Local pickup and shipped hatching eggs are a risky purchase. While we are regularly incubating our own eggs to verify fertility and hatch rates, these are based on our own incubator’s environment and transporting the eggs from the coop to our incubator. Due to the variables in incubators, settings, and shipping and handling, we are unable to guarantee hatch rates/results or provide refunds or replacements. 

 

***Please ask any questions prior to placing a deposit or order.***

 

Variations from bird to bird and egg to egg are to be expected. In addition to genetics, egg color can be affected by extreme temperatures and time of year. Eggs laid at the beginning of the season can be considerably darker than eggs laid by the same birds right before they molt each Autumn. While we are striving towards Standard of Perfection (or breeding guidelines for our Silverudd’s Blue), this does not mean every bird we hatch out will be SOP. The expectation is to get approximately 1-7 SOP quality birds out of 100 chicks, and those SOP birds then become the breeders for future generations. Our goal is to continue improving our breeding stock year after year, but we do not expect every chick that hatches to be SOP, as that is not the reality for even the best breeders and show birds. 

 

Our goal is to provide you with the freshest hatching eggs possible. We aim to ship eggs that are only 3-4 days old. Each egg will be labeled for breed and collection date. All eggs are stored at room temperature, pointy end down, after collection until they are shipped or picked up.

 

As for shipping, we use USPS priority mail to ship our hatching eggs with estimated 2-5 business day shipping. We use high-density foam shippers to help our eggs arrive safe and sound. Our boxes are decoratively labeled in an effort to entertain postal workers into carefully handling these precious packages. 

 

We are only able to ship within the US to the 48 contiguous states, no PO Boxes. Reduced time on the roads is important for reducing the chances of detached air cells. On our end, we take hatching eggs straight to the Knoxville, TN regional USPS distribution center, and we will mark all orders for pickup at your post office to reduce more jostling than necessary. Please keep track of your tracking information to know when to expect a call as you will need to collect your eggs the same day they arrive. 

 

Our goal is to mitigate damage/trauma to the eggs, but the shipping journey remains risky for shipping live embryos. All shipped eggs have $100 insurance through Priority Mail. If your eggs/package arrive damaged, please contact the USPS to file a claim. We are not able to provide any returns, refunds, or replacements.