[cmobley]

I went yesterday they had a pile of babies in there. I asked how the death rate was going with usps shipping they said its getting better but they still lost several of these. There was some ducklings they were moving around and I noticed several had their eyes closed and just stood in one spot after they were moved. I dunno if it was just exhaustion or stress or what.

 

[Finnie]

Well it is unfortunate that TSC rolled out their new system the same year that USPS is having shipping delays. It’s a double whammy for the poor chicks. It’s really sad how many chick losses there are this year.

Kudos to those TSC managers who care enough about the chicks to put them in the old stock tanks when needed!

@ConnieA great idea to post your specific store!

 

[tigger19687]

I too pushed the food closer to them when no one was looking
I think if they turned the plate to HI and not the Brooder selection they might be ok.
Wish they would just listen or Maybe TSC Corp would send out a bulletin for them ALL TO READ about how to take care of them !

 

[Finnie]

First time I’ve been back. They did have the bantam heat plate lowered. So I imagine that if they feel that the standard chicks need more warmth, they will lower those a little bit too. Notice the smart bantam chick resting on top of the plate!

Some things I noticed. The food can spill on the floor. I bet the employees love that. The plastic gets all gunked up, and is hard to see through. But I noticed that more in the duck one, and we all know how much mess ducks love to make. Never fair to judge a duck brooder!

Apart from the fact that today they don’t have any breeds that tempt me, I still wouldn’t be buying any yet. Some look happy, some look stressed, several with bad pasty butt. If they do get in a breed I can’t resist, I will be very picky about which (if any) particular chicks I buy. But I just stocked up on 8 bags of feed, so it will be a while before I come back.

Sorry about the sideways photos. I wish we had an option to rotate them. I’ve found that my phone does this randomly on multiple websites, so I don’t know if it’s my phone or not. Of course, when I try editing my photos on my phone so they are sideways and will be upright if they get flipped, then they DON’T get flipped.