My experience with this order is fraught with difficulties…I ordered these eggs on 10/14, with a ship date of 10/21. I wanted to ensure I got some Silkies, so I placed a separate order on eBay and coordinated with that seller to ship my eggs on the same day (10/21) so they would arrive within a day or so of each other for incubation. Expecting to get an email from customer service on 10/22 with a tracking number, I instead got an email saying my order was moved to the following week (10/28). Since my eBay Silkies had already shipped the previous day, I had to buy a second incubator because Cackle Hatchery moved my order to the following week, costing me another $100. I was shipped 15 eggs for my 12 egg order. After 1 week, 3 of the eggs didn’t develop at all and were discarded. 11 of the remaining 12 hatched…1 had a problem hatching and didn’t make it. I was sent the following assortment: 2 – 55 Flower Hens 2 – Indio Gigante 2 – Black Copper Marans (1 didn’t develop) 1 – Barbezieux 2 – Ayam Cemani (1 didn’t develop) 1 – Bielefelder 1 – Schinjdelaar 4 – Silkies, Small White Cream (1 didn’t develop) About 4 days after the 11 eggs successfully hatched, I noticed a scuffle in my brooder. I work from home and had them sitting in my office to monitor them. One chick was going after another chick very aggressively…I picked the injured chick up and it had blood all around both eyes from the other chick pecking at it. I separated the injured chick from the others and put another small chick in with it to keep it company…The next day its eyes were swollen shut…I cared for the injured chick, giving it water and mashed food to try and sustain it until it was able to regain vision…Unfortunately, it died after about 5 days. I noticed another chick was getting picked on as well, and upon closer inspection, I could see that its feet were deformed and it was balancing and moving on its joint above the feet. It too has been separated and will likely require culling. A third chick is blind in one eye from being pecked on by the bully chick…After the last incident, I ended up culling the bully…I wish I could tell what breed it was, but after the eggs started hatching, it was hard to keep straight the different chicks and breeds… So of the 15 that were sent, 3 didn’t didn’t develop, 1 had to be culled for bullying, 1 died from the bully, 1 is blind in one eye from the bully, and 1 has a defect, whether that be from genetics, or some other factor is undetermined, but will also likely have to be culled…So I have 8 healthy chicks. In addition to the cost of the 2nd incubator, I also had to buy a second vial of Marek’s vaccination because it is only good for about an hour after mixing. That came to another $60 with shipping. So by Cackle Hatchery moving my order, I was out the $90 for the eggs, $100 for the second incubator, and $60 for a second vial of vaccine. $250 for 8 eggs…That comes to $31.25 per chick. Save your money and don’t buy this. 1st image is immediately after the attack…2nd and 3rd images are the chick in the following days with eyes swollen shut. (This chick died) 4th image is the chick with the deformed feet. (This chick will likely have to be culled)
