Please understand that shipped hatching eggs are a risk. I do my best with packaging, but once the eggs leave me, they are out of my hands. WE DO NOT GUARANTEE hatch rates. This is an investment, so do your research and do a few experimental hatching runs on cheaper eggs. 

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When you order hatching eggs and live shipped chicks and ducklings, you agree to the following shipping terms & conditions. There are no exceptions.  By making payment, you acknowledge that you have read and do hereby accept all terms and conditions contained in this Shipping Agreement.  Once you check out, you agree that this transaction is final. There are no returns or refunds. No exceptions. If you insist on canceling your order and we issue a refund, there is a 50% restocking fee. Additionally, you will also be placed on our "Do-Not-Sell-To" list. 

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For the past two years, we have been selling out very fast, so we have instituted "Pre-Orders" which allow you to place an order NOW for a FUTURE delivery date, which generates an invoice and holds your spot in line. We operate on an FCFS basis (first come, first serve), and the orders go out the same way they come in. We do not offer shipping dates but a window. All orders placed AFTER December 31, 2024, will NOT ship until SUMMER 2025. All orders placed after January 31st to Feb 1st will NOT ship until FALL 2025. Any order after Feb 1st will ship from Fall 2025 to Winter 2026.

We SELL OUT extremely fast whenever we open up orders. 

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We will contact you when your order is ready to ship. If you are not prepared to receive your order, you can skip your turn, and we can coordinate a better date. Please keep in mind that we are not a corporate hatchery. We are a small homestead and a one-person operation, so please be patient with your order. Do not message after you have placed your order asking, "When they will be shipped." The time frames for which orders will be shipped are on the Website Home Page (for example, we are currently taking FALL 2025 to Winter 2026 orders. This information is also located in the description of each product page. Please read how we care for our animals under "About Our Birds" and on our "About Us" page. We practice holistic husbandry and regenerative farming and do NOT vaccinate our animals. 
 

LOCAL PICKUP

As of March 5, 2025, we are no longer offering Local Pickup as an option. 
We will honor all orders that have been placed as local pickup. It takes more time to coordinate and drop everything to meet people. It is easier for us to ship. If you are going to pick up your eggs or chicks, we will need to coordinate a pick-up day, time, and location.

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SHIPPING INFORMATION

I only ship in the continental US.  All hatching eggs and chicks are pre-order items. I ship via USPS (unless otherwise agreed upon) using priority shipping. I double box ALL eggs and use egg foam shippers, which are included in the shipping price. We ship Monday through Saturday. 

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PRE-ORDER

All orders are shipped on a first-come, first-served basis. If you pre-order eggs or chicks in advance, you will receive them in the order you have placed your order. If you purchase/pre-order eggs or chicks in the winter months, we generally do NOT start shipping until Spring/Summer time when the weather is warmer. When you check out, you agree to the fact that it can take several months before you receive your order of chicks or eggs. We do not guarantee any time frames. We do not have control over how often the hens and ducks lay and how many eggs they lay. With this in mind, please be flexible. We do our best to get them out as soon as we can.

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You will be contacted within a few days of when we are ready to ship your order. If you cannot accept your order, please let us know as soon as possible so we can move to the next person in line and reschedule your shipment.

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All shipments are noted to be held for pickup at the post office. Please closely watch your tracking information. I will include your phone number on the package so they will call you to let you know your package is ready for pickup. Not all post offices provide the courtesy of contacting you. It is your job to reach out to your post office and discuss with them a plan to pick up your order. 

 

At the time of shipment, purchasers will receive an automated shipping confirmation email with a tracking number.

 

I try to be extremely careful when packing your eggs for shipment. 

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Broken/Lost eggs:

All eggs are shipped FOB Shipping Point.  All eggs are packed securely in foam egg shippers. That being said, if the post office loses or damages your package, all packages are insured for the purchase cost. YOU are responsible for filing a claim with the shipping service (e.g. USPS) to obtain a refund. We suggest taking many photos of any damage for a claim.

 

Once eggs are shipped, they are out of my hands, WE ARE NO LONGER RESPONSIBLE FOR THEM.  

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Unhatched Eggs:

We are NOT responsible for the hatch rate. The post office can be hard on eggs, and air cells are extremely fragile, especially in Cayuga Duck Eggs and Black Copper Marans eggs. Please read our Shipped Eggs Hatching Tips before placing your eggs in the incubator. We do our best to pack them securely, but if not delivered/handled with care (or if by some means delivered late), it greatly affects the hatch rate and is totally out of our control. I test hatch regularly from my pens with over 90% hatch rate on our olive egger varieties and 80% on our dark Black Copper Marans eggs. I am constantly looking for ways to improve hatch rates in these dark-shelled eggs.

 

Eggs:

I cannot guarantee egg color/hatch rates!

Keep in mind that I keep the deepest, darkest eggs for hatching and photos. Eggs naturally fade, so you are NOT getting the EXACT eggs pictured.

 

We hatch our eggs year-round to monitor fertility closely and ensure that our roosters are doing their jobs. However, hatch rates are not guaranteed, as there are too many variables with incubators and broody hens that remain beyond our control.

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Incubator Tips:

Make sure you have a good incubator that will hold and maintain accurate temperatures and humidity. Marans need very stable temperatures and humidity. Marans have thicker membranes and shells, which makes them considerably harder to hatch. Invest in an excellent incubator if you are focusing on darker-pigmented BCM-hatching eggs. After talking to many of my breeding buddies, I took the plunge and upgraded to a GQF Sportsman Cabinet and Hatcher Cabinet. I also highly recommend one of these incubators: Brinsea, Maticoopx30, or Chickcozy, because many people have great success hatching my eggs in these incubators. Some breeders love Hatching Time Cabinets. Whatever you choose, please run test hatches on cheaper eggs. Almost any incubator can hatch light-shelled eggs, the issue is the darker the shell the harder it is to hatch, even on olive eggs. 

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Please read our HATCHING TIPS to get a head start!

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SHIPPED LIVE CHICKS:

***As of March 5, 2025 we are no longer offering chicks or ducklings. Our hatching eggs are in higher demand than chicks, and it is impossible to do both chicks and eggs. 

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If your chicks arrive dead, take photos as soon as possible. Leave them in the shipping box, take good photos, and then email them to me along with your order number. 

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I now include peaches or applesauce for the chick's journey. You can purchase a heating pack for your eggs and chicks here.

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We ship USPS Priority Mail Express 3-Day and only ship on Mondays and Tuesdays. You will be required to pick the chicks up from the Post Office. Please do NOT leave them there. As soon as you get your call, get to the post office as quickly as you can.

 

Cancellation | Refunds

By law, we cannot ship chicks that are beyond one day old. Therefore, there are no cancellations or refunds. When the chicks hatch, you will need to be ready to receive them. Once you check out, there are no cancellations or refunds.If you insist on canceling your chick order, there is a 50% restocking fee. 

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All chicks and ducklings are straight-run

All chicks are sold straight-run. 

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Chick + Duckling Care

When you get your new chicks home, the first thing to do is get some raw honey (about 1 Tablespoon), crushed garlic (1/4 ts), and raw apple cider vinegar (1 to 2 Tablespoons) and mix all that in their water. If you have some fresh thyme, pull leaves off the stem and add that, too. Give them the raw honey for a few days. After that, continue with RACV, garlic, and thyme.

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Feed them as soon as you get them home and have a heat lamp or a heat plate warmed and ready for them to get under. I prefer using heat plates.

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They will not be ready for scrambled eggs at this point. I find that it takes about 3 weeks before my chicks will start noshing on scrambled eggs. Give them scrambled eggs as they grow. They love them, and they are super healthy for them. 

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I am a huge believer in adding herbs to their food. I add Scratch-N-Peck Cluckin Good Herbs to their feed. I give them Nature Crest GMO-FREE Chick Grower, and add in their GMO-Free 6-Way Scratch. I also like to add flax seed, sesame seed, kelp, herbs, and sometimes a variety of organic grains when available.  I buy the herbs in bulk to get a nice discount, and all my animals get these herbs. While they are expensive, I don't have any health issues with my flock. To me, that is worth the cost. Do what you can afford! 

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Other than that, I just give them lots of love and cuddles! 

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****IMPORTANT****

If you need to contact me regarding an existing order, please reply to the order confirmation email. This keeps all correspondence tied directly to your order so that I don't lose track of anything that we may agree on. Social Media Messages and direct emails get lost easily with the large number of communications I receive daily.

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Happy Hatching!!

Burberry Homestead