I pray for our chicks while they are being shipped to us.
I believe God has blessed us for that with the good mortality rates we have.
The green gel provides fluids and nutrients to help the chicks while they travel.
We enjoy working with breeds on the Livestock Conservancy List in an effort to save and work with the more rare breeds. In the past, we enjoyed it when people visited and said, "I've never seen one of those before!"
To get the best odds of getting a pair with the least amount of investment, buy five. This has never failed me when I am trying to get a male and female pair.
21 Salmon Colored Faverolles 6 cockerels, 15 pullets
The spots on the heads are a marker to identify the cockerels.
Not only are these on the threatened list, but they are very versatile birds. I've wanted this particular breed for a while. They have some distinct advantages. The chicks are able to be sexed by feathers fairly early with a decent accuracy rate. That is important for sales and for separating the flock. They mature quickly and are a dual purpose bird for meat and eggs. They have five toed, feathered feet, and gorgeous plumage. Most people get hung up on how to pronounce their name.
6 sexed Toulouse Geese
While Toulouse geese are on the watch list, this wasn't our first choice. We have had Toulouse before and while we like them, we were hoping to work with a different breed. Our choice goose breeds were sold out. However, Toulouse do sell well and are enjoyable birds. Geese are wonderful guardians. They patrol the yard and help to keep predators away.
We only lost one turkey poult out of the entire order, but they sent us five extra birds (42 birds total), so we came out ahead. Hatcheries usually send extra in case of losses.
Ours came from Cackle Hatchery. We were pleased with the order even though our original hatchery given shipping date was changed which put us in a bit of a bind with our busy schedules and upcoming vacation. This is understandable because you can't possibly know what the birds will lay or what will hatch in the future. We had a little trouble confirming the second shipping date. It was also understandable since it was a hatch day so they were incredibly busy, and they are a growing company. When chicks arrive someone needs to be available to pick them up and watch over them the entire first day to make sure they are all eating and drinking. So you need to know well in advance when the chicks are coming so you can make the time to get them off to the best start.
