As to be expected, lots of conflicting opinions.
I’ll start with the statement from
@KikisGirls
Hatcheries are safe.
@Chickassan doesn’t agree. She is writing about genetic disorders though and not diseases.
I can’t find the posts, but somewhere on this forum there are posts from people who have purchased chicks and eggs from hatcheries and had problems. So, it seems KikisGirls statement may not be as straightforward as the statement implies., Of course, how one defines ‘safe’ makes a difference.
I’m inclined to believe Chickassan. The reason for this is her use of the word notorious. This would imply some degree of common knowledge.
Also afaik she has no vested interest.
There are posts on this forum (I’m not going to spend hours searching for them because we all know they exist) from people who have received broken eggs and dead and/or severely traumatized chicks from hatcheries. I don’t call that safe, at least not for the chick. It may be true that you can obtain a refund which may be important to the buyer but is way down on the list of my concerns. I’m interested in the welfare of the chicks and the prevention of diseases spreading to existing flocks and the prevention of genetic problems.
@Centrachid makes an interesting point that would probably require many pages of heated discussion; At what stage is the chick alive.
Given the research into the importance of egg turning and environmental control in the early stages of embryo development, I can’t see that however many days of random shaking involved in the delivery of eggs by mail being good for the embryo and given the research possibly having long term consequences for the chicken should it hatch.
@Mosey2003 makes some points regarding the complexities of incubating eggs. Clutch hatching rate seems to be the concern here.
How many back yard chicken keepers are really concerned about this (?)
I don’t know how many eggs the ‘average’ chicken keeper orders but I suspect there will be a marked difference between those who want a few chickens as egg layers or pets to keep in a back yard situation and those who intend to breed and sell. If a hen sits here and doesn’t hatch every egg she sits on it’s not a major concern.
A good quality incubator takes care of most of Mosey2003 points. If a person is not prepared to invest in their chickens then perhaps they shouldn’t keep them, or better still if possible, let the hen do it; they do it for free and given the right circumstances make a better overall job from incubation to integration than humans.
This post from Mosey2003 would suggest that he/she sells chickens and is possibly a breeder. Apparently not manic about bio security.
I think there may be a significant number of people who fall into the enthusiast/breeder category who are also ‘not manic about bio security’.
@WVduckchick has been refreshingly honest, with regard to her selling of chickens. However, she writes she lets people handle the chicks.
The advice given about quarantine conditions is quite clear. Any contact is a risk.
@Kessel23 mentions the difficulties encountered by first time hatchers from incubators. There seems to be a general concern about cost. The notion that keeping chickens is any less costly, or requires any less learning and responsibility is in my view false and in the long term harmful to chicken welfare. Cheap and easily replaceable if things go wrong is not an attitude I believe responsible chicken enthusiasts should be promoting.
Proper care as recommended by the more responsible contributors on this site and others is time consuming and expensive. I have a chapter in the book I’m writing about the true cost of responsible chicken care based on the amount of money (it includes time) necessary to achieve this. The chickens here, despite being free range are expensive to keep.
The main concern in Kessel23 post is the distress and inconvenience to the human. It’s not a view I have any sympathy with.
