Perhaps I didn’t explain it well enough, too many posts on Facebook versus the entire story here, but as to my post of yesterday…
In NO WAY do I blame the hatchery. Millions of chicks have been shipped through the mail, probably ever since there has been mail!! I sent them an email, and they have replied. We will discuss the options tomorrow morning. I do not know of any closer hatcheries. Iowa is really not that far in this day and age. It’s not like I ordered chicks from Florida. They are shipped with a PRIORITY sticker. There are stickers with LIVE CHICKS PLEASE EXPEDITE on them. Healthy chicks peep. A lot. People knew what they were.
Is there a place I could buy them locally? Yes, the feed stores carry chicks. BUT NOT THE KIND I WANT. What do you do when a local store doesn’t carry what you want? You buy from Amazon, right? Why should I think there would be a problem when – again – thousands of chicks get sold like this every year. And guess what? Where do the feed stores get their chicks???? You think they have some broody hens in the back? Aha. Now, you’re getting it…
Is there faster shipping? Yes, but it is not standard because it has rarely been needed. My chicks I ordered two years ago came in a very timely fashion. UPS does handle chicks, but it is not a frequent event.
Let me say again, I was upset with the USPS because they took three days to get them from Denver to here. It is 7 hours away. I could have driven there and got them faster… and alive. They would have been expensive chicks, but I could have! But isn’t that why I am paying the USPS? It’s like the FedEX guy that asks me to deliver his packages for him. I’m sorry… BUT THAT’S YOUR JOB. If they can’t do it properly, all I ask is for someone to step up and water the poor chicks… opening mail is a felony, but I’m not pressing charges, and who’s going to convict?
All these questions are good and legitimate… hey, part of this blog is to educate about agriculture… and this has been an (unfortunate) education! I have not tried to sugar coat incidents, and so I felt like I could share this with you…
But.
Am I a bit snarky about this? Yes, since one person had to call me names over this incident, it irritated me. All I will say to them is…
“Well. Bless Your Heart.”
Find me here!
My feed store here in Statesboro GA will order the kind of chicks you want if they don’t have them. I wish yours would do the same.
Oh my heart broke for you and I was angry at USPS over it too. I have my issues with UPS just as bad as USPS…. Chicks have been mailed for YEARS…. Heck – USPS used to deliver CHILDREN to their Grandparents and back home! Don’t believe me? http://postalmuseumblog.si.edu/2013/02/very-special-deliveries.html Go see!!!
I dare say – the children would NOT survive today!
IDEA: just like there are puppy transporters, maybe you can find someone to help transport new chicks half-way, then you travel the other half-way to pick them up! The chicks would get personal care along the way, you’d get live chicks with only half the distance. A “win-win” – 🙂
Hope my kids have better luck with theirs, they ordered their’s at the Co-op here in Worland.
I tell ya…USPS is a mess right now. They have a contract with Amazon for some of their two day shipping (or x day shipping…I can’t recall exactly). USPS will mark it as “delivered” even though you have not received your package so that they meet their contract guidelines with Amazon. If you contact Amazon to let them know it is marked as delivered but has not been, Amazon will let you know that they are aware of this problem with USPS.
My mother worked for the post office and she absolutely hated when chicks came in because she could not tend to them. She could not. When something is sent thru the mail the sender is the one paying for it. The buyer has no say over the mail until they receive it. It really is not the fault of your local PO they had no choice unless they didn’t mind losing their job. Sending chicks thru the mail usually works, when it doesn’t it is heartbreaking.
Someone called You names over this?! Good gravy! That’s just bizarre! Anyone who wouldn’t be deeply disturbed and upset over losing all those chicks is beyond my understanding.
First of all, Carol, I, too, am sorry about the chicks. My mom got hundreds of chicks through the mail many years ago and did not have any wrecks like that.
You pointed out that this is about agriculture and I want to comment that getting freight is one of the biggest problems that agriculture has in these rural areas. You can ask and pay for next day delivery but hardly ever do you get it. The difference is that a bearing doesn’t die in transit but a lot of hay can be spoiled while you wait for it.
Carol my heart is breaking for the poor little chicks and for you too… Do you suppose this has any thing to do with the bird flu that caused millions to die last year… our local farm store has way less chicks this year and a much shorter season…