Txwild1
Hatching
Hi.
We've been using Ideal for almost ten years and have been incredibly happy, and have referred them to MANY of our visitors. However, I have not ordered from them in the past year and a half, so I cannot speak to weather there has been a disease outbreak or change in Staff. My experience with their customer service has always been exceptional. One suggestion, that maybe has already been mentioned, is that purchasing from breeders or hatcheries that ship causes stress to the chicks. If you do not take that into consideration, a new owner may experience massive loss. We use Gro-Gel B here for the first 48-72 hours with ANY new bird, and, of course, overhead heat lamps and brooder boxes or other covered or enclosed caging. The Gro-Gel B is, quite literally, a life saver. We even use it on our rescues now! Chicks are HIGHLY sensitive to even the slightest breeze so keeping them warm, and stress free is critically important. Ideal trained me when I first started by sending a care sheet. I had 100% success rates for all but one year, when I lost one chick (which they promptly replaced, adding about 20 random chicks so that the one that was replaced didn't have to be shipped alone). Needless to say, I was ECSTATIC and, frankly, stunned, with their handing of my situation. (They said it was because it was the end of their season, so that is not the usual response). All breeders, dog, cat, bird or other, face disease at some point. How they handle it with their effected customers determines their overall success. I would ALWAYS highly recommend Ideal, and if I experienced issues, I feel confident that they would make it right. I have not had such luck with other shippers. (McMurray comes to mind)
I hope this helps? I'm sorry you had a bad experience. In my experience, they are usually FABULOUS.
We've been using Ideal for almost ten years and have been incredibly happy, and have referred them to MANY of our visitors. However, I have not ordered from them in the past year and a half, so I cannot speak to weather there has been a disease outbreak or change in Staff. My experience with their customer service has always been exceptional. One suggestion, that maybe has already been mentioned, is that purchasing from breeders or hatcheries that ship causes stress to the chicks. If you do not take that into consideration, a new owner may experience massive loss. We use Gro-Gel B here for the first 48-72 hours with ANY new bird, and, of course, overhead heat lamps and brooder boxes or other covered or enclosed caging. The Gro-Gel B is, quite literally, a life saver. We even use it on our rescues now! Chicks are HIGHLY sensitive to even the slightest breeze so keeping them warm, and stress free is critically important. Ideal trained me when I first started by sending a care sheet. I had 100% success rates for all but one year, when I lost one chick (which they promptly replaced, adding about 20 random chicks so that the one that was replaced didn't have to be shipped alone). Needless to say, I was ECSTATIC and, frankly, stunned, with their handing of my situation. (They said it was because it was the end of their season, so that is not the usual response). All breeders, dog, cat, bird or other, face disease at some point. How they handle it with their effected customers determines their overall success. I would ALWAYS highly recommend Ideal, and if I experienced issues, I feel confident that they would make it right. I have not had such luck with other shippers. (McMurray comes to mind)
! The customer service was fantastic. I called in and mentioned I would be delighted with anything that peeps_ but wondered what I might expect this time of year and was told Black Australorps, Easter Eggers, Broilers, etc. Well, I asked if there was any possibility of a Rhode Island Red cockeral or Barred Rock cockeral and she told me she would make a note to the packers and she did, it was on my shipping label. Well, I have never raised a Black Australorp, but after looking the information up about them I was thrilled, they are gentle and docile (and they already seem to be)! Then to my surprise there was the Rhode Island Red - super thrilled about that
! We had a racoon last spring and it was devastating, took a trio of Barred Rock banty and several others, with us sitting up till 3:00 a.m. trying to figure out how and what was getting in, finally saw him squeezing in a tiny spot on the metal roof that we screwed down along with a zillion other screws just in case. Hope your failure to thrive chick pulled through? What breed are you goin to be getting? Rhode Islands are a favorite for us, but we have a huge Delaware cockeral that we hope to get a few Delaware pullet chicks for and raise just for him to have some from, kind of continue his legacy -lol
