Frequently Asked Questions

Here are the questions we hear most often. If you do not find your answer, contact us and we will get back to you.

Ordering

Do you have a minimum order?

Yes, and it changes with the season.

May 1 to September 30. The minimum is 5 birds total. Mix and match freely across chicks, meat birds, ducks, turkeys, bantams, and guineas to reach it. Two Isa Brown, one duck, and two turkeys is a valid order. Pheasants have a minimum of 30 when ordered alone.

October 1 to April 30. The minimum is 15 birds for the whole order, any mix, and that includes French Pearl Guinea & Bantams.

Orders under 15 birds carry a $50 small order fee.

Minimums exist because day old birds keep each other warm in transit. A box that is too light does not hold enough body heat for them to travel safely, which is why the winter number is higher.

Can I pick up my order at the hatchery?

No. We do not allow visitors at the hatchery as part of our biosecurity plan, which protects our breeder flocks and yours. All birds ship USPS.

If you want to pick your birds up locally, order through Morren Feeds. They carry Townline chicks and coordinate the pickup at their facility. Orders for pickup have to be placed directly with them, not with us.

How much is shipping?

Shipping is based on how many birds you order and where you are located. Your shipping cost is calculated at checkout before you pay.

How do I check the status of my order or get tracking?

Your tracking number is emailed to you automatically when your order ships. If you do not see it, check your junk or spam folder first.

If you still cannot find it, call the office at 888-685-0040 and we will look it up.

Can you tell me what I ordered last year?

Yes. Log in to My Account on this site using the same email address you ordered with, and your past orders are there. You can also call the office and we will pull them up for you.

How do I request a catalog?

Request one through our catalog request form, or call the office with your name and mailing address.

Catalogs mail in early December for the coming season. You can also view the current catalog online any time.

Do you sell hatching eggs?

Yes, we sell Chicken Breed Hatching Eggs. The minimum order is three dozen.

Shipping and Arrival

How are chicks shipped?

Chicks are shipped through the United States Postal Service. USPS is the only carrier that accepts live birds.

Your chicks go to your local post office, and the post office will contact you to pick them up once they arrive.

When will my chicks ship?

Your chicks ship during the ship week you selected at checkout, on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday of that week. They go out the same day they hatch, usually within 12 hours.

The ship week is the week your chicks hatch and leave Townline, not the day they arrive. Most birds arrive one to two days after shipping, occasionally three depending on USPS handling.

My chicks were supposed to be here Monday. Where are they?

The week you selected is your ship week, not a delivery date. Your chicks hatch and leave us Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday of that week, and most orders arrive one to two days later.

Watch for your tracking email, and expect a call from your post office once your box arrives.

How long will it take my chicks to arrive?

Most orders arrive one to two days after they ship, and occasionally three days depending on USPS handling.

Why does my tracking say five days?

That is the default estimate on the USPS website and it does not reflect how live bird shipments actually move. Your box is marked as live animals and is handled ahead of regular mail. Expect your chicks one to two days after they ship.

Why didn’t my chicks ship overnight?

Live bird shipments follow their own handling rules that override the shipping method. The Post Office will not guarantee next day delivery on live animals even when a package goes express.

Will my chicks be delivered to my house?

No. Live birds go to your local post office and you pick them up there. We do this on purpose, because we do not want a box of day old chicks left on a porch when nobody is home.

The week of your ship date, call your post office and let them know you are expecting a shipment of chicks. They will call you once your box arrives.

Can my chicks be sent to a different post office?

In some cases we can ship to a General Delivery address at a different post office. Call the office before you place your order and we will see what we can do.

Where do you ship?

We ship to 49 states. We cannot ship to Hawaii, and we do not ship outside the United States.

Can day old chicks survive being shipped in the mail?

Yes. Just before it hatches, a chick absorbs the yolk from its egg, and that yolk carries it for about three days without feed or water. That is why day old chicks travel well, and why we ship them the same day they hatch.

We do not leave it to biology alone. Hydrogel cubes go in each corner of the box for hydration, with heat packs and foam wrap added in cold weather. Our boxes are built for ventilation, with extra holes that can be punched out in hot weather or kept closed in the cold. We watch the weather from origin to destination and adjust how many birds go in each part of the box and which birds travel together. Packing is done by experienced teams led by the owners themselves.

What is the green material in the box?

Those are hydrogel cubes. They are a clear gel that holds water, and they keep your chicks hydrated in transit without the mess or chill of loose water in the box.

What should I do when my chicks arrive?

Pick your chicks up from the post office as soon as they call, and have your brooder set up and warm before you go.

At home, dip each chick’s beak in the water. That teaches them where to find it and gets them hydrating faster after the trip. Keep fresh water and starter feed available at all times.

Inspect every chick as you unpack. If any arrived deceased, call the office within 48 hours.

If the chicks had a hard trip and seem lethargic or weak, put a spoonful of sugar in one quart of water and dip their beaks in that. Switch back to regular water after 24 hours.

Full setup, temperature, and behavior guidance is on our Baby Chick Care page.

Guarantees and Problems

What is your guarantee if my chicks arrive dead?

100% Live Arrival Guarantee. If they don’t arrive alive, call us within 48 hours and we will make it right. Count your chicks when you get them home.

Call 888-685-0040 with your order number and a count.

What happens if I get a rooster in a pullet order?

We guarantee 90 percent accuracy on sexing. Sexing day old chicks is skilled work and no hatchery gets it perfect, so on an order of 25 pullets you should expect one or two males.

If you receive more than that, call our office and we will refund the birds above the guarantee.

Straight run birds are not sexed at all and are boxed exactly as they hatch.

Why are my chicks dying?

Start with temperature, because that is the cause most of the time. Your chicks will tell you which direction is wrong. Huddled tightly under the heat and peeping loudly means too cold. Pressed to the edges, panting or holding their wings out, means too warm.

Then check that they can reach fresh water easily, that the brooder is out of any draft, that bedding is dry, and that they have room to move away from the heat.

Our Baby Chick Care page walks through brooder setup and week by week temperatures.

Call us at 888-685-0040. We would rather talk it through with you while you can still turn it around.

How do I reach someone, and what are your hours?

Call 888-685-0040 or email [email protected].

Vaccination and Feed

Do you vaccinate your chicks?

Marek’s vaccination is an optional add on service at time of purchase.

Marek’s is a highly contagious viral disease of poultry. No treatment is available, but current vaccines are highly protective. Whether to vaccinate is your decision, though if Marek’s has been present on your property before, we recommend it.

Chicks sold through retail stores are not vaccinated.

Do you recommend medicated feed?

That is your decision. Medicated feed is one way to guard against coccidiosis in young birds, and plenty of keepers raise healthy flocks without it.

What We Sell

Do you sell started pullets, laying hens, or older birds?

No. We hatch and ship day old birds only, and we do not have the coop space to raise older birds. When you see “pullet” in our catalog, it means a day old female chick, not a grown bird.

If you are local and looking for started birds, we recommend For My Daughters Farm, a farm that buys our chicks and raises them. You can also call the office and we will point you in the right direction.

Do you sell quail?

No, we do not carry quail.

Do you sell Freedom Rangers?

Not at this time. Our meat bird is the Jumbo Cornish Rock Cross.

Do you sex ducks or bantams?

No. Ducks and bantams ship straight run.

How do you sex chicks?

We use color sexing and feather sexing, depending on the breed.

Color sexing works on breeds that hatch males and females in different colors. Isa Brown is a good example, where the females hatch brown and the males hatch yellow.

Feather sexing reads the feather pattern on the wing, and it works only when the parent stock was bred for it. Our Cornish are feather sexed this way.

Every order passes three quality control checks before it leaves us, at the hatch table, at sexing, and again at packing.

Ducks, turkeys, guineas, and bantams are not sexed and ship straight run.

Do you sell supplies?

We carry vitamins and electrolytes and Aquastart.

What are your best egg layers?

Our strongest layers are Isa Brown, White Leghorn, Amberlink, Rhode Island Red, Barred Rock, and Buff Orpington.

Getting Started With Chicks

What do I need to get started raising chicks?

Our Baby Chick Care page covers brooder setup, week by week temperature, feed, bedding, and the warning signs to watch for.

What is the mixing ratio for the vitamins and electrolytes?

One packet of vitamins and electrolytes is good for 128 gallons of water, and the mixing ratio is one quarter teaspoon per gallon of water.

What should I consider before raising chickens in my area?

• Check for any local restrictions if you are in a suburban area.
• Define your goal. A colorful assortment, high egg production, or meat production.
• Determine how many eggs or how much meat you want.
• Assess your available space. Each bird should have around four square feet.
• Plan for predator protection.
• Make sure you have a warm, dry area to start raising chicks.

Raising Your Flock

Do I need roosters with my hens to get eggs?

You do not need roosters for hens to lay eggs. If you want fertile eggs, one rooster per 6 to 10 hens is sufficient. Some people also prefer to have a rooster around as a protector of the flock.

When will my chickens start to lay eggs?

This can vary by breed, though most hens will begin to lay anywhere from 18 to 24 weeks of age. Environmental factors and feed choices play a role as well.

How long do chickens typically live?

Chickens can live for several years, with layers averaging a lifespan of 3 to 7 years. Some chickens have been known to live up to 10 years. Egg laying is most prolific in the first year and tends to decrease each year after.

How much should I feed my chickens?

Egg layers go on chick starter at 20 percent protein from day one through week 5, chick grower at 18 percent from weeks 6 through 17, and layer feed at 16 percent from week 18 on. Add starter grit at 3 weeks, grower grit at 10 weeks, and layer grit with oyster shell at 18 weeks.

Hens kept indoors eat about 2 pounds of feed per week. Free ranging reduces the need for commercial feed, but it should still be available. Do not skimp on feed or egg production will drop.

How many nests do I need?

One nest box per 7 hens is sufficient. You can coax your chickens into laying in them by hanging them 18 to 20 inches from the floor and eliminating any dark corners in the coop.

How can I stop my chickens from pecking at each other?

Pecking is a habit chickens can pick up due to stress, feed deficiency, illness, or boredom among other things. Once it has begun it can be tough to fix.

We recommend using a red light bulb in the coop, which makes it more difficult for the chicken to see any bleeding that may have already begun. Place a head of lettuce or other chicken treat in the coop to give them something else to peck at. You can also have the beaks trimmed the next time you order.

Can I put new chicks in with my older birds?

We do not recommend putting new chicks in with an existing, older flock, as the older birds will tend to pick on the little ones. You can attempt to introduce them once they are similar in size, but keep a close eye out for pecking issues.

Can I raise other types of poultry with my chickens?

We do not recommend mixing turkeys, ducks, guineas, and other poultry with chickens. They require different feed and heat, and they can pass diseases to each other.

What is the difference between layers and broilers?

Layers are bred to lay lots of eggs. They typically start producing at about 5 to 6 months old, lay smaller eggs at first, and lay larger ones as they mature. Depending on the breed, a laying hen produces about 5 to 6 eggs per week.

Broilers, our Jumbo Cornish Rock Cross, are bred for rapid growth and reach 7 to 10 pounds in 6 to 8 weeks. They need a high protein broiler feed to support that growth. They are poor free rangers, they are heat sensitive, and they are not egg birds.

Can I raise my meat birds with my egg layers?

This is not something we would recommend. You can start the chicks out together, but you will quickly notice the growth rate difference, and your broilers may start to peck at or trample your egg type chicks. Broilers also require a higher percentage protein feed for optimum growth.

How much feed will I need for my meat birds?

The conversion rate is about 3 pounds of feed to 1 pound of gain on the bird.

Broiler chicks need broiler starter, not chick starter. Start at 23 to 24 percent protein for the first 4 to 5 weeks, then drop to 20 to 21 percent for the remaining weeks. After the first two weeks, put them on a 12 hours on and 12 hours off feeding schedule, which produces healthier broilers.

At 8 weeks, expect roughly 7 to 8 pounds on a pullet and 9 to 10 pounds on a rooster. Dressed weight runs about 80 percent of live weight.

When should I get my broilers butchered?

Jumbo Cornish Rock Cross mature in 6 to 8 weeks. Where you process depends on the size you want. Cornish hen size is around 3 to 4 weeks, a fryer around 5 weeks, and a roaster around 8 to 10 weeks. We do not recommend raising broilers beyond 9 weeks.

Weights are averages and vary with environment and feed.

About Townline

Where are you located?

Zeeland, Michigan. 4198 96th Avenue, Zeeland, MI 49464. Mail goes to PO Box 108, Zeeland, MI 49464.

Because of our biosecurity plan, we do not allow visitors at the hatchery.

Who is Townline, and how long have you been hatching?

Townline Poultry Farm has hatched poultry in Zeeland, Michigan since 1913, more than 110 years and four generations of the Geerlings family. We are family owned, and the owners are still on the floor every day.

Our parent and grandparent flocks live on separate farms with strict biosecurity between them, and every egg is hand gathered and hand graded right here in Zeeland.

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