SHIPPING & PICKUP AGREEMENT
We love what we do, and we hope it shows. We strive to provide our customers the best possible experience with our chickens, baby chicks, and hatching eggs. We are a small poultry farm specializing in beautiful chickens and eggs. So, by purchasing from us, you are getting the boutique experience. We work super hard daily as we manage a flock of over 300 cluckers with over 15 coops and breeding paddocks. We care about our flock and want you to be successful in adding our very unique and often one of kind genetics.
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I believe in being transparent and honest with our customers- really, that is the way life should be. The 2024 season was extremely rough on shipped-hatching eggs. In all our years of shipping eggs, we have never had the issues we encountered. I am blessed to have a great local post office. They have gone above and beyond to help me protect our packages and baby chicks. Unfortunately, they can only control parts of the shipping process.
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So, let's clarify what's going on with the United States Postal Service and Priority Shipping. The new regional distribution centers have large sorting machines. These machines were designed to sort packages as quickly and efficiently as possible, but due to their design, they are extremely rough on packages- especially those with fragile items such as hatching eggs.
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This poses a challenge for us. We spend a lot of time and money packaging our eggs. We use double boxes- foam, shredded/crinkle paper, and air pads to protect them from the harsh shipping environment. All of those efforts to get them to your home safely. It is enough to drive me crazy- because we put a lot of hard work into our chickens- to have our efforts ruined by shipping... ahhhh!!! I almost quit shipping hatching eggs altogether... but it is an affordable option for many folks who want our specialty genetics.
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*** If there is a breed you really want-- please consider Baby Chicks*** In my experience blue eggs are more fragile. We encourage you to consider baby chicks- the majority of our blue egg layers are autosexing- so that means we offer the option of pullets. The Marans and Olive Eggers are typically a heavier shelled and seem to do better shipping wise- the problem is some people have issues hatching these- -we really suggest looking at baby chicks to get what you want. ***
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I want you to be happy to with your purchase and have success with your flock.​​​​
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USPS recently updated their pricing on perishable items. Hatching eggs and baby chicks fall under that price increase. How does this impact our shipping? There is an additional $15 for shipping eggs as perishable on top of the priority shipping pricing. We are giving you two options- for hatching eggs. Option 1) This is the cheaper shipping option- which means we do not disclose that the items are perishable and ship via a flat rate of $35- but this option means you will not be able to file an insurance claim with the USPS. Option 2) This is via the new flat rate that discloses its perishable and you are able to file an insurance claim at a flat rate of $50. Both pricing options are up to two dozen. If you want more than two dozen then you will need to do a separate transaction. We only ship baby chicks via USPS Priority Express- this option had a slight price increase of $7.50. We feel it is the safest option for baby chicks. Our flat rate chick pricing up to 25 chicks is $75.00- this includes a Horizon Chick Box, Aspen pad, heat pad (if weather indicates need), gro-gel, and feed. Please feel free to contact me with any questions- as we are very transparent with everything we do.
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I will email with you within 24 hours of your order being placed to let you know we have received your order, where you are on the schedule.
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If you have a special need or request I can also send you an invoice- I will just need - what items you want to purchase, your mailing address, cell phone number and email address. This might be best for those with a bigger order or have special needs that the website just can't manage. Please feel free to message via FB, Instagram, on this platform or via email hellodarlingfarm@gmail.com​
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​Please understand that we will try to work with you if an issue arises after purchasing your eggs or chicks. Unforeseen circumstances happen, so we ask you to remain flexible with us as we try to work with your change. But, due to other orders, limited eggs, chicks, molting, and all the things that can happen, we may have to extend credit to you- for eggs or chicks later in the season. Please understand that, as a small business, refunds may have associated fees- you may be responsible for those associated fees.​​
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**If an issue lies on my end... no questions asked, I will refund you what you have paid. **
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​The nature of shipping is so unpredictable- we are not responsible for your hatching egg packages once they are dropped off at the Post Office. We have no control over your home environment or your level of expertise with the incubator- we offer no refunds or replacements on hatching eggs. By placing your order you are accepting that risk and understand those factors.
We have your packages held at your local post office for pick up. We do this for several reasons. The last leg of the journey can be the hardest. So, there is less chance of them getting scrambled. Also, if there is any visual damage, you can address it right away. We properly insure each package. You are responsible for filing all insurance claims directly with USPS-- if you need anything from us to support your claims, we are happy to send that information to you. We recently had some issues with packages and contents-- it almost looked like they kicked it like a soccer ball. So here are some keys to filing an insurance claim. It can easily be claimed on-line but you need to set up an account with USPS- which you can do directly from claim section. Please, make sure you take lots of photos of the damage and of labeling. Also- store packaging in a secure place. They may request you take it to post office continue claim. Once you file- you will get a written response if more information is needed.
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​​The method we ship-- you should never have a package delivered to your home. We choose the locations closest to you with the best service hours in your area. In the follow up email, I will inform you which post office you will be picking up your eggs. Once we send you your tracking information you are responsible for picking up your hatching eggs or baby chicks. More detailed information will be sent in the email that we send you after placing your order. If you are ordering chicks, please refer to that section. if your local or within driving distance- there is an option for local pickup if you choose that option. I will reach out to set up an appointment for pickup. There is more information below as well.
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We reserve the right to change these terms depending on the situation. For example- in the case of Avian Influenza (Yikes), which we have no control over, we will refund all orders. We will try our best to follow what you request. But we plan our season based on orders.​
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We value NPIP Certification and Avian Influenza testing-- anyone shipping eggs, chicks, or chickens should do their part. This is a small community, and disease prevention is essential. We have strict protocols in place to remain a disease-free flock. We are lucky that North Carolina is a state where testing is affordable. We understand that testing is so expensive in some states that it is impossible to test- the red tape can be frustrating. We do semi- free-range a majority of our flocks- that means they are exposed to all the grass, bugs, and lovely sunshine. This also puts them at risk for whatever the wild birds carry. We suggest a 30-day quarantine with our baby chicks with the rest of your flock as a precaution, as we recommend for any new members to your flock. ​
If you do not agree with any of our policies, please purchase your eggs locally. Our policies are firm no matter the circumstance.
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All chick orders are in the order they are received or via the month requested. I will contact you via phone and/or email to let you know your eggs are in incubator. We are a small farm-- we will do our best to make things run as smooth as possible. We ask you to remain flexible as we navigate multiple orders. All chick purchases will be picked up at post office or via scheduled appointment. We must have a working cell phone number. Once we ship you will receive an automated shipping confirmation email with a tracking number. We will only ship live chicks via Priority Express- we understand other hatcheries and breeders may not choose this option. But- we feel that lives deserve that higher level of shipping and protection. We have no control over which post office your baby chicks go to in your local area- typical it is the largest and the one that is open the most hours.
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We currently have chick minimums this is to reduce stress on chicks-- We have updated that policy to four chicks- but please understand we use bigger boxes- it makes more sense in shipping and cost to purchase more than four chicks at one time. Depending on your weather we may add extra chicks to help your order reach you safely-- . Please make sure you review chick selections as there maybe some restrictions to amount of chicks you are able to order based on breed. We have changed our chick boxes. We are currently using Horizon Chick boxes. These are pictured below. We love these and they only require us to use two zip ties to close and due to the way the top is angled nothing can be set on top of these chick boxes. UPDATED SHIPPING PRICES: USPS EXPRESS- $75 flat rate up to 25 chicks. As a basic standard of care we ship all chicks with heat packs (if its not too hot), gro-gel and feed. We try to reduce stress on chicks and there comfort is important. We recommend with shipped chicks that you have brooder, feed and water ready to go.... we like to use a heat lamp or put in our brooder with a thermostat heater to ensure they are warmed up properly.
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Local Pick up Chicks- We just don't want anyone to get lonely.... we require purchase of 4 chicks.
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While we hope all our chicks make it happy and healthy to you. We often send extra chicks if we have them. If that is the case please note we will not be refunding you for deceased chicks. Chicks must be picked up within 2 hours of them alerting you to the their arrival at the post office. We always add your cellphone number to be updated about your shipment via text so it should not be a surprise that they will be arriving. I get the updates as well-- as I like to keep tabs on all our live shipments,. Please plan ahead accordingly.
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So- if you have picked up your chicks within the two hours of the Postal Service update via text that they have arrived and we did not send extras or an equivalent value in the chick that did not make it.
We just ask you send a photo of the deceased chicks on arrival- along with box and contents. We will offer you a refund or a credit on a future purchase your choice. If you have any questions about our policies feel free to reach out. You will have my contact information- either from an email, text or both.
CHICKS
PICK-UP/SCHEDULED APPOINTMENT
We offer scheduled appointments for the pick up of local chicks and hatching eggs. Please note that due to our Bio-security measures associated with National Poultry Improvement Plan Certification these are done by appointment only. We do pickups directly in front of our farm at my father in laws. It is an easier location to find, get in and out of during bad weather and allows us to follow those biosecurity measures. ​
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We are working farm, we work around and schedule to accommodate pick ups. We often have everyone pick up on certain days so we are managing multiple pick ups with various times. We ask if you are running to late to let us know. Especially with baby chicks- we try to minimize stress and thus have a time frame we get them out of brooder, add heat pack and put in carrier. But, not only that we may have pickups back to back. We try to schedule them so their is no over lap and we can give each of our clients one-on-one attention. We like to review chick care with each customer. We work hard to offer these beauties for purchase- we value your time -- we expect the same from you.
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If you are planning on picking up- please scroll thru the shipping options and select farm pickup. (See photo below). We now are offering an option when placing your order that you can pay cash, venmo or zelle at pickup. You will want to select cash manual payment at checkout. We require a deposit on baby chicks if you are going to paying cash, venmo or zelle at pickup. We will send you an email within 24 hours confirming we received your order, if a deposit is required and pickup information. Please check your spam or promotions sections of your email. They have a tendency to go there...Thank you
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