Dover, DE – After being stranded for days in a U.S. Postal Service truck without food, water, or climate control, thousands of baby chicks, quail, and geese have found new homes, the First State Animal Center and SPCA confirmed.
The birds, originally shipped from Freedom Ranger Hatchery in Pennsylvania on April 29, were meant for farms across the U.S. but were “misdirected” and abandoned in Delaware. By the time rescuers intervened, many had died—but about 10,000 survivors were nursed back to health over three weeks before being adopted into “no-kill” homes and rescue farms.
A Race Against Time
The Delaware Department of Agriculture was alerted on May 2 when postal workers discovered an “undeliverable box of baby birds.” The shelter stepped in, but the ordeal had already taken a toll.
Stephen Horst of Fifth Day Farm, affiliated with the hatchery, explained that while chicks can survive days without food due to residual yolk, the extended delay proved fatal for many.
Strict Adoption Rules & Ongoing Costs
Adoptions began May 13, with applicants required to agree to a no-slaughter policy. The shelter praised donors and adopters but is still seeking donations to cover $30,000+ in costs for feed, overtime, and diverted shelter resources.
Postal Service & Hatchery Respond
The USPS stated it has “100+ years of experience” shipping live poultry and is reviewing the incident. Meanwhile, Freedom Ranger Hatchery called the mishap a “postal service error” that disrupted small farms nationwide.
“We’re asking questions too,” said Horst, noting that subsequent shipments have gone smoothly.
