We have been busy building new pens and shipping eggs and a few birds across the country. As we entered this new phase of our hobby, I went online to look for the proper way to ship. What I found was little to no information at all. If you go to the Facebook group Good Egg Bad Egg you will see poultry sellers shipping methods from great to OMG. It is obvious some people care and do their best to get eggs or birds to their buyers in the best condition. And then there are others that do not. If you have found this post, you are trying to do you best and properly ship your poultry through the mail. I plan on doing several posts to cover the different aspects of shipping. To start, lets take a look at what the US Postal system requires when shipping poultry.
Shipping Larger Birds
The first requirement is proper packaging. For shipping larger birds the box must be approved by the post office. You cannot just stick a bird in a large box, punch holes in it and ship it off. The air passageways must have a bio filter in them. The most common boxes used to ship larger poultry is made by Horizon. I get my boxes from a seller on Ebay named brucejones. He has Pinnon Hatch Farms and he offers just about everything poultry.
The boxes are not cheap, and this seller offers different packages to meet most shipping needs. You can buy a single box or you can buy in bulk. Since I do not ship a lot of grown poultry, I purchase three boxes at a time. I find I get a little better pricing and can keep some on hand and ready to ship when needed. The boxes will come with the bio filters, zip ties and handles. They just take a minute to fold into a box and they are ready to go, You can also order dividers so that you can ship two younger birds and keep them separate during transit.
When shipping anything other than younger chicks, the box must be sent Express Shipping. This is not cheap. I have found it will cost $60 to $90 just in the shipping. Add another $20 for the box and you can see there is a lot of money invested by the buyer before they even pay for the birds. As a seller, you must do your very best to make sure you ship properly to protect your buyers investment.
Shipping Chicks
I had so many requests for chicks that I bought some chick shipping boxes. When they arrived I was very disappointed. The cardboard was thin and flimsy and the tabs that locked into the holes to hold the box together often times were torn off. I also had issues with the top. It just sits there. You need to have some super long zip ties or cables, that no one tells you about, to secure the top. I still wasn't sure that would hold it in place and I worried about it crushing with the slightest weight applied to the top.
I could not imagine putting some of my beautiful chicks in one of these boxes and handing them to the Post Office. So I returned them and went looking for something else. Aside from the concern for the chicks inside, I was also concerned about how my "business" would be perceived. Though I do this for fun as a hobby, I still want to project a professional image to my buyer when they get their order. A cheapo box is not what I want a buyer to see after they spent a lot of money on chicks. I wanted something sturdy and something that presented me as the professional I am.
My searching led me to a little different box called Flock-Lock. The box is constructed of a thicker cardboard to withstand postal handling. It also has tabs that allow the box to be opened and closed several times. The ventilation holes are placed so that a label will not cover them. This shipping box is a little more expensive, but it is a very well designed box. I feel confident my chicks and my buyers investment will be well protected in transit.
Though it can be a little scary to think about shipping your precious babies across the country, shipping chicks and birds is easy and safe for the birds if you make sure to get the proper container to ship them.
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